Where the "Highland Fire" Shines

“The Flame of the Highlands” is an emotional song, full of epic qualities, burning with love for the land and people of the Central Highlands. And above all, this flame will never go out in the hearts and minds of the ethnic people here. It is no coincidence that many people consider musician Tran Tien to be one of the representative faces of contemporary Vietnamese music, famous for his liberal, fiery and life-breathing compositional style.

It can be said that “The Flame of the Plateau” is one of the songs that has affirmed the unique style and creative personality of musician Tran Tien. The author of this article does not intend to analyze in depth the content, ideology and artistry of the song, but only wants to provide a little information about the birth of “The Flame of the Plateau” for music lovers near and far.

As someone who met musician Tran Tien and musician Pham Cao Dat before the song “Highland Flame” was released exactly 40 years ago, I am truly moved every time I listen to the song again or hear someone mention “Highland Flame”.

Singers and actors from the Dam San Music and Dance Theater perform the song “Highland Flame” in an art program. Photo: Minh Hung

I still remember, in early 1985, to prepare the content of the art program for the Dam San Art Troupe of the province (now the Dam San General Music and Dance Theater) to participate in the National Professional Music and Dance Festival, Mr. Trinh Kim Sung - Director of the Department of Culture and Information of Gia Lai - Kon Tum invited musician Tran Tien to compose and help the Troupe.

At that time, the Dam San Art Troupe was led by People's Artist Y Brom, and musician Ma Quang Ha was Deputy Head and Orchestra Conductor. To help musician Tran Tien understand more about the land, people and traditional culture of the ethnic groups in the province, the Department assigned musician Pham Cao Dat to provide necessary information when musician Tran Tien needed it (at that time musician Pham Cao Dat was in the business of collecting and researching) and arranged a Jeep driven by Mr. Ba Son to serve musician Tran Tien.

Because we studied together at the Vietnam Music School (now the Hanoi National Academy of Music), musician Tran Tien often came to "talk" with musician Pham Cao Dat to learn more about the folk music of the Central Highlands. The two of them enjoyed "talking" with each other over... rice wine and dried fish, boiled chayote with soy sauce. At that time, musician Pham Cao Dat and I were not married yet, so we lived together in a dormitory. We said we lived together, but in fact we lived in an office. Our offices were next to each other. Occasionally, musician Pham Cao Dat invited me to "serve drinks" to musician Tran Tien. When the wine went in, the music came out. Indeed, musician Tran Tien drank and sang enthusiastically.

After nearly a month of practical work in some localities in the province, musician Tran Tien wrote "The Flame of the Plateau". On the day of acceptance of the work, the Department of Culture and Information invited a number of outstanding musicians, artists and leaders of affiliated departments and offices to attend. After thanking the units, musician Tran Tien reported on the field trip and his creative ideas. He said in general: The Central Highlands folk music is extremely rich and unique. For a long time, this musical treasure has been exploited by many previous musicians, who wrote many very good and impressive songs. I am very happy that you trust me and entrust me with this noble mission.

The Central Highlands is a land of many historical and cultural values. Talking about the Central Highlands means talking about the land of gongs, cymbals, epics and folk festivals with flickering fires. The fire here is not just a simple fire but a symbol of indomitable will, love and aspiration… Then he hugged the guitar and performed the song he had just composed called “The Flame of the Highlands”.

After listening to musician Tran Tien perform “The Flame of the Highlands”, many people praised the song as very good and unique. In addition, many people said that the song was strange, did not have the sound and style of Central Highlands music and the author hardly mentioned any places in Gia Lai-Kon Tum. Another opinion said that musician Tran Tien mentioned the Ayun Pa River but in Gia Lai-Kon Tum there is Ayun Pa district (now Ayun Pa town) but not the Ayun Pa River...

Up to now, after 4 decades, “The Flame of the Plateau” has been successfully performed by many generations of singers across the country, notably the late People’s Artist Y Mon, singer Siu Black, singer Ngoc Anh, Meritorious Artist A Li Viet… And “The Flame of the Plateau” still resonates at large and small music and art programs, lingering in the hearts of music lovers. The fire in the song is not only a physical image but also a symbol of resilience, indomitability, love and aspiration. Gia Lai-Kon Tum is the land that inspired musician Tran Tien to write “The Flame of the Plateau”. Even though time passes, the love of people for that land, that fire, will never die out.

Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/noi-ngon-lua-cao-nguyen-ruc-sang-post319881.html