"The Ben Tre Stance"

In 1980, the song "The Stance of Ben Tre" by composer Nguyen Van Ty was released and quickly captivated audiences nationwide.

In the 1980s, the smooth, emotional melody of this song resonated on both professional and amateur stages: "Who stands like a coconut tree's shadow, with long hair blowing in the wind? Is that the girl from Ben Tre who once walked through gunfire, like a raging flood? Oh, those people who created the Uprising!"

Composer Nguyen Van Ty.

After accompanying a group of musicians on a field trip to Ben Tre for songwriting, and gaining a deeper understanding of the "homeland of the Uprising," the "long-haired army," people's war, and the resilient fighting tradition of this coconut-growing region, in just one night,

Nguyen Van Ty has completed "The Stance of Ben Tre". The song has a rich Southern Vietnamese melody: "Whenever I go far away, oh coconut trees, I miss you so much / The orchards are full of fruit, the sea is full of shrimp and fish / I remember the long Ham Luong river, the familiar wharf / And I remember someone's long hair, still bearing the stance of Ben Tre."

Composer Nguyen Van Ty once confided: During the war, he volunteered to go to the South many times but was never allowed to. After 1975, he and his family moved to Ho Chi Minh City. It took him five years (1975-1980) to truly immerse himself in and learn the ways of the Southern people, becoming almost a genuine Southerner, which is why he was able to write "The Stance of Ben Tre," a song with such a distinctly Southern flavor.

Composer Nguyen Van Ty (1924 - 2019) was born in Vinh City, Nghe An Province, with his ancestral home in Vinh Lac, Vinh Phuc Province. During the August Revolution of 1945, he enlisted in the army and served as the head of the performing arts troupe of the 304th Division. In 1954, he moved to Hanoi to participate in the founding of the Vietnam Musicians Association, serving as a member of the Executive Committee and in charge of the Music magazine.

He is one of the most successful musicians in skillfully and artfully incorporating folk music from various regions into his compositions, leaving a profound impression on the public.

He is also known for famous works such as "Echoes," "Mother Loves Her Child," "Crossing the Ocean," "The Five-Ton Song," "The Soldier's Uniform My Mother Sewed Years Ago," "A Heartfelt Song from Ha Tinh," "She's Working in Credit," "The People Building the Ke Go Reservoir," "Springtime When She Goes to Nurture Children," "The Song of Vietnamese Women," "Seeing Him Off on His Journey," etc.

In 2020, composer Nguyen Van Ty was awarded the Ho Chi Minh Prize for Literature and Art for a collection of six works, including "The Stance of Ben Tre".

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/dang-dung-ben-tre-697319.html