ASEAN orchestra formed, to perform in Vietnam

Vietnamese pianist Nguyen Tuan Manh

Photo: Tuoi Tre

The HCMC Conservatory of Music formed the ASEAN symphony orchestra earlier this month to perform in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi during this week’s ASEAN Summit.

The orchestra features 60 Vietnamese musicians and 24 from other ASEAN member nations, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.

Public concerts will be held at the HCMC Conservatory of Music at 8 pm today and Hanoi Opera House Thursday.

A third, on Friday at the Vietnam National Convention Center in Hanoi, will be just for summit participants.

The musicians will perform symphony concerts under the baton of Japanese conductor Yoshikazu Fukumura, who has been the director of music and conductor of the HCMC Conservatory of Music Symphony Orchestra since 1993.

The performances will include “Academic Festival” by Johannes Brahms as the overture and “Symphony No 9 in E Minor from the New World” by Antonin Dvorak.

Young Thai violinist Anna Sowanna will perform “Carmen Fantasy” for Violin and Orchestra by Pablo Sarasate while Vietnamese pianist Nguyen Tuan Manh will play “Concertstuck” for Piano and Orchestra, Op.79 by CMV Weber.

Tickets to the shows will cost VND150,000 (US$7.5) to VND250,000.

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Vietnamese toy makers off to the fair

HA NOI — Vietnamese toy makers have registered to join an International Toy Fair to be held in Germany on February 2-8 next year, said Spielwarenmesse, a fair organiser and marketing services provider for the toy sector.

Nguyen Van Dung, a Ha Noi toy maker, said by attending the fair he would learn from foreigners making toys to help promote the local toy industry.

Ernst Kick, Spielwaremesse CEO, said at a meeting with toy makers in Ha Noi yesterday the fair would display more than 1 million different toys, plus toy know-how, innovation and networks.

The fair aimed to show sustainability in the toy industry, Kick said.

More toy manufacturers were pursuing environmentally compatible paths, he said. They were setting up ecological production lines or strengthening children's environmental awareness through play themes linked with nature.

The Nurnberg Toy Fair had the motto Toys go Green, Kick said. It would present ideas to encourage toy professionals to run their business operations in a more sustainable way.

Toy manufacturers already making products complying with ecological aspects or acting in line with social standards would provide best practice examples.

Forums on the toy business and special introductions on the most up-to-date toys would be held, while product managers, educators and psychologists would contribute their views on the design of the packages, product and colour to the role of dolls, action figures and technical toys, Kick said.

The fair was expected to welcome more than 78,000 visitors and 2,500 reporters.

For further information visit the website www.toyfair.de or www.yourtoycom.com . — VNS

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ASEAN orchestra has talent from 15 countries

A new symphony orchestra, assembled from the best musical talents from around Southeast Asia, will perform three nights for the 17th ASEAN Summit in Vietnam (October 28-30).

Hanoi and HCMC will have one public concert each - in HCMC October 26 at the HCMC Conservatory of Music, 112 Nguyen Du Street, District 1 at 8 p.m., and in Hanoi Oct. 28 at the Hanoi Opera House, 1 Trang Tien Street, Hoan Kiem District at 8 p.m. The third concert at Vietnam National Convention Center in Hanoi on Oct 29 is only for summit participants.

 Music director and conductor of HCMC Conservatory Music Symphony Orchestra, Yoshikazu Fukumura, auditioned more than 80 classical musicians from 10 ASEAN countries and five countries outside the grouping. He said he would guarantee a superb performance.

The Academic Festival – Overture by Johannes Brahms will open the program, followed by Carmen Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra by Pablo Sarasate, featuring solo violist Anna Sowanna from Thailand, and Concertstuck for the Piano and Orchestra, Op.79 by C.M.V Weber, featuring solo pianist Nguyen Tuan Manh from Vietnam. The last piece on the program would be Symphony No.9 in E Minor “From the new world” by Antonin Dvorak.

Tickets are on sale for VND150,000 to VND250,000. For more information, contact the HCMC Conservatory of Music or the Hanoi Opera House.

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ASEAN orchestra has talent from 15 countries

A new symphony orchestra, assembled from the best musical talents from around Southeast Asia, will perform three nights for the 17th ASEAN Summit in Vietnam (October 28-30).

Hanoi and HCMC will have one public concert each - in HCMC October 26 at the HCMC Conservatory of Music, 112 Nguyen Du Street, District 1 at 8 p.m., and in Hanoi Oct. 28 at the Hanoi Opera House, 1 Trang Tien Street, Hoan Kiem District at 8 p.m. The third concert at Vietnam National Convention Center in Hanoi on Oct 29 is only for summit participants.

 Music director and conductor of HCMC Conservatory Music Symphony Orchestra, Yoshikazu Fukumura, auditioned more than 80 classical musicians from 10 ASEAN countries and five countries outside the grouping. He said he would guarantee a superb performance.

The Academic Festival – Overture by Johannes Brahms will open the program, followed by Carmen Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra by Pablo Sarasate, featuring solo violist Anna Sowanna from Thailand, and Concertstuck for the Piano and Orchestra, Op.79 by C.M.V Weber, featuring solo pianist Nguyen Tuan Manh from Vietnam. The last piece on the program would be Symphony No.9 in E Minor “From the new world” by Antonin Dvorak.

Tickets are on sale for VND150,000 to VND250,000. For more information, contact the HCMC Conservatory of Music or the Hanoi Opera House.

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ASEAN orchestra has talent from 15 countries

A new symphony orchestra, assembled from the best musical talents from around Southeast Asia, will perform three nights for the 17th ASEAN Summit in Vietnam (October 28-30).

Hanoi and HCMC will have one public concert each - in HCMC October 26 at the HCMC Conservatory of Music, 112 Nguyen Du Street, District 1 at 8 p.m., and in Hanoi Oct. 28 at the Hanoi Opera House, 1 Trang Tien Street, Hoan Kiem District at 8 p.m. The third concert at Vietnam National Convention Center in Hanoi on Oct 29 is only for summit participants.

 Music director and conductor of HCMC Conservatory Music Symphony Orchestra, Yoshikazu Fukumura, auditioned more than 80 classical musicians from 10 ASEAN countries and five countries outside the grouping. He said he would guarantee a superb performance.

The Academic Festival – Overture by Johannes Brahms will open the program, followed by Carmen Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra by Pablo Sarasate, featuring solo violist Anna Sowanna from Thailand, and Concertstuck for the Piano and Orchestra, Op.79 by C.M.V Weber, featuring solo pianist Nguyen Tuan Manh from Vietnam. The last piece on the program would be Symphony No.9 in E Minor “From the new world” by Antonin Dvorak.

Tickets are on sale for VND150,000 to VND250,000. For more information, contact the HCMC Conservatory of Music or the Hanoi Opera House.

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Mexican artists to grace Hanoi stage

The Mexican percussion quartet Tambuco

World-renowned Mexican percussion group Tambuco will join with local troupe “Phao Hoa” (Fireworks) to perform at the Vietnam National Academy of Music at 8 pm tonight.

This event aimed to promote mutual cultural exchange between the two nations.

Tambuco Percussion Ensemble has celebrated its acclaimed career after 15 years of international concerts, establishing itself among the finest percussion quartet today.

Tambuco -- founded in 1993 by four distinguished Mexican musicians Bringas Alfredo, Gonzales Miguel, Tudon Raul, and Gallard Ricardo -- is ranked among the finest and most innovative in the world.

"Highest artistic quality, a great sense of aesthetic sense and technical virtuosity beyond any doubt," The Washington Post of the US said.

The Fireworks, a pioneer in performing contemporary music in Vietnam, was founded in 2002 by Vietnam National Academy of Music’s lecturers and students including Doan Mai Huong, Vu Nguyen Anh, Mac Thang Long, and Le Bang.

The troupe was invited to perform at Cracking Bamboo international percussion festival in 2008 and 2010 in Hanoi, which was the encounter between South-East Asian and European music.

The entry will be free at 77 Hao Nam Street, Dong Da District, Hanoi.

Contest promotes ‘green' journalism

HA NOI — The Vietnam News Agency (VNA) and international engineering firm Siemens last week signed an agreement under which VietnamPlus, VNA's online newspaper, will be a media sponsor for Siemens Green Technology Journalism Award 2010.

The award is intended to acknowledge journalists in the Southeast Asia region for excellence in reporting on energy efficiency, industrial productivity and sustainability issues in both print and online media.

"We are very pleased to receive strong co-operation and support from VietnamPlus for this important initiative," said Siemens Viet Nam president and CEO Erdal Elver. "Thanks to this agreement, information about this prestigious award will be able to reach the media community more widely and attract a more diverse pool of good candidates."

"Green technology and sustainable environment are important issues to the entire society, and VietnamPlus, as part of the Vietnam News Agency, is ready to be an active player to promote good reporting in this field and the quality of journalism in general," said VietnamPlus editor-in-chief Le Quoc Minh.

Submissions in the three award categories will be evaluated in English, so entries in other languages must be accompanied by an English translation. Winners will receive cash prizes as well as an opportunity to attend a seminar on sustainability and new technologies held by the Technical University of Berlin, and to visit Siemens' R&D and production centre in Germany.

Submission will be received until December 31, with more information about the award available at www.siemens.vn/SGTJA2010. — VNS

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