Vietnamese conductor to lead French chamber music concert
The Ho Chi Minh City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO) will present a classical music concert, featuring chamber works by a number of well-known French composers, at the Saigon Opera House on August 14.
Hanoi (VNA) – The Ho Chi Minh City Ballet SymphonyOrchestra and Opera (HBSO) will present a classical music concert, featuring chamberworks by a number of well-known French composers, at the Saigon Opera House onAugust 14.
“Carnival of the Animals” will be led by Vietnameseconductor Le Phi Phi who is returning to Vietnam for the first time since theoutset of COVID-19.
Born in Hanoi, Phi graduated from the Vietnam NationalAcademy of Music and the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory with degrees in pianoand orchestra conducting. After his graduation, Phi became the assistant-conductorand the permanent conductor of Macedonian Philharmonic Orchestra in 2000.
He has taken tour concerts around the world to Russia,Bulgaria, Albania, Greece, Germany, France, Italy, and many others. He oftencomes back to Vietnam to conduct.
The event will also feature two solo pianists Nguyen ThuyYen and Pham Nguyen Anh Vu.
Georges Bizet's L'Arlesienne Suite Number 1 will open thenight. The suite consists of 22 items, some extremely short. Bizet himselfplayed the harmonium backstage in the premier.
Next comes Saint-Saens' Carnival of Animals, probably hisbest-known work. It is written for chamber orchestra and two pianos and has 14movements, often performed in a version for full orchestra. Its mostfamous movement features a solo cello and is called "the Swan". Eachmovement represents a different animal, such as a tortoise, an elephant, akangaroo and a cuckoo.
After the interval, there will be three more compositions,Faure's Pavane in F Sharp Minor, Saint-Saens' Dance Macabre and Ravel's Bolero./.
Conductor Le Phi Phi will return to Vietnam from Macedonia to conduct a concert featuring works composed by Johann Sebastian Bach on August 9 at the Opera House in Ho Chi Minh City.
Four Vietnamese artists will take part in a classical music concert featuring works by Mozart and Dvořák held by the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra (VNSO) on July 15.
For the first time, the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF) has granted Vietnam hosting rights for the two championships, including the Asian women’s solo category, which debuts this year as an officially recognised event.
Eight teams will join the tournament, divided into two groups. Group A features Vietnam, the Philippines, Sichuan Club (China), and Australia, while Group B consists of Vietnam U21, Korabelka Club (Russia), Taiwan (China), and U21 Thailand.
Despite strong home support and high expectations, Vietnam were unable to overcome the defending champions, who secured their third consecutive win over Vietnam in a regional final, following previous victories in 2014 and 2023.
The event, part of Vietnam’s cultural diplomacy strategy through 2030, was jointly organised by the Vietnamese Embassy in Venezuela and USM’s Faculty of International Relations. It attracted thousands of students from universities across Venezuela.
For the first time, Vietnamese audiences will have the opportunity to experience the ballet masterpiece "Don Quixote" in its original version by renowned choreographer Marius Petipa.
The contest carried deep meaning as it was the first time the life of Vietnamese women abroad had been highlighted as the central theme, said poet and writer Nguyen Quang Thieu, Chairman of the Vietnam Writers’ Association.
The event formed part of Vietnam’s ongoing campaign to seek UNESCO World Heritage status for the complex at the 47th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, scheduled to take place in Paris in July.
Creative cultural festivals are fast emerging as a new catalyst for tourism development in Vietnam, as localities increasingly invest in these vibrant events on a more systematic and larger scale.
This marks the first time Vietnam has hosted a continental-level Muay event which will feature competitions across 28 weight categories in combat and eight performance categories.
Coming to the Vietnamese booth, visitors had the chance to take part in a bamboo dance, a workshop on painting woven bamboo or rattan, or quizzes about Vietnam.
These are impressive achievements, not only showing the efforts and prowess of Vietnamese paddlers but also serving as proof of the sports sector’s strategic and systematic investment.
The cultural event in Canberra not only fostered cultural exchanges between Vietnam and Australia but also contributed to promoting Vietnam’s image internationally
The U23 competition will run from June 16 to 22, followed by the U17 event from June 23 to 28, while athletes competing in the U23 category will undergo weight and skill checks ahead of the matches starting June 18, while similar checks for U17 athletes will take place before June 23.
Vietnam continues to sit just behind continental powerhouses Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, China, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
The event served as a vibrant display of solidarity, promoting peace, cooperation, and development through cultural dialogue, and reaffirmed HCM City's role as a dynamic hub for cultural diplomacy and international friendship.
Vietnamese conductor Le Phi Phi. (Photo: VNA)
