CHẠM SHOW

CHẠM is a voyage of stories transcending sounds and visions – where the kaleidoscopic beauty of Vietnamese culture is recreated through Europe’s richly-layered musical spirits, and a distinctive visual language.

A diverse spectrum of elements which morph into a unified whole, bringing together East and West, a classic songbook and fresh experimentations.

CHẠM – a connection point from one person to another, between an individual’s emotions and moments and generational memories. A cultural dimension activated through listening–seeing–feeling. 

Director: Trần Hương Na
Music directors: Lưu Hà An – Vũ Huy 
Singers: Đào Tố Loan – Phạm Anh Khoa – Hồng Dương 
Dancer: Phan Lương
Electronics: Trí Minh
Flute: Duy Minh
Live band: The Lưu Hà An Band
Strings ensemble: Hearts Strings

 

FOUR SEASONS OF HAPPINESS

Continuing the spirit of last year's Europe Day ballet DÓ, the first movement of CHẠM opens up a string-led space with excerpts from Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, taking the audience through the subtle movements of seasons of Northern Vietnam. 

Classical music and dance become companions, creating an emotional space and temperament quintessential of the North: clear sense of rhythm, a coherent structure, rich in movements from gentle and pure, to intense and dramatic.

LOVE

If Chapter 1 constitutes a temporal exploration, Chapter 2 is a distilled moment filled with happiness. Melodic pieces from the European songbook through the ages are re-interpreted with the colours of Central Vietnam – gentle dialects, quiet paces of life, sincerity and subtlety abound.

The feelings evoked by the music are not ostentatious, rather quietly lasting, finding their firm roots in the hearts of listeners. A space where 'love' does not concern only with the romantic variety, but a broader appreciation for life, in all their small quotidian moments.
 

DYNAMIC CURRENTS

We arrive in the South, greeted by a palpable sense of openness, of endless possibilities and inspirations. The sounds we hear do not follow fixed patterns, rather represent daring permutations between elements seemingly of opposite dispositions – carrying a spirit of discovery, is sharp and powerful, and yet still harbours underlying tender emotions.

Closing the journey, the final chapter resembles a crescendo, one that also transforms into a cultural flow not unlike the characters of the climate, the lands and the people of the South – a flow that does not rest upon the past, but continues its gradual and nurturing permeation through each layer of time.