This CD is a compelling mix of traditional Vietnamese and western and other classical styles, and it's a new favourite of mine. 

Ho Chi Min City-born Nguyen Huu Tri (stage name: Tri Nguyen) is a classically-trained pianist and a virtuoso ?àn tranh player. Art of the Vietnamese Zither, released in early 2019, features music from various schools of Vietnamese music recomposed for ?àn tranh, string ensembles and other instruments. 

The ?àn tranh (pronounce: dan chang), or Vietnamese zither, is part of a widely distributed family of Asian long zithers; cousin to the Chinese guzheng, Japanese koto, Korean gayageum, Mongolian yatga, Tuvan chadagan, Khakassian chatkhan, and the and the Sundanese kacapi of West Java, Indonesia.

Nguyen began his piano studies in Vietnam, graduating from Ho Chi Minh City's National Music and Drama School, and then continuing his studies at Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris. He also took ?àn tranh lessons with the noted master Hai Bieu. 

The Art of the Vietnamese Zither features many notable artists, including Buynta Goryaeva, Iryna Topolnitska, and Son Mach (violins), Carolin Berry (viola), Dima Tsypkin (cello), Thanh Trung (guitar), Trung Tran (monocord), Nguyen Quyet (Vietnamese bamboo flute), Thien Lam (Vietnamese lute), Tran Hien (Vietnamese drums) and Qais Saadi (percussion and oud).

By Catherine Fisher
Jul 3, 2019