I am standing in the middle of the lecture hall today.

Composer Tan Huyen's real name was Phan Van Tan. He was originally a literature teacher in Zone 4 – a free zone during the anti-French resistance. He belonged to the generation of musicians who emerged during the anti-French resistance and made significant contributions during peacetime , especially during the anti-American war for national liberation.

Composer Tan Huyen was born on April 5, 1931, in Duc Tho, Nghe Tinh province. Like many composers of his generation, Tan Huyen participated in the resistance war, worked in cultural and artistic propaganda in Nghe An , and composed songs; later, he worked as a researcher at the Music and Dance Department before joining the Vietnam Musicians Association.

Musician Tan Huyen

Tan Huyen's songwriting talent was evident from an early age. At that time, every student in his hometown knew his song "The Moon Returns" (1948), a dreamy, romantic yet innocent and lovely piece. By 1950, Tan Huyen had a song that truly became widely known and popular: "Remembering My Homeland." The song has a graceful and free-flowing melody, depicting a very poetic and affectionate countryside. "Remembering My Homeland" is one of the finest songs about homeland in the treasury of Vietnamese songs from the resistance war against the French.

After peace was restored, Tan Huyen attended many songwriting training courses to pursue a professional career. Many of his later songs, imbued with the folk music of his homeland, Nghe An, won the hearts of listeners, such as: "The Song of Nghe An" (1965); "Alone with the La River"; "Nostalgia for Nam Dan". Many of composer Tan Huyen's songs are deeply imbued with love for his homeland and country, such as: "Every Step I Take Makes Me Love My Fatherland More" (1965); "The Road to the Mine" (1968); " Hanoi on the Heights of Victory" (1972); "Our Vehicles Travel Through the Truong Son Mountains at Night" (1972); "You Stand in the Lecture Hall Today" (1976); "Returning to Cao Bang" (1983)...

It can be said that Tan Huyen was a dynamic and hardworking musician who traveled and wrote. He was present at the forefront of life, from the borders to the islands, from the highlands to the plains… Everywhere he went, he left behind compositions that bore the distinct mark of each region and field…

Regarding the theme of education, composer Tan Huyen wrote "I Stand in the Lecture Hall Today." He recounted that during an opening ceremony at the University of Education, he met a very pretty new student from the countryside with eyes as clear as the autumn sky, which deeply moved him. "I Stand in the Lecture Hall Today" was born from this experience, a song about the teaching profession, specifically about a female student studying to be an educator: "I stand in the lecture hall today / My heart overflows with joy / From a girl from the city's suburbs / For months and years I have dreamed / To fly with my sisters and friends to the vast horizons of science..." Coincidentally, and also fortunately, the first and best singer to perform the song was Quynh Lien – a teacher at the University of Education. She sang it from the heart, from her profession, and with her love for it.

The song "I Stand in the Lecture Hall Today" by composer Tan Huyen was selected for audience commentary in the "Music Lovers Comment on Music" segment of the November 2002 YCTG music program.

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And one of the entries submitted to the program was from Pham Hong Thinh, a student in the Literature A class, K42, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi. He wrote: “Soon I will be saying goodbye to the university lecture halls. The road to the future is wide open, waiting for me. At this moment, the song “I Stand in the Lecture Hall Today” by composer Tan Huyen plays. Listening to the song, I feel as if I am hearing the voice of my own soul.”

Pham Hong Thinh continued: “The melodious, soaring tune and the rhythmic, clear lyrics, like the very soul of the character in the song, lead the listener into a world of joy, faith, and dreams. She – the teacher “standing in the lecture hall today, her heart overflowing with joy” – looks back at the past, into the present, and towards the future. Her past is yesterday, when she was a young, diligent student with a beautiful dream of “flying with her sisters and friends to the horizons of science.” Her present is now, when she “has risen to become a teacher in the new era.” That is the joy and happiness not everyone has. Her future is tomorrow, when she will be like a bird soaring into a new horizon, the horizon of youthful aspirations that never cease to reach. Time passes, generation after generation, she will be a teacher again, and her students will begin again with the joy of “standing in the lecture hall” just as she is today…”

Composer Tan Huyen's contributions have been recognized with awards from the Central and local Literature and Arts Associations, various sectors, and organizations: the State Award for Literature and Arts, 6 awards from the Vietnam Musicians Association, 1 first prize from the Ministry of National Defense, 4 Ha Long Awards, 3 Red Phoenix Flower Awards, and 3 Hanoi Awards. He was awarded the Second Class Labor Medal and the First Class Resistance Against America Medal.

Source: https://vov.vn/van-hoa/am-nhac/em-dung-giua-giang-duong-hom-nay-ca-khuc-hay-ve-nguoi-giao-vien-post1136550.vov