Advice from Miles Davis:
When you play music, don’t play the idea that’s there, play the next idea. Wait. Wait another beat, or maybe two, and maybe you’ll have something that’s more fresh. Don’t just play from the top of your head, but listen and try to play a little deeper. Don’t play what’s there. Play what’s not there.
Today is your last day being a baby bear. You’ll be off tomorrow and get to stay with grandparents for an entire week before join the growing giraffes. Snapshots of you were posted on the front door this morning and you weren’t crying when I dropped you off. This is a good sign and I hope that you’ll enjoy your new class and get to meet new friends.
A concert to commemorate 35 years since the end of the Vietnam War and remember the 9/11 victims. “Ode to Freedom” will present the Kyiv Symphony Orchestra and Chorus (KSOC), including around 100 professional musicians and singers from Ukraine, with participation of a community chorus from the Washington DC area and some Vietnamese singers from California.
When
September 11
6:30pm
Where
Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center
Northern Virginia Community College, Alexandria campus
3001 North Beauregard Street
Alexandria, Virginia 22311
Lineup
Afro Bop Alliance – ’08 Latin Grammy winning/Grammy nominees Latin Jazz
Jason Moran & the Bandwagon – Triple Downbeat ‘Rising Star’ winner
The Bad Plus – Explosive indie-rock & Jazz fusion band
Tierney Sutton Band – 2-time Grammy nominated vocalist & ensemble
When
September 11
1pm-7pm
Where
Gateway Park
1300 Lee Hwy
Base of Key Bridge
Arlington, VA
For more info, visit rosslynva.org
When I first learned that Thu Hoai was making her debut album with an acoustic jazz trio, I was very excited for her. I got nervous, however, when she told me the tunes she was going to cover including “La Chanson D’Orphee,” “Autumn Leaves” and “Cry Me a River.” These are great choices of standards, but would she able to pull them off? After listening to La Chanson D’Orphee, I am not alone. Thu Hoai was nervous as hell as well.
“Autumn Leaves” leads off the album with a bossa-nova groove. I heard Thu Hoai performed live a couple of times before, but never in such a constrained approach. She fluffs from French, English (even mixed the two) to Vietnamese and the band damn near drowns her out. Likewise, she struggles to connect to the musicians on “Besame Mucho,” another Latin flavor. The piano’s ostinato comping into instead of around her vocals. When she drops out, the drums and bass play stronger and tighter accompanying the piano solo.
Through her stilted flow and lacking of confidence on the title track, it is apparent that she is not from the school of jazz. She doesn’t possess the chops to improvise her ways through timing, phrasing and interacting with the band. On “Moon River” she latches on to the slow tempo and she recites rather than sings the words.
“Nang Thu” is the turning point of the album. Thu Hoai sings with much more confidence even the rhythm section kicks up a notch. She sounds at ease with the trio and her phrasing comes across much more natural as if she could feel the beat. Although she has also loosen up on the fun, up-tempo “‘S Wonderful,” it is her version of “Nang Thu” that makes me wish she had recorded the entire album reinterpreting Vietnamese compositions.
The intention of wanting to attract an international audience is very ambitious. No crime in that, but start from the core first before branching out. Even Shakira didn’t become an international sensation over night or with just one album.
A quick glance at the tracklist on Le Quyen’s Khuc Tinh Xua worried me. It would be a damn shame to witness one of my favorite female vocalists goes down Dam Vinh Hung’s path: fucking up classic sentimental ballads. As soon as I heard the first bar on the opening track, however, my worry was gone. Le Quyen not only didn’t let me down, but she also gave “nhac sen” an elegant makeover.
Le Quyen has learned the art of covering timeless golden tunes. She also understands the challenge of respecting the work and at the same time making each tune her own. In the leadoff track, Truc Phuong’s “Mua Nua Dem,” she bares her soul without being overemotional and expresses the lyrics without belting out her big, smoky pipe. In the second track, Thanh Binh’s “Tinh Lo,” she refined the tune to its core by stripping out the pathos and getting straight to the pain. She sings each word like she lives it. Her version of Hong Van’s “Doi Thong Hai Mo” is not just a threnody. She sings as if she also wanted to buried her soul next to the two graves.
From Y Van’s “Buon” to Tuan Khanh’s “Chiec La Cuoi Cung” to Anh Bang’s “Em Ve Keo Troi Mua” to Minh Ky’s “Tinh Doi” to Tran Thien Thanh’s “Han Mac Tu,” she makes these tunes fresh and “un-sen” with her gentle-but-grainy voice and soulful-but-never-schmaltz delivery. With the exception of the album closer, Anh Bang’s “Ngon Truc Dao,” which ruined by the dull beat, Khuc Tinh Xua is Le Quyen’s most consistent set yet. Some of the productions could benefit from simplicity, but Le Quyen’s voice is right on the money. She had demonstrated how classic ballads should be covered: thoughtful and tasteful.
Yesterday your teacher took our family photo (mommy, me and you) off the bulletin board in your class. The reason was that every time you looked at that photo you started to cry. What made you cry my dear? Did you miss us or something? We miss you just as much my dear and we always think of you when we’re not around you.
What puzzled me though was that last week you teacher told us that you proudly showed off the same photo of our family to other parents every time they come to pick up their kids. That was really sweet of you. I really love that photo because you worn a really cute red Vietnamese traditional ao dai aunty Tram made for you.
Speaking of photos, we took some pictures of you showing off your bad-ass haircut. Mommy thought you look like a punk and had lost your cuteness so she made me chopped it off. I like your bald cut too and she’s right you look very cute that way. Thank you for letting me play with your hair. Baby Miles is one of my favorite photos of you. You looked beyond cool. I made a big print last night. I hope that it will turn out right so I can frame it and post it on our wall.
Ho Quynh Huong has such a damn sexy voice that she could seduce me with almost any song. Her new release, Anh, is an instant poppy album that has not only one but two Duy Manh’s tunes. When it comes to Duy Manh music, I can’t even take it from the writer himself, yet Ho Quynh Huong managed to make hits out of them with her soulful, powerful delivery. It must be her smoky timbre that burned the sugarcoated melody and cut straight to the emotional core.
Ho Quynh Huong shows off her big pipe on Minh Ha’s “Tinh Yeu Mai Mai.” The huge pop ballad starts out soft but launches into a powerhouse. It’s the style that Bang Kieu loves to do, but hearing Ho Quynh Huong is a much more pleasurable experience. Still, I prefer to hear Ho Quynh Huong takes on something more bluesy like Minh Ha’s “Trong Co Don,” in which she skillfully maneuvers her way around the savory piano ostinato and light swing rhythm.
Quoc Bao’s “Quynh” should have been the album closer. Unlike the glossy, flossy hits on the album, “Quynh” is fairly minimal. The first twenty bars, with only an acoustic guitar backing her up, are simply gorgeous. While Tung Duong’s version on Quoc Bao’s Q+B is sensational in his own style, Ho Quynh Huong owns the track like she owns her middle name.
Before I rain on his happiness, let me be crystal clear that I am not only a fan of Nguyen Khang, but also one of his toughest critics. Given that Mua Tren Hanh Phuc Toi is his debut DVD, the effort is commendable, but there are still plenty of room for improvements. The concept could have been tighter. The song choice could have been better. The arrangement could have been simpler.
The concept was all over the place. It should have been more focused on either an intimate setting or all-out pop. The danger of pleasing everyone is losing them all. The song selection seemed to be coming more from Asia than Nguyen Khang himself. Sy Dan’s “Vung Bien Vang,” Vu Duc Tuan’s “Toc Ngang Bo Vai” and Quoc Hung’s “Vi Sao Em Oi” are the proof. The Nguyen Khang-Diem Lien duet was a disappointment. It sounded exactly like the recorded version. Arrangement wise, some could have been stripped down. Trinh Cong Son’s “Mot Ngay Nhu Moi Ngay” was definitely over arranged by Sy Dan. The minimal accompaniment like an acoustic guitar was all that needed to create the simple day-to-day life in Trinh’s lyricism. The mid-bouncy beat didn’t do the song its justice.
With all that said, there were some shining moments on the DVD. Tha Phuong’s “Dem Dai” was the highlight of the concert. Accompanied by Mai Thanh Son’s simple orchestration and backed up by Song Xanh group, Nguyen Khang gave a poignant performance. He had done an great job of articulating the mournful sentiment the songwriter expressed for his deceased wife. Although Thien Kim had popularized Duc Tien’s “Nguoi Dan Ba Di Nhat Mat Troi,” Nguyen Khang managed to make it his own just by singing it straight from his heart.
Y Van’s “Thoi” has been covered to death, but Hoai Phuong was able to reinvigorate it with a laid-back, finger-snapping, swing jazz. The thumbing bass lines accompanying Nguyen Khang’s gruff voice in the beginning was hypnotizing. This is along the line of what I was thinking of when I wanted to make a Vietnamese jazz concert: keep it simple, keep it cool. Van Phung’s “Toi Di Giua Hoang Hon” also got a mid-tempo, muted-swing treatment from Hoai Phuong. The thing is the arrangement had been used before in a medley “Ai Ve Song Tuong/Toi Di Giua Hoang Hon.”
The show closed out with Truc Ho’s “Se Hon Bao Gio Het” in an up-tempo Latin flavor. Sy Dan contributed the majority of the arrangements for the concert, but this one stood out the most. The bass was kicking and Daniel Vu dropped some tasty keys on the piano. It’s a nice way to end the show. If the poppy numbers were replaced with some jazz, bluesy or his signiture tunes, Mua Tren Hanh Phuc Toi would have been unforgettable.
After suffering the grimness of Asia’s Canh Hoa Thoi Loan, I was ready to be washed up by Thuy Nga’s Divas. Let me state upfront that I do not dislike Thuy Nga’s male singers, but I do prefer to watch an exclusive female show revealing as much skin as possible. What can I say? It’s the testosterone thing and the best part is that I can enjoy this guilty pleasure with my wife’s approval.
On the first disc, I could hardly pay attention to the music. In fact, I really don’t need to. I could have muted the sound and replace the music with Miles Davis’s Bitches Brew, especially with Bao Han’s wilding-out peformance. Even with all the male dancers dressed as drags, she stood out. That bitch was brewing up the scene. Since this is her last performance, her voice won’t be missed, but her stage presence definitely will.
Now I am not entitled to opine what women should do with their body, but I am glad that Ho Le Thu went under the knife for our visual stimulation. Both Nguyet Anh and Toc Tien looked fine, but Lord knows what they will look like an enhencement. I am not suggesting that they should. I am just saying. Nevertheless, Nguyet Anh looked pretty damn hot in that pink, flashy dress showing off her georgous legs. The carmeramen had done a great job of panning from her feet up to her thighs, then pause for a few seconds before moving up to her face. Not just Nguyet Anh, but most of the hot singers were filmed that way; therefore, camera crew has to be made up of men.
Except for a few performances, the first disc was purely for eye candy. Let’s be real. “Sang Ngang” was clearly over Huong Giang’s head. I doubt that she had ever been heart-broken. If she had, she wouldn’t even be anywhere near that suicidal stage. So even she sang with tears in her eyes, she couldn’t articulate the sorrow of the song. Still, the worse performance on disc one (and the entire program as well) goes to Phi Nhung who was so proud of her lame-ass idea of mashing up rap with folk music. The result was so wack that you just want to slap some taste out of her.
The second disc, on the other hand, had a few listenable moments and the MILFs get the prize hands down. Hot-as-hell MILF Thanh Ha reinvigorated Thanh Binh’s “Lam Lo” with a classy, jazzy rendition. Dam Vinh Hung damn near killed the tune with his “sen” phrasing, but Thanh Ha made it “un-sen” again. MILF Ngoc Anh gave a heart-rending, goosbump version of Pham Duy’s “Mua Thu Chet.” This tune has been covered countless of time, but only Ngoc Anh could revive Julie’s classic version. Her gruff, throaty voice went beyond mourning (more like cremating) the death of autumn. Finally, MILF Y Lan gave an elegant version of “La Vie En Rose” and she looked like a true diva.
Speaking of true diva, people weren’t satisfied with the show that labeled “Divas,” but featuring many faces that haven’t reached that stature. I don’t disagree with that even though Nguyen Ngoc Ngan gave a disclaimer right in the beginning that the show represents divas of the past, present and future. Although I doubt that many of these female entertainers would reach that level, I could careless about the label. What disappointed me though is that the real diva didn’t show up. That’s right, my diva Bang Kieu didn’t make it on the program. Vocally, Bang Kieu could outdue any diva on that stage. He just needs to pull a Ly Tong stunt and no one would have noticed.
There have been speculations that Paris By Night 100 will be Thuy Nga’s last show. If that’s true then I wish the production best of luck with whatever comes next. If it is not true then I wouldn’t mind seeing a sequel of this show. I would love to see how Thuy Nga would top itself. If Asia could manage to push propagonada further and further with each release, Thuy Nga could push for more skins. After all, it’s a great way to save cost on customes. Blame it on the piracy. Thuy Nga could put out as many diva DVDs as the production desires, but please don’t ever ever ever put out a show for the divo. No offense to the fellows, but just the thought of seeing Duong Trieu Vu on stage is a bad idea.
