Guitar saved me
Reporter: Because of the professional and passionate way you play on stage, I think about the formidable, silent efforts of artists in general and guitarists in particular?
An Tran: Effort is minimal for the artist. Just like the shadow of self-doubt is always a constant thing for an artist no matter how famous he is. Skeptical thoughts about your talent and yourself can always arise from somewhere. But when it comes, I learn to accept it, see it as part of the performance, which helps me get really excited and sublime on stage.
An thinks effort in practicing to gain confidence is what accounts for 90% of success, the rest is luck.
Reporter: Fans knew the difficult times and thought they had to give up the guitar dream of a Vietnamese boy in America. Ultimately, what does the guitar mean to An's life?
An Tran: Yes, that was the time when An went to the US to study high school in a small city in the state of Nebraska. There was no guitar teacher there, and there was no guitar in the music subject. Meanwhile, looking around, the American youth team plays the guitar very well, appearing in all European and world tournaments. An began to get bored and miserable because he had to stay silent with his guitar and thought that he no longer had the chance to learn guitar, he was not good at it...
By chance, one time when they were visiting friends in Chicago, the graduate students introduced a friend to guitar lessons and through that they connected with a guitar teacher named Anne Waller. She heard and assessed An as having potential and advised him to attend a summer camp. But with the tuition fee of 2000 USD at that time, it was a problem for An. Then somehow, with the help of her parents and everyone, An was able to continue the semester and found herself to be the best-rated student among more than 10 students at the summer camp. Ms. Anne Waller also continued to teach An for free after the course.
Guitar lifted An up during an important turning point in a foreign country.
— AN TRAN —
Before that, when he was a teenager at home, the guitar was the world for An to live in and find comfort. Like many other children, An is often compared, because when he was in school, every subject was average. My parents even let me try out many sports like soccer, tennis..., piano, drawing, singing... but nothing stood out.
When I was 8 years old, I started learning guitar from a cousin and realized that I seemed to have a talent because when I practiced, it was very easy and I answered my lessons faster than learning other subjects. For the first time in An's life, she saw something easy. Just told my parents: I like this, I want to learn guitar. When she finds something that helps her assert herself, An practices even more. And the more you practice, the better you get. At the age of 10, he took the entrance exam to the conservatory and got the highest score. At the age of 12, he won first prize in the national guitar competition. At this time, his parents believed that he had some ability and decided to let An follow a professional path.
That's how Guitar and An met! But in the twists and turns of life, it must be said that the guitar saved An.
Reporter: Now that you are a teacher, and thinking back to those stages that we often call turning points, teachers must have been an important catalyst that brought guitar back to An?
An Tran: An always thought that she was lucky because on her way, many people stopped to help her. In particular, teachers not only give me knowledge and skills but also give me ways of thinking. In fact, a disoriented and confused teenager meets a guitar instructor who praises him: "You are talented and capable", then that opens up a path for you, a great hope.
In his third year of university, An studied command with German teacher Tom Zelle. Every practice session during the week, teachers and students meditate together, have dinner and the teacher listens to An's sharing, helping An look straight at her most painful problems to overcome them. Many times I sweat when practicing, but if I don't identify and destroy the obsessive thoughts inside me, I won't be able to play the piano well.
For An, the fact that the teacher shared with him and supported the students mentally had great meaning, more important than the teacher teaching An the guitar.
Reporter: And has this been spread to generations of An's students?
An Tran: There is nothing better than each person trying to be better every day. Because once we are better, those who come into contact with us will also have a better influence and this world can become more beautiful thanks to that. An always thinks like that, so standing in front of students who come from many different countries, sometimes I become a psychotherapist before being a piano teacher.
There is a reality, especially after covid-19, that almost all of our students are teenagers who have suffered trauma from the pandemic and just talking is enough to feel their injuries.
Not to mention, guitar playing has long been influenced by stereotypes, which have become invisible walls that prevent players from expressing themselves in creative freedom. Listening to the sound of the piano, you can see that many students are "stuck", not only in Vietnam, but also in America. If you play like that, you will always be copied by others. You are playing for others, not for yourself.
And for teachers, the important thing right now is to break down each person's own wall with the students. An still told the kids: "If you can't break it, you'll never be able to play for free. If you can break it, then you're you, you share what you have, and whatever everyone else thinks, I'll let it all out."
Teacher Tom Zelle taught An a different way of listening to music. And An also wanted to listen to the music of his students in a different way.
Hands carry pho, fold books, play the piano
Reporter: Living in America is certainly not a simple story, and do piano players ever have to make a living?
An Tran: An used to serve pho but after two days... he was fired because they said "this guy can't do it, he's too slow" (laughs). While in high school, An also participated in guitar competitions and brought home a number of state awards, thanks to which he received certain support from the school to continue his studies. In addition to teaching piano, while working as a graduate student, An also worked as a book stacker in the library. This job is not criticized for being slow and it even helps An have time to relax and think about his next path.
Reporter: Effort to work and practice is inevitable, but specifically, how does that necessity happen? I'm curious about taking care of the hands that dance on the strings with such intensity?
An Tran: Hands and nails are the "voice" of the guitarist. If the nails are strong and thick, and the tips are scratch-free, the guitar's sound will be beautiful and the artist will be more confident. An always carries a nail care kit with her and takes care of them every day, no less than a nail artist (laughs).
On the occasion of recording An's second guitar album, there was a part in one song that was recorded over and over until his little finger bled. And that was just the morning of the second day, while recording for 3 consecutive days from 9am to 12pm. At that time, An had to buy a tube of anesthetic and bleeding medicine so that his little finger would lose the feeling of pain and continue playing the piano.
An had to find a tube of anesthetic, stop bleeding leave the little finger loss of pain sensation, continue playing the piano.
Reporter: An's working day?
An Tran: Last day, going to have breakfast and drinking coffee at Bo Ho, for the first time after 4 years in the US, returning to Hanoi, An felt like she didn't have to think about what to do this afternoon, what time? A day in America is truly a series of endless hours and work. I wake up at 6 a.m., take my wife to work and I drive to teach. There is Truong An that runs about 230km round trip, going in the morning and coming back in the evening. On days when I don't have a teaching schedule, I wake up at 7:6, go to the gym, and do other work. An usually doesn't eat breakfast. At 7-1 o'clock, have dinner with the family and play with the children for 2-10 hours. At 2 p.m., I go down to the basement and close the door to practice until XNUMX a.m. After every practice session, An always does two things: Write down tomorrow's tasks and put coffee in the machine so you can just turn it on in the morning.
Reporter: And what does family time mean to the artist?
An Tran: Sharing work with family is obvious. An often cooks and Lucina – An's wife, spends a lot of time taking care of the children. The baby and the family bring a new source of energy to An. Seeing her baby makes her smile and An doesn't seem to remember anything about her previous life. Everything starts from here! (laugh).
Of course, family life with a baby always has challenges. But we will find a way to make arrangements when two people understand and support each other every day in life. An still remembers that when my baby was only 2 weeks old, I had to leave home to record my second album. And ever since I found out I had a baby in my mother's womb, I've been thinking about how to make the sound of the piano more beautiful, to bring better things to this life.
Reporter: And how did the first album come about?
An Tran: 2019 is the time when An thinks about starting to record a record.
The original plan was to record classic guitar songs, but there was a voice of concern that always appeared inside me... 3 months before the time to record, An was working part-time stacking books at the University library (high school). average 7 hours/day). While arranging, I thought about what I should do for the world's guitar life and not just play classic songs forever. While arranging, I suddenly thought, why don't I introduce Vietnamese guitar music to the world? So An ran home and started this project.
Reporter: A fan of An in Vietnam shared that she bought the album "Stay, my beloved" from An's crowd funding project and was really impressed with the image and the passionate guitar sound...
An Tran: An is always grateful to such listeners! This project initially only hoped to reach 7000 USD, but unexpectedly it reached 10.000 USD. An always thinks, if you do something you really love, people will stand by your side. “Stay, my beloved” is also a guitar album full of An's family imprint. The cover is a photo that An's father took in a mountainous area of Vietnam. Disc title "Dear people, don't come home!" It's also the name of the song that my mother thinks An plays best.
The introduction pages in the shirt all have pictures of An's family and especially the drawing of the red curved The Huc bridge with reflections in the water, which An's wife drew as a gift with the message of connection and future. cooperation between the traditional cultural capital from the place where An was born and the world where An contributed his musical instrument.
Promote the creation of Vietnamese guitar music
Reporter: With such great support from family and listeners, An will surely have the next albums and new guitar dreams?
An Tran: An's dream is to record an album that receives high praise, such as a Grammy Award. For now, An has signed a contract and continues to record records for Naxos. After this Vol.7 about French music, there will be a record of Vietnamese guitar music.
Next, An will focus on playing songs that Vietnamese musicians wrote specifically for themselves, connecting foreign sponsorship sources directly to musicians, pushing Vietnamese guitar music to the world, creating a guitar platform. new, a new stream of music for the world's guitar life...
Reporter: There must be a strong concern and motivation for this great idea?
An Tran: An always wondered that the treasure trove of Vietnamese guitar arrangements was already more or less available. My job was to become a bridge for cultural exchange between world audiences and Vietnamese musicians. Remember, when he was young, An only dreamed of playing the guitar song Thanh Giong composed by musician Nguyen The An. The 7-movement piece can be considered a milestone of Vietnamese guitar. Therefore, to record his first album "Stay, my beloved", An was determined to practice for 3 months to bring this Vietnamese melody to the world.
Reporter: What challenges does the world's guitar life present?
An Tran: Classical guitar music shows nowadays are often only attended by the elderly. If artists don't change the way they teach and continue to manipulate, they will harm themselves. The loyal audience will leave one by one. It's okay to have no one to listen, but gradually there will be no more people to learn.
The fact that an artist can play all the most difficult guitar songs in the world is just proof that he has met those high requirements. To maintain and contribute to the development of the world's guitar, we need new creativity and inspiration. People are gradually realizing that teaching guitar is not just a professional degree is enough, nor is playing technique everything, but deeper, behind it is the ability to suggest a path, overcoming difficulties. limits to help the learner's sound really rise and reach far.
To maintain and contribute to the development of guitar, the world needs: creative, a new way to evoke inspiration.
— AN TRAN—
Reporter: Returning to Hanoi guitars, how meaningful is the international guitar festival to the capital's guitar world?
An Tran: Around 2012, the idea of reviving the guitar in Hanoi by some Vietnamese artists attracted world-class artists to participate. Although 2023 is the first year An arranges to attend the international guitar festival in Hanoi, it can be said that the formation of this playground will become the history of Hanoi guitar. Even in America, it is not easy to create such a playground, because this activity really takes a lot of effort and money.
An still told artist Vu Duc Hien - the person who connected and created this meaningful activity that looking at what he and the guitarists are doing gives hope for Hanoi's guitar life in the next 10 years. Because this type of music is quite picky about listeners, starting now, allowing the younger generation to interact more with world artists, will be 10 years from now when we will have international awards. Musical activities are for long-range satisfaction, decades of years, and thinking like that to overcome immediate difficulties and limitations.
Returning to Hanoi is returning home. Get off to the airport, touch The scent of soap bars in the airport is An already want to hug all the colors and flavors of this land.
Returning to Hanoi is returning home
Reporter: How does An feel when returning to Hanoi this time?
An Tran: Really, for the first time, I felt like I had everything, the best guitars in the world, sponsored strings, and I also partly achieved my dream of playing in many international playgrounds. An now feels very peaceful...!
In particular, returning to Hanoi is returning home. Arriving at the airport, touching the scent of soap in the airport, An wanted to embrace all the colors and flavors of this land. Walking on the sidewalks of Hanoi, weaving between shops, amidst the noise of motorbikes, is still a wonderful thing for An! Because every time I return, my heart feels so full, I see the love and acceptance of the Vietnamese audience that I could not have imagined.
The mind returns to plans good then it will make me always look at everything fully grateful.
— An Tran —
The mindset of returning to good intentions will make you always look at everything with gratitude. And An never forgets the people and things that helped her reach peace today!
Reporter: Thank you An! Wishing An always peace and continue to reach his beautiful guitar dreams!
Publication date: 1/1/2024
Implementation organization: HONG MINH
Content: HA AN
Present: NGOC DIEP
Nhandan.vn
