‘Golden Bird" finds his final autumn

Composer Phan Huynh Dieu, who was known as the “Golden birdof Vietnamese music,” died on Monday but his influential melodies willalways be remembered by Vietnamese music fans.

 

Phan Huynh Dieu possessed a shelf of hundreds of poetry books by world writers.

Born in 1924 in Da Nang, Dieu worked for70 years as a composer. He has left behind a huge treasury of more than100 songs, most of which have been set to music from popular poems.

In 2000, he was awarded the Ho Chi Minh Prize in Literature and Arts, the highest prize of its kind in Viet Nam.

Dieu composed his first song, entitled Trau Cau (Areca Nut and Betel), at the age of 18.

He was in his early 20s in 1945, whenthe historic August Revolution took place. He referred to the event as”an autumn of changing leaves and blooming flowers throughout thecountry; a changing season for millions of people.”

He used to say that if there had been nosuch autumn, there might not have been a composer called Phan HuynhDieu, but a “pure secretary of some company or an ordinary engineer”.

“It is certain that I might have become a composer if the Party had not led the nation’s liberating revolution,” he used to say.

That’s the reason why many people knowhim as the composer of wonderful revolution songs such as Doan GiaiPhong Quan (Liberation Troop), Mua Dong Binh Si (Soldiers in Winter), RaTien Tuyen (Marching to the Front), and Cuoc Doi Van Dep Sao (What aBeautiful Life!), as well as Hanh Khuc Ngay Va Dem (Day and NightMarching Song), which are about patriotism and sacrifice.

“The words of his songs seemed to echofor a long time in young soldiers’ minds as a vow to follow therevolution leaders,” 80-year-old Nguyen Van Huyet, who joined theanti-French rebels in the mid-1950s in the Dien Bien Phu battle, said.

“I remember the feelings. My bloodseemed to run faster inside my veins when I hummed that song during thebattles against the French in Dien Bien Phu.”

Dieu, who never took a music course,earned the title of ‘composer’ with the song Doan Giai Phong Quan. Hereceived a sum of money for the song’s copyright, which he spent on thefirst guitar that belonged to Emperor Bao Dai, the last king of VietNam.

Dieu was considered a “king” who couldset poems to music. “Poetry and music are twins. I love poems as much assongs,” he used to say.

In front of his working desk was a shelfthat had hundreds of poetry books by writers such as VladimirVladimirovich Maya-kovsky (Russia, 1893-1930), Pablo Neruda (Spain,1904-1973), Rabindranath Tagore (India, 1861-1941) and Vietnamese poetsNgoc Anh (1934-1965) and Xuan Quynh (1942-1988).

In 1946, he released his first songbased on a poem by Te Hanh, entitled Nhung Nguoi Da Chet (Dead People).His second song, Mua (Rain), was based on a poem by Huy Can and wascomposed in 1949. Niether song became very popular.

In 1971, the song Bong Cay Konia (Shadowof Konia Tree), based on a poem by Ngoc Anh, was a great success. Thencame the song Cuoc Doi Van Dep Sao (What a Beautiful Life!) from a poemby Duong Huong Ly, which scored high with famous composers. These twosuccessful songs were a powerful force behind several of his latersongs.

“Dieu gave wings to Tho Tinh Cuoi MuaThu (Love Poem for End of Autumn) by noted poet Xuan Quynh with hisbeautiful melodies,” Thu Minh, one of Dieu’s fans, said. 

VNS

‘Golden Bird" finds his final autumn

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