Thy Lệ Trang - XIN CHO TÔI

XIN CHO TÔI
THY LỆ TRANG

Hồng, cô bạn thân của tôi không có ở đây để chia sẻ niềm vui của tôi, trong lúc này nhỏ đang dung dăng dung dẻ ở VN đón Tết cùng gia đình và bạn bè. Tôi gọi cho Thu Xuân may quá nhỏ không bị bận rộn vì đám cháu ngoại lúc này. Tôi cho nhỏ nghe và chờ lời phê bình. Cô học trò ca sỹ của lớp tôi ngày nào và cũng là một trong những học trò cưng của thày dạy nhạc Lê hoàng Long đã chắt lưỡi khen ngợi "Nhạc như vầy mới đáng nghe chứ bây giờ có nhiều bài nghe thấy ớn..." Chữ ớn của nhỏ kéo thật dài... Nhỏ Hồng và tôi thường xầm xì sau lưng Thanh Xuân "nhỏ này có lối nói chuyện giống bà cụ non". Nhưng hôm nay bà cụ non của chúng tôi sao dễ thương chi lạ.

Nhạc Bằng Giang được tay hòa âm tuyệt vời Cao ngọc Dung cùng những giọng hát ngọt ngào như Tâm Thư, Thùy An, Khánh Vy... để cho những người đi sau như tôi có sẵn đường mà đi theo. Từ ngày có thơ phổ nhạc tôi bận rộn nhiều hơn và công việc nhà lười hơn một chút. Sau khi đi làm về, tôi vào website “Hát hay không bằng hay hát” để theo dõi và ủng hộ âm thầm bạn bè khắp nơi. Trong các bài thơ phổ nhạc của anh Bằng Giang tôi thích bài Biên Hòa Ca của anh LSĐ lời thơ và tiếng nhạc hùng hồn, nhắc lại một Biên Hòa rất gần gũi rất yêu thương. Chiều cuối năm lang bạt của anh Thế Nhân rất ngông nghênh lãng tử. Những bài thương nhớ người tình xa của chị Hoàng ánh Nguyệt là tiếng ray rức, thở dài. Và lời thơ trữ tình của Vương hồng Ngọc trong Hãy bước nhẹ chân kẻo lá đau thật nhẹ nhàng, sâu lắng. Qua “Hát Hay Không Bằng Hay Hát” tôi bắt gặp vài khuôn mặt quen thuộc của đại gia đình Ngô Quyền thân yêu. Anh Trần kiêu Bạc giọng thơ miền Nam đặc biệt nhất là những bài thơ về Mẹ của anh thật tuyệt vời. Từ lâu tôi chỉ có dịp thưởng thức thơ của anh qua giọng ngâm điêu luyện của nghệ sỹ Hồng Vân. Vào đây tôi mới biết anh có nhiều bài thơ được Cao ngọc Dung phổ nhạc. Vậy mà anh giấu kín không phổ biến trên website Ngô Quyền để chia sẻ cùng thầy cô và bạn bè. Anh Ngô càn Chiếu một người con của đại GĐ Ngô Quyền đa tài: vừa sáng tác nhạc vừa hòa âm vừa là ca sỹ. Tôi đã nghe nh̃ững bài nhạc mới của anh, thích nhất là bài Trúc Đào phổ từ nguyên tác bài thơ của anh Nguyễn Tất Nhiên.

Sau bao tháng chờ mong, tôi đã có đủ mười hai bài nhạc cho một cuốn CD lưu niệm. Đó là thành quả đóng góp lớn lao của rất nhiều người: Nhạc sỹ phổ nhạc Bằng Giang, nhạc sỹ hòa âm Cao Ngọc Dung và các ca sỹ :Tâm Thư, Thùy An, khánh Vy, Trung Hiếu. Ngoài ra những lời comment thật đẹp đến từ các anh chị, bạn bè khắp bốn phương như Mây Tím, Tiểu muội, NnHoa, Kym Ngọc, Anh Tuấn, N Chương, Viễn Duy, Đại Sân, Ngô Càn Chiếu, N L Khánh, H Hoa... vợ chồng anh chị Dung Bá, Quang Ba cùng các bạn làm chung... Tôi xin trân trọng giữ những cảm nhận đẹp trong tim.

 Cuối cùng xin cho tôi gửi lời chân thành cảm ơn đến Nhạc sỹ Bằng Giang. Anh không những là một nhạc sỹ kỳ cựu của nền âm nhạc miền Nam (như lời giới thiệu của NS Nam Lộc trong cuốn ASIA gần đây) mà anh còn là một nhạc sỹ thân thương của Biên Hòa. Cậu bé học trò Trần văn Khôi năm xưa vì quá đam mê âm nhạc đã bỏ học, dọn nhà đến ở chung với thày dạy nhạc của mình. Bây giờ với tuổi hơn 70 anh vẫn còn giữ tâm hồn dạt dào say mê âm nhạc như thủa học trò. Sau bao năm thăng trầm trong cuộc đời có nhiều mất mát có nhiều thay đổi nhưng tình yêu âm nhạc trong anh vẫn sống mãi. Anh đã vui trong niềm vui và buồn trong nỗi buồn qua các bài thơ của những thi sỹ đàn em. Đôi khi có những cảm xúc bất chợt đến vào nửa đêm anh đã thức dậy và ghi lại từng nốt nhạc trên trang giấy trắng. Tất cả không vì một lợi nhuận nhỏ nhoi nào chỉ vì trái tim nồng nàn của người nhạc sỹ.

 Xin cảm ơn anh, cầu chúc anh cùng gia đình gặp mọi sự may mắn và an lành.

 THY LỆ TRANG

 MASSACHUSETTS

(Đăng tải với lòng ngưỡng mộ người Biên Hòa tài ba)



English version

ALLOW ME TO SHOW MY APPRECIATION

Before 1970, I had the opportunity to meet Musician Bang Giang several times. Although he was not yet well-known in the Southern music scene, Bien Hoa City knew him well.

Mr. Bang Giang enjoyed art and holiday activities such as Christmas and Tet and used to participate in performance teams in military camps located in Bien Hoa.

As a man from the South, he was known for being honest and straightforward. He discovered that my sister Mai had a talented singing voice, and he visited our home to request permission from my parents to allow her to perform on Christmas Eve at Bach Dang's military camp for their entertainment. The circumstances surrounding how he found out about her voice remain a mystery.

My parents allowed my sister to sing and I got the chance to accompany her.  Despite having a good voice, my sister had never been on stage, not even a small outdoor one, so she was feeling confused. With the help of the guys in the band, my sister's impromptu singing performance went relatively well.

I was young and quiet at that time, sitting behind the band. The band members used to bring me candy to “chew for fun”. I was allowed to attend shows like that a few times. Shortly after, my two close friends Luu and Ba met Mr. Thao, the owner of Cong Khanh quarry in Buu Long. Mr. Thao was an artistic and cheerful individual, who was known for his generosity.

 (The profession of stone mining and carving has a longstanding reputation in Bien Hoa, Dong Nai.)

Mr. Thao was a close friend and relative of Mr. Bang Giang. He helped Musician Bang Giang and Singer Che Linh when they were unknown. Mr. Thao was very skilled at sharing fascinating stories. He often shared stories about his youth with the trio Bang Giang, Che Linh, and himself, describing their mischief and fun.

We enjoyed listening to Mr. Thao's story, especially the part where he described wandering the streets without money and food. One time, they went to a pho restaurant and ordered a large meal. After finishing their meal and drinks, all three of them quickly got up and ran away. A few years later, Thao was put in charge of managing the family's quarry by his father. With money in hand, he went to the old restaurant to pay and apologize to the owner, who was very surprised.

Despite the ongoing war, Bien Hoa remained a peaceful and prosperous place. During this period, the music in  Southern Vietnam was characterized by a variety of rich and captivating tonal colors.Youth music was popular and the pre-war music by Doan Chuan, Tu Linh, and Van Cao... was still admired.

Everyone's emotions were touched by the music of artists such as Pham Duy, Tu Cong Phung, Vu Thanh An, Ngo Thuy Mien, Truong Sa, and Hoang Thi Tho, as well as writers of songs about troops like Tran Thien Thanh and Truc Phuong.

Around this period, "Sad Night in a Small Province" and "Song of Memories," two songs by Bang Giang and Che Linh, made their debuts on the Southern music scene. Phuong Dung and Che Linh's singing was widely heard thanks to the recording wave.

During our adolescent years, my friends and I had carefree and lovable lives. Thoughts about war were fleeting, and then they vanished. Producing newspapers, selling newspapers, and visiting outposts to offer consolation to soldiers were just a few of our many ardent pursuits. Furthermore, we were lured into a different reality by school-age dating and fantasizing.

Mr. Thao nearly disappeared from our lives, and his stories about Bang Giang and Che Linh gradually faded into the past. I thought I had forgotten about the past events and would never get the chance to go back to them.  But the beautiful and poetic lyrics of Bang Giang's songs took me back to earlier times.

I did not get a chance to speak with Mr. Bang Giang until early in 2010. I forwarded him the poem "Love of the Sea" to be set to music.

Shortly after, Mr. Bang Giang called me and said in a clear and amiable voice, "Trang, have you heard the song Love of the Sea yet? Could you share your thoughts with me?”

He emailed me the music right away as soon as he realized I hadn't heard it. Whoa! Thuy An's voice was so delicate and beautiful, the music was so honest and mild, and Cao Ngoc Dung's harmony was so melodious. My heart felt like it sprang out of the thrust. "I heard the song, it's so cute, I like it so much!" I gave a loud yell into the phone.

I didn't know if Mr. Bang Giang was deafened by my scream, but my husband was startled. He had to pause what he was viewing on TV to see what had happened to me. He shook his head, grinned, and left the room after being sure it was only an emotional reaction to a song. If it weren't winter and there wasn't snow on the streets, I would have rushed to my brother's house to show off the poetry that was set to music.

My dearest buddy Hong wasn't present to celebrate with me.
She was now having a nice time celebrating Tet with her family and friends in Vietnam.

Fortunately, Thu Xuan wasn't preoccupied with her grandkids when I phoned. I let her hear me out and waited for feedback.

Thu Xuan who was the former singer student of my class and also  one of the favorite students of music teacher Le Hoang Long clucked her tongue and complimented, saying, "The music seems to be new and worth listening to, but nowadays there are many songs that are too boring to listen to.. ." She stretched out the word “boring”. Hong and I whispered behind Thanh Xuan's back, "She speaks like a young lady". But our young lady is adorable today.

Bang Giang’s music was masterfully harmonized by Cao Ngoc Dung with endearing vocals such as Tam Thu, Thuy An, and Khanh Vy... to provide a clear road for thoss followers like me.

I am busier and a little lazy with housework since I have my poetry set to music. After coming home from work, I access the website "Singing Well Is Not So Good as Singing Regularly" to follow and silently support my friends. Among Mr. Bang Giang's poems set to music, I like Mr. LSD's "Bien Hoa Ca" with poetic lyrics and eloquent music, recalling a very close and loving Bien Hoa.

Mr. The Nhan's song "Wandering Last Afternoon of the Year" shows a very arrogant and unconstrained personality. Ms. Hoang Anh Nguyet's songs about missing her long-distance partner are filled with sighs and longings. And Vuong Hong Ngoc's  poetic lyrics in "Tread Lightly, Lest Your Leaves Hurt" are gentle and profound. "Singing Well is Not So Good As Singing Regularly" brings back memories of some of the cherished Ngo Quyen family's faces.

Poems by Mr. Tran Kieu Bac have a unique poetic Southern dialect, and his poems about his mother are particularly impressive. For a long time, I only enjoy his poetry through the skillful recitation of artist Hong Van. Now, on this website, I learn that he has many poems set to music by Cao Ngoc Dung. Yet he keeps them secret and does not publish them on Ngo Quyen's website to share with teachers and friends.

Mr. Ngo Can Chieu, another multi-talented son of the Ngo Quyen family, is capable of composing music, harmonizing music, and is also a singer. I have listened to his new songs, and Truc Dao, which is based on the original poem by Nguyen Tat Nhien, is my favorite.

After many months of waiting, now I have a memento CD of twelve tracks. That is the outstanding work of several individuals, including Composer Bang Giang, Harmony Musician Cao Ngoc Dung, Singers Tam Thu, Thuy An, Khanh Vy, and Trung Hieu.

In addition, brothers, sisters, and friends from all over the globe, including May Tim, Tieu Muoi, NN Hoa, Kym Ngoc, Anh Tuan, N Chuong, Vien Duy, Dai San, Ngo Can Chieu, NL Khanh, H Hoa, Dung Ba and his wife, and Quang Ba and his friends, have also sent me lovely remarks.

I honorably hold these lovely emotions close to my heart.

Lastly, I would want to express my gratitude to Musician Bang Giang. According to Artist Nam Loc's introduction of him in the most recent ASIA book, he is not just a seasoned performer in the Southern music scene but also a well-liked musician in Bien Hoa.

Because he was so passionate about music, former student Tran Van Khoi left school and moved in with his music teacher. Even at the age of seventy-plus, he still has the same enthusiasm for music as a student.

His passion of music endures throughout years of ups and downs, losses, and changes in his life. The poems of young poets made him sad in grief and joyous in pleasure. Occasionally, he wakes up in the middle of the night to jot down all of his abrupt feelings on a blank paper. All of this is done out of the musician's pure enthusiasm and not for a little financial gain.

Thank you, and best of luck and peace to you and your family.

THY LE TRANG

MASSACHUSETTS

(Posted in appreciation of the gifted Bien Hoa personage. Editorial Board.)

English translation by Nguyen Khac Phuoc.