What's special about the only female singer on the list of PGS 2025 candidates

According to the list of candidates proposed by the Council of Professors for consideration and recognition of meeting the standards for the title of Professor and Associate Professor in 2025, in the field of Culture - Arts - Sports , the interdisciplinary council approved 16 applications: 8 from the Culture sector, 5 from the Sports sector and only 3 from the Arts sector. Among these, Meritorious Artist Tan Nhan is the only female candidate, and also the only female singer on the list.

Meritorious Artist Tan Nhan, the only female candidate for associate professor in the arts industry.

Scientific and artistic works

Meritorious Artist Tan Nhan's main research direction focuses on professional vocal training, modern music education, combining theory and practice of performing traditional Vietnamese music.

To date, she has successfully guided 2 graduate students to defend their Master's theses, completed 2 basic-level scientific research topics and 1 ministerial-level topic. Her academic profile includes 14 scientific articles, including 2 published in prestigious international journals, along with 2 specialized books: Training high-quality Vietnamese Colorature Soprano voice and Improving the quality of teaching folk songs in professional vocal training.

In the field of art, Tan Nhan has 3/13 works winning national and international awards; owns 6 individual awards and 17 mentoring awards. She was awarded 2 Certificates of Merit by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism (2020) and twice won the title of Emulation Fighter at the grassroots level in 2018 and 2024.

From a village girl to Sao Mai singer and youngest PhD holder"

Singer Tan Nhan was born in 1982 in Ha Nam, has been involved in art and vocal training for many years. Coming from a poor rural area but passionate about singing, she studied at the Vietnam National Academy of Music and quickly made her name known from the Sao Mai 2005 contest, winning first prize in the folk music category and the TV Audience Choice award.

“I am luckier than many of my peers. While many of my friends finish high school and still don’t have a clear picture of the path they want to take, what they will study, what they will do… I have loved learning music since I was a child,” Tan Nhan recalls.

That passion was nurtured from the days she followed her cousin, Meritorious Artist Lan Anh to the conservatory, sneaking into the dormitory and nurturing a strong dream. After finishing 10th grade, she decided to take the entrance exam to the conservatory, always having a strong urge to study music.

Admiring masters like Trung Kien, Quang Tho, and Lan Anh helped her shape her path early on. “I formed a very early and clear awareness of the journey I needed to take in the future, which was to become an artist and a music teacher,” she shared. And as she said, that path has lasted for more than 20 years, without deviation.

After completing her master's degree in Classical Chamber Music, Tan Nhan became a lecturer at the Vietnam National Academy of Music, receiving her PhD in 2019, at that time the youngest female music doctor in the country. She was appointed Deputy Head of the Vocal Music Department in 2017, and then held the position of Head of the Department from May 2024.

In parallel with teaching, the female singer continuously released music products, organized live shows and especially focused on honoring national heritage through the albums Yem dao xuong pho, Niu dai lua dao... In 2019, she performed Tro ve - the first solo live show in her career, after a joint program with singer Tuan Anh in 2003.

In 2022, at the peak of her career, Tan Nhan suddenly lost her voice, at one point losing up to 80% of her singing ability due to exhaustion after giving birth and contracting COVID-19 three times. She was desperate, considering leaving the stage to focus on teaching and opening a training center. But after a period of perseverance, her voice gradually recovered and in 2023, she made a brilliant comeback with a concert celebrating 18 years of singing.

Aspiration to inspire: "People's Teacher is the destination"

Meritorious Artist Tan Nhan always emphasizes that the education and training career is more important to her than any stage glory. Many people have asked her if she had to choose between the title of People's Artist (NSND) and People's Teacher (NGND), which would she choose? Tan Nhan frankly said: her biggest wish is to become a People's Teacher. To her, NSND is the honor of an artist, but NGND is the real aspiration, the career destination.

“Being a people's teacher is much more important to Tan Nhan. Many people told me that as a famous artist, you should sing to earn money, why teach, it's so hard, the salary is not much. But I want to contribute to the training profession, because I want to guide students on the path of art," she shared.

Not only teaching skills, Tan Nhan also wants to pass on to her students her love of traditional music, what she calls "the fire in the heart".

“I want today’s young people, no matter how high and far they fly, to remember their roots, which are music and the traditional culture of the nation. From there, they can promote and preserve it. That’s why I always strive to do my best to research and study so that I can fulfill my dream,” she shared.

On the other hand, being both a performing singer and a lecturer also gives her an advantage. Thanks to her artistic activities, she quickly grasps the changes in the music scene in the digital age, from media platforms to new creative trends. That, according to her, has helped supplement practical knowledge in her lectures, creating the right orientation for students in the face of the strict requirements that the times place on artists.

Source: https://khoahocdoisong.vn/dieu-dac-biet-ve-nu-ca-si-duy-nhat-co-ten-trong-danh-sach-ung-vien-pgs-2025-post2149054139.html