Folk Arts - Master Artist - Viet-Hong Hai

Viet-Hong Hai, a master of the Dan Tranh (Vietnamese instrument-17 strings zither) has been practicing and studying Vietnamese folk music since he was nine years old. In 2000 and in 2002 he returned to Vietnam to conduct research on the traditional music of the country and to study the dan bau (a Vietnamese monochord instrument) with artist Minh Thanh (a gold medalist for dan bau performance). Currently he is the executive director and founder of the Huong Viet Performing Arts Group, a non-profit organization devoted to the study, preservation, and promotion of traditional Vietnamese music. Hai and his group have performed in over seventy-six programs at various colleges, elementary schools, folklife festivals, Ethic Heritage Council events, Asia Pacific Cultural Center programs, and Tet in Seattle. During the past five years Mr. Hai has also been giving lectures and teaching classes about traditional Vietnamese music. He is currently working on publishing two books focusing on Vietnamese music and the art of Vietnamese poetry singing.

As a recipient of a 2004 Apprenticeship grant, Mr. Hai taught three apprentices: Mimi Chau, Hong Ha Hoang, and Cam-Tu Vo to play the Dan Tranh. Hai focused on teaching his apprentices about their culture’s history, geography of musical genre’s, and language. Mr. Hai has been teaching the musical notes using English scales and notes to help students gain a better understanding before moving up to the complex scales and notes of the Dan Tranh.

All three apprentices share an interest and passion in their culture’s traditional music. The apprentices all hope to learn more about their cultural traditions so that they can teach others, broadening and balancing their communities with culture.