What Is It Good For: Phạm Mộng Hải and "Hát Văn"

We often hear music from American musicians who were inspired by the Vietnam War - indelible sounds that have lived with those of us of a certain generation, mostly baby boomers. Today's random tune takes us to the other side of the equation in Vietnam, who also have musicians that experienced and often were active actors in what they call the American War, and whose songs of meditation, reflection and healing are just as powerful in their country as American songs by Creedence Clearwater Revival, Buffalo Springfield, Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger. From the 2015 album Hanoi Masters: War is a Wound, Peace is a Scar, today's song is called Hát Văn (Help Us In This Life), and is performed by Phạm Mộng Hải. While I don't have much information on Phạm Mộng Hải, the album is made up of artists who perform with traditional Vietnamese instrumentation, including an instrument called a k'ni which is a kind of mouth violin that is spoken through to deliver what one producer called an extraterrestrial sound. The instrument was considered to have such mystical qualities that private playing was outlawed.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/mar/12/hanoi-masters-40th-anniversary-end-vietnam-war-wound-peace-scar

Music to Heal: Phạm Mộng Hải and "Help Us In This Life (Hát Văn)"

From Vietnam comes our song for today, performed by Phạm Mộng Hải. The song is called Help Us In This Life (Hát Văn). While I can't find information on the artist, the album on which the song appears, Hanoi Masters: War Is a Wound, Peace Is a Scar (2015), is a various Vietnamese artists compilation of master musicians mostly in their later years who perform traditional Vietnamese folk songs or new songs in the traditional mode that all have the Vietnam War and its lingering aftermath as their unifying theme. The Guardian calls it "an extraordinary record" where "the recordings are all shot through with a sense of intense loss – the loss, the listener feels, not only of friends and family, but also of the innocence that a country that has endured a long history of colonial conflict can perhaps never again enjoy."

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Poor Ardor: Nguyên Lê and Ngô Hồng Quang with "Beggar's Love Song"

An interesting melding of styles is the hallmark of our random tune today. Beggar's Love Song is by Nguyên Lê and Ngô Hồng Quang. Nguyên Lê is a French jazz guitarist and composer of Vietnamese descent, known primarily for his interpretations of pop songs from the 60s and 70s. He has been on albums as both leader and sideman, and has worked with a number of well-known musicians. Ngô Hồng Quang, from Vietnam, is a practitioner of traditional Vietnamese music on the lute, fiddle and vocals. On this song they are joined by percussionist Alex Trần. You can find Beggar's Love Song on their 2017 release Ha Noi Duo.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.