Musician Lu Nhat Vu

Musician Lu Nhat Vu, author of many valuable research works on Vietnamese folk songs, the creator of famous songs during the resistance war against America to save the country, and after peace was restored, has passed away.

He is a gentle, calm, and approachable person who has made many great contributions to modern Vietnamese music in both areas: composition and collection and research. In his hometown of Binh Thuan, musician Lu Nhat Vu has left unforgettable impressions of a serious teacher in research and academia; an older brother but extremely close to the young musicians of the locality. There have been no less than 3 times when he accepted to participate in the Jury of songwriting competitions in his home province; the first time was in 1990 and the most recent time was at the end of 2014.

With his professional artistic activities, he was invited to come and infiltrate the actual composition for Thuan Hai, Binh Thuan with other famous musicians such as: Nguyen Van Ty, Phan Huynh Dieu, Ngo Huynh, Hoang Hiep... I first met him in 1980, when he was in the Ho Chi Minh City Artists' Group participating in the program "Celebrating the mountains and forests of the Grandparents, offering lithophones to the Party" in the Da Ban stream area of ​​Bac Ai mountain forest, An Son district. This was the time when Thuan Hai province discovered a set of ancient lithophones consisting of 15 large and small stone bars, kept by the Raglai ethnic group. The Provincial People's Committee held a solemn ceremony to present the aforementioned lithophone set to the Vietnam Institute of Music Research. In this program, I got to listen to artists from the Music Institute perform songs written specifically for Thuan Hai lithophone, including: Bac Ai, our hometown opens a festival to offer lithophone (composed by Nguyen Van Ty), Listening to the sound of time (composed by Huy So) arranged and orchestrated by musician Lu Nhat Vu according to the lithophone scale.

When participating in judging the songs, as the Head of the Jury, he always had very specific written comments, pointing out the advantages as well as the limitations of the works that were in the final round. Thereby, helping the authors draw valuable lessons in songwriting. In some cases, he also predicted the public's reception of the winning songs in the future, and the reality happened exactly as he commented. Let me add that at that time, the songwriting competitions did not require a demo, only a notation of the song including the music and lyrics of the contestant.

After peace was restored, he and poet Le Giang (his wonderful life partner) and some colleagues organized many field trips to collect folk songs from different regions of the Southern land. To do this well, he and his team had to be persistent, patient and focused on the national music treasure. Those who loved and admired his collection team affectionately called this "team" "Those who seek invisible treasures" or "Those who seek pearls". Every time he went to Phan Thiet for a vacation, he brought along newly published research works to give to me and to the provincial Literature and Arts Association as a precious spiritual gift from the previous generation.

Musician Lu Nhat Vu was born in 1936 in Binh Duong, graduated from the composition department of the Vietnam Conservatory of Music in Hanoi (1956-1962). He was Deputy Secretary General of the Ho Chi Minh City Music Association, Course 1 (1981), Secretary Member of the Vietnam Musicians Association, Course 3 (1983), Director of the Vietnam Institute of Culture and Arts in Ho Chi Minh City. The public will never forget the songs that made his name such as: Afternoon on the Meo Village (1961), The Saigon Girl Who Carries Ammunition (1968), Mother's Lullaby (poem by Vu Ngan Chi - 1976), Song of the Reclamation People (lyrics: Le Giang - 1977), Rest assured, Mom (lyrics: Le Giang - 1978), By the Statue of Uncle Ho (lyrics: Le Giang - 1978), Song of the Southern Land (lyrics: Le Giang - 1997)...

In the field of research, compilation and collection, he and Ms. Le Giang, together with authors Nguyen Dong Nai, Nguyen Van Hoa, Quach Vu, Thach An, Le Anh Trung, and Meritorious Artist Bich Huong, have published monumental works, especially valuable in many aspects, such as: Studying Southern folk songs (1983), Vietnamese folk songs in the South (1986), Music and Life (1989), Lu Nhat Vu's song collection (2000), 300 Southern Ly Melodies (2002), Ho in Vietnamese folk songs (2004), Vietnamese Lullabies (2005), Ly in Vietnamese folk songs (2006), Talking about poetry - talking about verses - Southern Poetry (2010), Liberation March (2011), Looking for invisible treasures (2014), Wandering in life's love (2022).

With his great contributions to the country's music, he was awarded the first State Prize for Literature and Arts (2001). He also completed the application for the Ho Chi Minh Prize for Literature and Arts, but age and illness forced him to leave this world at 9:30 a.m. on March 29, 2025, at the age of 90. Musician Lu Nhat Vu - the person who searched for gems to enrich the treasure of Vietnamese folk music, has passed away.

Source: https://baobinhthuan.com.vn/nhac-si-lu-nhat-vu-nguoi-di-tim-ngoc-da-ve-mien-may-trang-129114.html