Famous singer Minh Canh cried when returning home to sing after 18 years.

Famous singer Minh Canh sings "Vo Dong So, Bach Thu Ha". Video : Mai Nhat

Ho Chi Minh City Famous singer Minh Canh, 86 years old, cried at his first reunion with the audience in a live show on the evening of July 15, after 18 years of settling in the US.

The program also marked the first live show in his singing career, after more than 60 years in the profession. At 8:30 p.m., after the introduction of the program's host - director Gia Bao, the velvet curtain opened, Minh Canh sat on a chair in the middle of the stage, moved by the audience's applause.

The artist had difficulty moving and needed help because he fell nearly a month ago. However, he tried to stand up and move closer to the audience seats to get a better view. When Kim Tu Long - a guest of the live show - said that many fans from Hanoi and Hoi An (Quang Nam) came to Ho Chi Minh City to meet him, Minh Canh burst into tears.

"I was touched by the audience's enthusiasm, by the producer's efforts to make a live show for me, to preserve Cai Luong and also to give us artists a chance to meet each other," Minh Canh said.

The show recreated many typical scenes and excerpts from the famous singer's career . At the beginning, he and Kim Tu Long performed the ancient song Vo Dong So Bach Thu Ha (composer Vien Chau) - the work that made Minh Canh famous. Despite his weak health, he still maintained a good voice with his characteristic vibrato, steady breath, and precise rhythm.

Sometimes, because he was so absorbed, he forgot about his painful leg and tried to move on stage to "float" along with the lyrics. In the classic "Xuong Co" part, he was continuously applauded by the audience: "Oh my God, because of being defeated in the middle of the battlefield, Vo Dong So had to say goodbye to Bach Thu Ha forever."

In the second part of the program, Minh Canh performed the excerpt Luu Binh - Duong Le. The cai luong play that once brought him to the peak of fame with the 53-word vọng cổ verse. From the role of Luu Binh, he laid the foundation for the slightly long vọng cổ singing style, influencing many generations of juniors. The famous singer invited two juniors Thanh Tuan - Duong Le's role and Ngoc Huyen - Chau Long's role to perform with him. After many decades, due to his age, Minh Canh's vọng cổ part in the performance had to be shortened. However, when he sang, many viewers exclaimed "wow" at the resonance and clarity in his voice.

The final act was the play Bao Gong Trial of Quach Hoe , re-enacted from the famous recording before 1975. Appearing at the end of the play, he made an impression with the majesty of an honest and upright mandarin. At times, absorbed in his role, he waved his arms too much, almost falling. The original work was marked by the singing of Minh Canh - Bao Gong, with artists My Chau, Thanh Tuan, Thanh Kim Hue, Chi Tam. When re-enacted, he acted with many junior artists such as Chi Linh, Thanh Hang, young singers Vo Minh Lam, Nha Thy.

Minh Canh (left) sings a duet with artist Kim Tu Long. Photo: Mai Nhat

In addition to his singing style, Minh Canh conquered everyone with his gentle and charming way of communicating . When asked about his health, "Is everything okay?", he joked: "Today, I performed indoors, not outdoors, so I probably can't see the stars." The famous singer was touched by the way the audience still showed their love for traditional singing. He remembered the saying of artist Chi Tam - a close friend: "Wherever there is traditional singing, there is still Vietnamese origin."

Many artists were moved to see Minh Canh return after decades away from home. Thanh Tuan said that since he first started his career at the age of 15 or 16, he followed Minh Canh on tour. To this day, he still remembers the image of "big brother Minh Canh" often going to the communal house to teach the younger brothers how to sing, perform martial arts moves, and swordplay to perform swordplay plays. Later, Thanh Tuan continued to follow Minh Canh to sing everywhere. The famous singer once played the main character, he sang second, thanks to that, Thanh Tuan was taught "countless things".

Kim Tu Long said he got "goosebumps" and tears when he heard Minh Canh sing. Despite the nearly 30-year age gap, he often calls the famous singer "Anh Hai" out of intimacy and admiration. "When my generation is over 80 years old, how many people can sing like him?", Kim Tu Long said.

Minh Canh plays the role of Bao Gong (sitting) in the play "Bao Gong judges Guo Huo". Photo: Mai Nhat

Hundreds of spectators cheered on Minh Canh as he performed and sang for three hours. Sitting in the front row, audience member Thu Van (33 years old) said she was with her mother and grandmother. Her family bought tickets a month in advance as soon as they heard Minh Canh was returning to the country because they admired him since the 1970s and 1980s. "Listening to him sing, I understood the inner strength of the Cai Luong artists of the golden age. In addition to his characteristic long breath, he also had a very skillful way of arranging words, which is not easy for future generations to imitate," the audience member said.

Minh Canh's real name is Nguyen Van Canh. He was born into a poor family with many children in Cho Lon, Saigon. He had a difficult childhood and had to struggle early to make a living, such as collecting scrap metal, selling orange cakes and fried bananas. In 1959, Minh Canh, who loved to sing reformed opera, was taught vọng cổ by Mr. Hai Si, and then taught to sing amateur opera by violinist Van Duoc. In 1960, he joined the Kim Chung troupe.

In the 1960s and 1970s, he became famous for singing vọng cổ melodies by the late composer Viễn Châu such as Võ Đông Sơ, Lương Sơn Bá, Mưa tren phố Huế , Sầu vương ý nhạc, Chương xe lam chiều, Lưu Bình - Dương Lễ , Trái sầu riêng (with Mỹ Châu ), Nun và Kiếm sĩ (with Diệu Hiền). He founded a troupe and performed the main roles, shining brightly with the cải lương plays Bến cầu vọng the, Mạnh áo quê ngheo, Bích Vân cung kỳ án, Trinh nữ lầu xanh, Loi tho tren huyet , from which he was hailed by the press at the time as the "emperor of vọng cổ".

Minh Canh created the long breath singing school when he did not sing vọng cổ with the characteristics of clear words and solid rhythm. Many people took his stage name as Minh Minh Canh, Minh Canh Em, Minh Minh Tam, Minh Tieu Canh, Minh Long Canh, Tuan Canh, Minh Canh Hung, Canh Minh, Canh Thang, Canh Hieu. In 2005, he immigrated to the US.

Vnexpress.net

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