Composer Le Minh Son: It should really be called "Oh, my homeland!"

(Baonghean) - As the music director of the reality TV show "Vietnamese Folk Songs" (scheduled to air on VTV1 on July 25th and will travel through 63 provinces and cities nationwide), musician Le Minh Son and his team recently surveyed Nghe An and its rich collection of folk songs and melodies. Throughout their journey to Nghe An, the "country bumpkin" took the opportunity to "badmouth" Nghe An women and share many other "regional specialties"...

Composer Le Minh Son. Photo: Hai Ba

If I had arrived in Vinh earlier, maybe...Can't get married

To date, "Vietnamese Folk Song Tour" has visited 7 out of 63 provinces and cities, mainly in the northern mountainous regions. Why did you put Nghe An first instead of other provinces according to the map order?

- Something is calling, I don't know what it is, making me think I need to come back here sooner, right now. Maybe it's because of the timeless invitation: "The road to Nghe An winds and twists / Green mountains and blue waters like a painted picture." Maybe it's because of the "provocative" songs, only sung by Nghe An girls: "Angry as I am, but still loving as I am..." And the "culprit," could it be... the girls from Vinh City that I've met, been captivated by, and I think there's one I even fell for (laughs)...

How terrible! How could a girl from Vinh let him be humiliated like this?

- If I remember correctly, there was a poem that said, "The eyes of a Vinh girl are like fire." When I read it, I thought: She must be in love. But when I got to Vinh, I realized that even if these girls aren't in love, they still have that fire in their eyes, which is just amazing!

Is it as dangerous as the incident with the "eyes like daggers glancing at the rocky outcrop," author of "Oh, My Homeland"?

- "A 'coconut knife' is nothing! Only a 'diamond knife' can cut through stone. If I had gone to Vinh earlier, that 'rock' might not have survived the... gaze of Vinh's girls! If I had gone to Vinh earlier, I might not have been able to get married!" (laughs).

Women from Son Tay were once highly sought after because of Quang Dung's poem "The Eyes of a Son Tay Woman." Hopefully, Le Minh Son can also help women from Vinh "have a field day" soon?

- "Her forehead reflects the sky of her homeland / Her eyes hold a gentle, melancholic Western sadness" - Sounds sweet, doesn't it? She's definitely a desirable catch! See? In other countries, their women are so gentle! They're not always on the verge of causing trouble like the girls from Vinh! (laughs)

That's just a joke, but when a girl from Vinh gets a little "sad," it's enough to make her drift away! Have you ever heard Hoang Quyen sing my song "The Door Smells of Sunshine" (which is also the title of her debut album): "The door smells of sunshine / Through the small crack in the door, I peek / A day without you, the first flowers of summer, just beginning to turn red / The day is so sad / Without you, it's so refreshing / A little bird sings by my door, the door smells of sunshine / Sunshine golden like a summer orange / Sunshine golden like the full moon / The sunshine smells / Your sunshine…"

Do you know who the "muse" of "The Door Smells of Sunshine" is? It's a true "Nghệ An girl"! One day, she casually told me that when she opened her balcony door that morning, several sparrows flew in, chirping incessantly, and wouldn't leave no matter how much she tried to chase them away, along with some newly bloomed flowers… That's all it took for her to say that suddenly, she didn't want to go to work anymore, she just wanted to stay home and bask in the sun like a lazy cat. Generally, I really like lazy girls, so that day, right there in the car, the first lyrics of "The Door Smells of Sunshine" quickly took shape. The next day, I drove to her office to show her, and after hearing it, she made a shocking statement: "Smells of sunshine? That's a bit of a lie!"

Ah, that's the real Vinh girl, man! You men need to be scolded to behave!

- But I'm actually quite easy to control, that's the problem! (laughs). Yes, I know you girls: "If you're going to love, love properly/ If there are problems, let them be problems completely/ Don't be like a rabbit standing at the edge of the field/ Playing with shadows when happy, playing with the moon when sad..." No wonder, every time I "played" I got a beating. Now... I've learned my lesson!

Writing "Oh, my homeland" feels like... flattering the people of Nghe An.

That's right! So, what are you doing here now?

- Because "Vietnamese Folk Songs" - a journey of folk songs through the cultural regions of Vietnam. And with Nghe An, of course, it's the folk songs of the region. But the kind of folk songs I'm looking for might not be the performances commonly seen on stage, but rather those hidden deep within each poor village, sung by elderly artisans who have never withered or become barren due to poverty or time. It could also be the melodies sung by extraordinary individuals, who have faced the line between life and death and returned to life through these very songs, urging and waiting... But I won't say any more, I'll give it all away! Just wait until "Vietnamese Folk Songs - Through the Regions of Folk Songs" airs, and you'll see how much I love the folk songs of your homeland...

I know that "Oh, My Homeland" isn't about Nghe An, of course I know. It's a village unique to Le Minh Son, but it doesn't belong to anyone in particular. But somehow, when those lyrics and melodies are sung, I always feel like I'm talking about the land and people of Nghe An: its poverty and precariousness of the past; its boisterousness and outspokenness, hidden behind the "kites full of wind," the "thump-thump drums at the village hall," or the "love songs" sung by my mother; and especially the "eyes - waves of wine," the "betel nut knife" - how could they not be the mark of a Nghe An girl...? I just like to "claim" things that aren't my own; do you mind?

- You're right. I myself was sometimes surprised that I could speak so accurately about... the land and people of Nghe An, even before I'd met them, and didn't intend to. It was only when I was completely captivated by the beauty of the girls from Vinh that I regretted flattering them a little too soon! (laughs).

Regarding "Oh My Homeland," I have a rather amusing anecdote about the people of Nghe An. It was when I was a judge on a singing game show. In the preliminary round, a male contestant confidently walked in and loudly introduced his performance as: "Oh My Homeland... choa." All the judges were astonished and asked, "Whose song is 'Oh My Homeland choa'? It sounds familiar, does it have anything to do with... Mr. Le Minh Son sitting here?" He calmly explained, "Oh My Homeland is Mr. Son's song, but for people from Nghe An, it's more accurate to say 'Oh My Homeland choa'!" I was thrilled and let him in, even though the beautiful female judge sitting next to me scolded me, "Hey, this guy, we're recruiting singers for a competition, not... a comedy show!" But I stubbornly insisted, "To sing well, you first need to be intelligent! This guy is good, let him in!"

Nguyen Le

(Perform)