How does musician Quoc Dung's talent surprise his juniors?

At the beginning of the article, Vo Thien Thanh mentioned a touching story: "I still remember that Quoc Dung told the story of his life, that he loved Paul Mauriat so much that he wrote a letter to him. He wrote just that, without any hope of a reply. But suddenly one day, he received a reply. Paul Mauriat himself wrote the letter to Dung by hand, each stroke of the letter. He was so surprised and happy. It turns out that masters often show us a great personality, through seemingly trivial things. The true story of musician Quoc Dung showed me the intensity of his passion for learning and explained why his arrangements are always valuable down to every intro (prelude), every chord he placed, every tone he chose, always in the right place. It's like a math problem with many solutions, but his "solution" is always the best."

Musician Quoc Dung. (Photo: TL)

Vo Thien Thanh recounted that when he was a high school student in the coastal area, he often went to a coffee shop just to listen to Go Cong music cassette tapes that musician Quoc Dung mixed with songs by musicians Hoang Phuong and To Thanh Tung, sung by Bao Yen and Nha Phuong. "I kept wondering why the intro of many songs was so good. Quoc Dung's arrangements always had intros that could not be replaced or separated, the musical instruments were used gracefully and could not be more reasonable. Try listening to Chieu ha vang (Golden Summer ) again (Nguyen Ba Nghiem), you will see that the intro is indescribably good!" - musician Vo Thien Thanh shared.

An interesting thing about musician Quoc Dung that also surprised musician Vo Thien Thanh is that he studied Western music , but was a master at harmonizing Vietnamese folk melodies: "That "master" does not mean having to bring all the folk music materials in so densely, to prove that it is folk music, Vietnamese quality. He is a master at dissolving into a sweet honey that is gentle enough to be able to paralyze those who love Bao Yen's lyrical folk music, regardless of which region they come from. This makes me think of the "Vietnamese quality" in Pham Duy's music: A skillful blend and permeation, as natural as breathing".

Musician Vo Thien Thanh. (Photo: TL)

Musician Vo Thien Thanh also mentioned the outstanding composing journey of musician Quoc Dung, he affirmed: "Musician Quoc Dung is a pioneer with songs of modern and youthful style in the post-liberation period. Remember the years from 1978 to 1998, listeners often had three segments to choose from: Pre-war music, revolutionary music and foreign music, then Mr. Dung's Homeland, Love and Youth and Spring Chorus resounded throughout music venues and coffee shops, as representatives of the youthfulness and aspiration of Southern youth music".

At the end of the article, musician Vo Thien Thanh once again reiterated his respect and gratitude for musician Quoc Dung: "Somewhere, perhaps Quoc Dung is meeting Paul Mauriat, a gathering place of masters with a calm, kind and humble demeanor. Perhaps for Dung, Paul Mauriat is a master. But for me, he is a master that I always admire, respect and consider him as an example for me to follow on my musical path. Many of us who are working in the profession are being influenced by him, a respected master who has just passed away."

Musician Quoc Dung passed away at 9am on September 24 at his home in Ho Chi Minh City at the age of 72. At noon on September 25, his family said goodbye and took his coffin to be cremated in Binh Hung Hoa (Ho Chi Minh City).

Source: https://danviet.vn/tai-nang-cua-nhac-si-quoc-dung-khien-dan-em-kinh-ngac-nhu-the-nao-20230925102101782.htm