Văn Cao (born Nguyễn Văn Cao, ; 15 November 192310 July 1995) was a Vietnamese composer whose works include ''
Tiến Quân Ca'', which became the
national anthem
A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...
of
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
. He, along with
Phạm Duy
Phạm Duy (5 October 1921 – 27 January 2013) was one of Vietnam's most prolific songwriters with a musical career that spanned more than seven decades through some of the most turbulent periods of Vietnamese history and with more than one ...
and
Trịnh Công Sơn
Trịnh Công Sơn (February 28, 1939 – April 1, 2001) was a Vietnamese, musician, songwriter, painter and poet. He is widely considered to be Vietnam's best songwriter. His music explores themes of love, loss, and anti-war sentiments during ...
, is widely considered one of the three most salient figures of 20th-century (non-classical) Vietnamese music.
He was also a notable poet and a painter. In 1996, he was posthumously awarded the
Hồ Chí Minh Prize for Music.
Career
After the ''
Nhân Văn–Giai Phẩm affair
The ''Nhân Văn-Giai Phẩm'' affair ( vi, Phong Trào Nhân Văn-Giai Phẩm) was a cultural-political movement in North Vietnam in the late 1950s. Two periodicals were established during that time, Nhân Văn (, ''Humanities'') and Giai Phẩm ...
'', a movement for political and cultural freedom in 1956, he had to stop composing. Most of his songs, except ''Tiến Quân Ca'', ''Làng Tôi'', ''Tiến Về Hà Nội'', and ''Trường Ca Sông Lô'' were prohibited in North Vietnam.
All of his songs were once again authorized in Vietnam until after the
Đổi Mới
(, ; ) is the name given to the economic reforms initiated in Vietnam in 1986 with the goal of creating a " socialist-oriented market economy". The term itself is a general term with wide use in the Vietnamese language meaning "innovate" or ...
, 1987.
In 1991, the American composer
Robert Ashley
Robert Reynolds Ashley (March 28, 1930 – March 3, 2014) was an American composer, who was best known for his television operas and other theatrical works, many of which incorporate electronics and extended techniques. His works often involve i ...
composed the solo piano piece ''Văn Cao's Meditation'', which is based on the image of Văn Cao playing his piano.
Works
Songs
* ''Bắc Sơn'' (1945) (song about , was originally written for the same name ''Bắc Sơn'' play of
Nguyễn Huy Tưởng
Nguyễn Huy Tưởng (làng Dục Tú, Từ Sơn, Bắc Ninh, 6 May 1912 – 25 July 1960) was a Vietnamese revolutionary, writer and playwright. He joined the independence movement at a young age and held positions in the cultural apparatus of t ...
)
* ''
Bài ca Chiến sĩ Hải quân'' (1945) ("Song for marines")
* ''Bến xuân'' (1942) ("Spring river dock", music by Văn Cao, lyric written together with
Phạm Duy
Phạm Duy (5 October 1921 – 27 January 2013) was one of Vietnam's most prolific songwriters with a musical career that spanned more than seven decades through some of the most turbulent periods of Vietnamese history and with more than one ...
)
* ''
Buồn tàn thu'' (1939) ("Sadness at the end of autumn", the first song of Văn Cao)
* ''
Chiến sĩ Việt Nam'' (1945) ("Vietnamese soldiers")
* ''
Cung đàn xưa'' ("The old tune")
* ''Đàn chim Việt'' (1944) ("Vietnamese flock of birds" - rewritten lyric from ''Bến xuân'')
* ''
Đêm sơn cước'' ("A night in the mountain")
* ''
Gò Đống Đa'' (1942) ("Đống Đa Mound")
* ''
Hải quân Việt Nam hành khúc'' (1945) ("Vietnamese navy march")
* ''
Hò kéo gỗ Bạch Đằng Giang'' (1941)
* ''
Không quân Việt Nam hành khúc'' (1945) ("Vietnamese air force march")
* ''
Làng tôi'' (1947) ("My Village")
* ''
Mùa xuân đầu tiên'' (1976) ("The first spring" - after
Reunification Day
Reunification Day ( vi, Ngày Thống nhất), Victory Day (), Liberation Day ( or ), or the official name Day of Southern Liberation for National Reunification () is a public holiday in Vietnam that marks the event when North Vietnamese and ...
, it was also the last song of Văn Cao)
* ''
Ngày mai'' ("Tomorrow")
* ''
Ngày mùa'' (1948) ("Harvest")
* ''
Suối mơ'' ("Dreamy stream")
* ''
Thăng Long hành khúc ca'' (Thang Long marching song)
* ''
Thiên Thai'' (1941) ("Eden")
* ''
Thu cô liêu''
* ''
Tiến Quân Ca'' (1944) (Army marching song)
* ''
Tiến về Hà Nội'' (March on Hanoi)
* ''
Tình ca Trung du'' (Trung du's love song)
* ''
Trương Chi'' (1943) ("Not a word but a name")
* ''
Trường ca sông Lô'' (1947) ("Lô river epic")
Poems
* ''Anh có nghe thấy không'' (Feb 1956) ("Do you hear?". Published in ''Giai phẩm'' Spring)
* ''Những người trên cửa biển'' (1956) ("People at the sea gate", Epic about people of Hải Phòng)
* ''Lá'' (1988) ("Leaves", poetry collection)
Paintings
* ''Cô gái dậy thì'' (Puberty girl)
* ''Thái Hà ấp đêm mưa'' (Rainy night in Thái Hà hamlet)
* ''Cuộc khiêu vũ của những người tự tử (1944) ("Dance of the suicides")
References
External links
Biography of Văn Cao
{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Cao
1923 births
1995 deaths
People from Haiphong
Vietnamese composers
National anthem writers
Nhân Văn–Giai Phẩm affair
20th-century Vietnamese painters