Top ten culture, sports and tourism events in 2010

Vietnamese film director Dang Nhat Minh (R) was honored in Los Angeles, US by the US Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Photo: Tran Hoang Anh

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Thursday announced ten outstanding cultural, sports and tourism activities in 2010 for Vietnam including president Ho Chi Minh’s 120th birthday and the Hanoi millennium anniversary.

Following are top ten events in 2010:

1. The US Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences honored Dang Nhat Minh, renowned Vietnamese director of “Don’t Burn” in Los Angeles November 10

2. Cultural and fine art activities to celebrate the 80th founding anniversary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, late president Ho Chi Minh’s 120th birthday, the 65th anniversary of the August Revolution and National Day on September 2 and the 80th anniversary of the Vietnam National United Front

3. Cultural, sports, and tourism activities marking the grand celebration of the Thang Long-Hanoi millennium anniversary including the biggest-ever parade held at Ba Dinh Square on October 10

4. The Saint Giong Festival and Soc Temple in Hanoi recognized by UNESCO as humankind’s intangible cultural heritage

5. Vietnam hosted some international cultural and sport events for the first time including International Fine Art Photo Exhibition, International Film Festival, International Piano Contest, Miss Earth 2010, and the Thang Long-Hanoi International Football Cup

6. The sixth national sports festival

7. The Vietnamese sport delegation bagged 33 medals including at five Olympics sport events for the first time at the 16th Asian Games, Guangzhou, China

8. Vietnamese disabled athletes secured 17 medals, ranking 11th out of 42 delegations at the first Asian Para Games in Guangzhou, China

9. Vietnam warmly welcomed the 5 millionth international tourist - Chinese auditor Zhou Zhing who was presented with gifts, a medal, a return ticket for the trip, and a Hue-Da Nang tour for two

10. Vietnam launched the tourism promotion campaign “Vietnam – Your Destination”, aiming at attracting foreign tourists to Vietnam and promoting domestic tourism. The country’s tourism industry has received more than 5 million visitors from abroad and is estimated to earn more than VND100 trillion (US$5 billion)

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Airline magazine published in Japanese

HA NOI — Heritage, the Vietnam Airlines inflight magazine, began publishing a Japanese edition on Wednesday to serve passengers on flights between Viet Nam and Japan.

The magazine, in its 10th year of publication, is considered a bridge to introduce Vietnamese culture and fashion to international friends.

Mister Viet Nam pageant final begins

HA NOI — The final round of the Mister Viet Nam 2010 pageant will take place in the southern city of Vung Tau tomorrow and will be broadcast live on VTV9 and VTV4.

Thirty contestants are competing in such categories as Mister Gentlemen, Mister Sports, Mister Talent, Mister Environment, and Mister Knowledge.

Viet Nam Television and the Bac Dau Entertainment Co have co-organised the pageant with an aim to find a winner who represents Vietnamese men who are confident, fashionable, strong and elegant.

The winner will receive a cash prize of VND750 million (US$38,500) and represent Viet Nam in the Mister International 2011 competition to be held in the Philippines.

Researchers digitise Thai ethnic script

THANH HOA — A project to compile fonts for the ancient script of the Thai ethnic group has been approved by the central province of Thanh Hoa.

The project will be carried out by the Thanh Hoa Informatics and Media Centre with the aim to popularise the use of the Thai language.

The specialists will also research the differences between the scripts of the Thai in the province and elsewhere in the northwestern region of the country. — VNS

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Anti-hunting film wins green movie award

HA NOI — A film featuring the illegal hunting of wild animals won a special prize at the fourth Environmental Film Festival held in Ha Noi on Wednesday.

Le Hoai Phuong received VND30 million and the Viet Nam Green Award for his documentary Toi Ac Rung Xanh (Crime in the Forest).

The film depicts hunting activities of wild animals in Binh Thuan Province.

The film's topics and visual effects have left a strong impression on the jury and audiences.

To make the film, Phuong and his staff spent three years following and working with illegal hunters, who agreed to the filming but asked the director to conceal their faces.

"Phuong's work condemns people who destroy forests and hunt wild animals. His film's message calls on people to protect and keep the world and environment safe from disease," said Bui Dinh Hac, veteran film director.

The VND20 million first prize was shared by Vuong Duc for the movie Rung Den (Black Forest), Gia Hung for the documentary Ngu Ngon Thoi Nay (Modern Fable), Trong Hoa for the investigating report Thien Tai va Nhan Tai (Natural Calamities and Man-Made Calamities), and Nguyen Nhan Lap's cartoon Meo Vat (Small Trick).

Ha Noi-skilled director Duc's Rung Den is a quality film that attracted young audiences back to the cinema after its release in 2008. It featured young actors such as Kieu Chinh and Thach Kim Long.

The film described the tragic lives of people who destroy forest land.

Viet Nam Green winner Phuong said that making films featuring environmental problems was not a new experience in Viet Nam.

"Through our work, we hope audiences can learn about saving the natural world and have a visual treat as well," he said.

Organised by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and its partners, the Viet Nam Cinematography Association and Viet Nam Television, this year's national Environment Film Festival attracted 131 entries, including 70 investigating reports, 35 documentaries, 18 science films, four films and four cartoons. — VNS

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Japanese print maker exhibits in Hanoi

A katazome print of a railway line in Hanoi by Japanese artist Toba Mika - Photo: The organizers

An exhibition of katazome paintings, called “Nara and Hanoi – Linking Eternal Capitals” by Japanese artist Toba Mika will be at the Temple of Literature and Vietnam Art Museum in Hanoi from January 6-25.

The katazome exhibition will commemorate Hanoi’s 1000th anniversary and Nara City’s 1300th anniversary.

The Japanese artform is a method of dyeing fabrics using a resist paste applied through a stencil, something similar to Indonesian batik.

Toba Mika came to Vietnam in 1994, after traveling through other South Asian countries. She has painted around 100 Vietnamese landscapes and has had exhibitions in Hanoi in 2003 and in Hue in 2005.

In this exhibition, Toba Mika will introduce 35 paintings, mostly Vietnamese landscapes. She made prints of small streets in Hanoi, riverside houses in HCMC, urban scenes and tropical landscapes, which Toba Mika calls her own ‘world heritages’.

The prints show houses lining railway lines, walls scribbled with numbers and words and dimly lit slums.

After appearing in Hanoi the show will move to Yakushi-ji Pagoda in Japan.

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Japanese print maker exhibits in Hanoi

A katazome print of a railway line in Hanoi by Japanese artist Toba Mika - Photo: The organizers

An exhibition of katazome paintings, called “Nara and Hanoi – Linking Eternal Capitals” by Japanese artist Toba Mika will be at the Temple of Literature and Vietnam Art Museum in Hanoi from January 6-25.

The katazome exhibition will commemorate Hanoi’s 1000th anniversary and Nara City’s 1300th anniversary.

The Japanese artform is a method of dyeing fabrics using a resist paste applied through a stencil, something similar to Indonesian batik.

Toba Mika came to Vietnam in 1994, after traveling through other South Asian countries. She has painted around 100 Vietnamese landscapes and has had exhibitions in Hanoi in 2003 and in Hue in 2005.

In this exhibition, Toba Mika will introduce 35 paintings, mostly Vietnamese landscapes. She made prints of small streets in Hanoi, riverside houses in HCMC, urban scenes and tropical landscapes, which Toba Mika calls her own ‘world heritages’.

The prints show houses lining railway lines, walls scribbled with numbers and words and dimly lit slums.

After appearing in Hanoi the show will move to Yakushi-ji Pagoda in Japan.

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Feudal-time stone and bronze instruments revived

THUA THIEN HUE -- The South Korea's Centre for Traditional Performing Arts has just handed two replica sets of music instrument, which had been used under feudal reigns in Viet Nam, to the Hue Relics Preservation Centre.

The sets include 12 bronze (locally named as bien chung) and 12 stone bars placed in order of different levels of tones (bien khanh), which have been said to be originated in ancient China, then transferred to some Eastern Asia countries including South Korea and Viet Nam.

The bells are cast with a hook on the top of each for hanging. There are four parallel emerged lines circling the bell's body. There are nine small buttons over the bell for knocking on.

Each stone bar are made in "L" shaped letter and has a hook for hanging, too.

Since 2009, the South Korea experts have co-operated with the Vietnamese partners to do research and produce the two sets using total made-in-Viet Nam materials and traditional Vietnamese producing skills.

Artisan Kim Hyunkon, who have produced Korean traditional instruments for 50 years now and has directly worked on the project, said the Vietnamese royal bronze and stone instruments were much similar to those in South Korea despite some differences in their appearances.

He confirmed that he was contented with the sound of the newly-produced instruments for Viet Nam because of the exact ratio of bronze, tin and lead mixed for casting.

The two sets of instrument then will be given to artists from the Hue Traditional Royal Arts Theatre, who then will revive the ways of using the instruments with the helps of concerned Vietnamese and South Korean experts.

The sets will be used to perform at Te Giao ceremony and Xa Tac, which are two important worshipping ceremonies practised in Hue imperial citadel in the past, at next biennial Hue festivals.

In Viet Nam, the two sets had been used during the reigns of Le (1427-1788) and Nguyen (1802-1945).

Under the Nguyen reign, the two sets were used by royal music band as hanging instruments at various important royal ceremonies like the royal ceremony at Thai Hoa Palace, Te Giao ceremony, Xa Tac worshipping ceremony.

Since the end of the Nguyen rule in 1945, no one has been able to produce the sets as well as play them. Only some pieces of the two sets had been preserved at the Hue Royal Antiques Museum until the South Korean experts offered some helps. - VNS

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Insect world bursts into song

Guitar hero: Le Minh Son will perform at the Opera House on Saturday in a programme entitled Guitar for Myself. — File Photo

HA NOI — Songwriter Le Minh Son will perform at the Ha Noi Opera House on Saturday, in a New Year's Day programme entitled Guitar Cho Ta (Guitar for Myself).

As part of the show, Son will perform songs with singer Ha Linh from their upcoming album together which, he said, "will feature songs about insects, inlcuding the spider, bee, beetle, ant and grasshopper".

Singers Thanh Lam and Tung Duong will also perform, and the show will feature the debut performances of new pieces by Son entitled Giot Nuoc Mat (Teardrop), Mat Trang To (Big Moon), and Hay Uong Gio Bien Khoi Mot Lan (Try to Drink the Ocean's Wind Once).

The night's programme will be rounded out with performance of jazz and Latin pieces which have been re-arranged by Son for his guitar with an ensemble of musicians.

Son, 35, was voted "Musician of the Year" by The Thao & Van Hoa (Culture & Sport) daily in 2004. His song A I A won the Song of the Year award in 2005 at the annual Bai Hat Viet (Vietnamese Songs) competition.

Son's albums include Gieng Lang (Village's Well) and the recent Mot Khuc Song Hong (A Melody of Red River), as well as Guitar for Myself. His most popular hit was Chuon Chuon Ot (Red Dragonfly), recorded by singer Ngoc Khue in 2003.

Son, a graduate of the Viet Nam National Academy of Music, now teaches at the Ha Noi Arts College.

Saturday's performance begins at 8pm, with tickets available at the Ha Noi Opera House. — VNS

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