For more than half a century now – since the day Uncle Ho “passed away from this world”, “went to meet Karl Marx, Lenin and other revolutionary elders” (the words he used in his Testament), we have heard countless beautiful songs praising his contributions to the country, the nation and every Vietnamese person. It is hard to imagine that an amateur author, once again, has a new song about him, about his hometown Kim Lien (Nam Dan), touching the minds of many hearts. That is Tao Khanh Hung – a journalist who loves poetry and music, but composing songs is only his “side job”. Yet the song VE VANG LOTUS, born right after the author and the entire Construction Newspaper visited Uncle Ho’s hometown, was sung through a newly completed video, extremely sweet, without any trace of a “side job”…
"We go back to Uncle Ho's hometownLLotus
Simple thatched house, bamboo walls
Red hibiscus flowers lead the way
Grapefruit laden branches, purple sweet potato clusters.
Right after listening to this lyric, I commented: Good. Good because it is drawn from the author's own feelings when he returned to the place where Uncle Ho lived as a child (after his mother passed away in Hue). The poetic ideas and images are therefore full of emotion.
The realistic but arguably "divine" verse in this lyric is:"The red hibiscus flower leads the way". Why didn't the author choose "lotus" - a flower that has been widely planted in the Kim Lien Relic Site, and has become the representative "national flower", to express what about Uncle Ho's life? Wouldn't that be more convenient?
Obviously, the author is very conscious of “staying away” from the conventions and images that have been used by many previous authors for a long time. Therefore, “red hibiscus flowers” is a poetic image that can be said to appear for the first time in poetry and music as a completely new discovery, to become an extremely reasonable symbol when conveying the (practical) meaning “Uncle Ho’s ideology is always the guiding principle for all our actions”:"The red hibiscus flower leads the way."
Along with that are the simple poetic images (that strike our eyes), nothing strange in every homeland, every place:“Simple thatched house, bamboo walls”, “Rows of red hibiscus flowers lead the way/ Grapefruit laden with branches, purple rows of sweet potatoes”…
In 1957, Uncle Ho visited his hometown. Looking at the house, the furniture, the jackfruit tree... Uncle recognized all the old souvenirs and was very moved. When looking at the empty garden, Uncle asked what was planted here, the local official at that time quickly replied: Sir, we are planning to plant flowers. Uncle asked: What kind of flowers? Answer: Roses or lilies. Uncle said: Planting flowers is right, but in my opinion, we should plant sweet potato flowers. And from then until now - exactly 50 years - the garden in front of Uncle's house has only grown one thing: Sweet potatoes!
It's great when the song starts with the phrase"Grapefruit trees are heavy on the branches, purple in the rows of sweet potatoes"!
Everyone knows that sweet potatoes are not grown for their flowers but for their tubers – a short-term food crop, easy to grow, and quick to harvest. Uncle Ho said that growing sweet potato flowers was a joke, but it was to carry out a major policy at that time: Solving the need for people to eat well was more important and more prioritized than the need for beauty.
The song is on an old topic, but its topicality is extremely profound when the entire Party and people are trying to study and follow Uncle Ho's wishes.
I would like to share with Tao Khanh Hung the following special thing, when he really cleverly used the "descriptive" style (realistic - different from the dotted style like the art of ink painting to convey lyrical and symbolic qualities) in the music (lyrics) of the scene of Uncle Ho's house in his father's homeland, his ancestral land. Perhaps many people who have visited and visited historical sites about Uncle Ho all have the same special feeling. Because the places are also very special in the history of the nation: Ben Nha Rong - Ho Chi Minh Museum (No. 01 Nguyen Tat Thanh, Ward 12, District 4, Ho Chi Minh City), Ho Chi Minh Museum in Ba Dinh - Hanoi (where many imprints of the "Father of the nation" and many other great cultural heritages are preserved); Hoang Tru village is Uncle Ho's maternal hometown, where he was born and spent his childhood (The relic cluster includes Uncle Ho's family house, the house of Mr. Hoang Xuan Duong - Uncle Ho's maternal grandfather and the Hoang Xuan family church. Uncle Ho's family house is a 3-room thatched house, surrounded by bamboo fences, with rows of green areca trees on both sides); Sen Village relic cluster, Uncle Ho's hometown, is located in Kim Lien commune, Nam Dan district (in the house where Uncle Ho lived, the items are still preserved intact such as: Two wooden beds, black painted wooden trays, a standing cabinet, a bed, a food chest, etc.).
All the tour guides (historical guides) of these 4 places are certainly well-trained, so they are very professional when introducing artifacts and historical events fluently and systematically. But strangely, only at Uncle Ho's house in Hoang Tru village (his mother's hometown) and Uncle Ho's house in Sen village (his father's hometown), can they at any time bring tears to the eyes of countless visitors. The tour guides here have the advantage of speaking with a standard Nghe accent, along with a certain blood relationship with Uncle Ho, so every gesture from the eyes, the tone of speech to the clothes... they all conquer everyone with their hearts in their chests, not just the words on their lips.
I guess, journalist - musician (amateur) Tao Khanh Hung was also "knocked out" by the beautiful, simple but extremely attractive "fairies" in Uncle Ho's hometown, so he was able to express his emotions almost to the utmost level to have these innocent and familiar poetic ideas (lyrics) like a person born in his hometown of Nghe An:
“The sun spreads across Chua village and Sen village
Pink lotus, many new projects
The small house still bears Uncle Ho's footprints
Nurture people's love for the country and people.
Verse“The small house still bears Uncle Ho's footprints/ Nurturing his love for the country and people”makes us moved, admire and feel extremely grateful for the land "Nam Dan, a sacred place that gives birth to many talented people".
We offer you our steadfast faith.
Ho Chi Minh's name brightens the country
Oh Nam Dan, the sacred place that gave birth to many talented people
Soviet steadfast heroic resistance
One sun, two dews build a season of happiness… “!
This climax makes each of us recall the concise eulogy, covering everything about the homeland, the life and career of beloved Uncle Ho, read by General Secretary Le Duan at the Memorial Service for President Ho: "Our nation, our people, our country gave birth to President Ho, the great national hero, and it was he who brought glory to our nation, our people and our country" (Eulogy of the Party Central Committee read by General Secretary Le Duan at the solemn Memorial Service for President Ho, September 9, 1969).
“We offer you our steadfast faith/ Ho Chi Minh, your name glorifies the country”.These are the most beautiful, captivating, poignant and heartwarming lyrics; creating a special impression in the hearts of the public, so that the song can live forever with time...
As if "choosing the right person" for his song to celebrate National Day September 2 this year (77 years of independence and freedom of the country 1945-2022), journalist Tao Khanh Hung invited Meritorious Artist - Lieutenant Colonel Huong Giang, a singer currently working in the army, to perform. Meritorious Artist - Lieutenant Colonel Huong Giang has a clear voice, and has been very successful in contemporary folk and chamber music. The artist used to be a performing singer of the Art Troupe of Military Region 9, the Army Song and Dance Theater; currently a lecturer at the Vocal Music Department of the Army University of Culture and Arts. Meritorious Artist - Lieutenant Colonel Huong Giang has also participated in many professional competitions such as the National and Army Song and Dance Festival, winning many gold and silver medals...
