Lusheng is an instrument made from thick and thin bamboo tubes, widely played among the ethnic minorities of Southwestern China. in this recording, three lusheng of different sizes create a unique harmony. The musicians were performing a dance with simple steps while playing.

Shange means ‘song of the mountains’ and are commonly sung by the people of southwestern China. They sing the songs while working and during breaks between work. The lyrics are usually about love between man and woman.

The Kam are known to be the best singers among the dozens of ethnic minorities in China. These polyphonic songs are great demonstrations of their singing ability. This particular song was sung by young girls.

Phong slư (known as Phảng lài) is a popular folksong throughout the northeastern region of Vietnam. Phong slư is love letter written to a seven-beat meter in the Tày language with some Chinese words, Chinese-transcribed Vietnamese, and Tày-Vietnamese language. Phong slư is also a means to convey a couple’s love through song exchanges. The Phong slư is melodious, expressing the great sentiments of a couple.

Tỳ bà hành is one of the masterpieces of Ca trù art. Its lyrics are translated by Phan Huy Vịnh from a poem of Bạch Cư Dị, a famous Chinese poet in the Tang dynasty. The Tỳ bà hành song includes five cung (musical modes), consisting of Nam, Bắc, Huỳnh, Pha, and Nao. It was subtly slow and fast now and then, creating emotion, moving people’s hearts. The Tỳ bà hành song is long and it takes at least thirty minutes to sing the whole song, so the singer rarely sings from the beginning to the end. The Tỳ bà hành song in this CD was sung from the second half of the poem.

This is one of the ten pieces of Thập Thủ Liên Hườn. According to Đờn ca tài tử researcher Nguyễn Tấn, these ten pieces came from the reign of King Quang Trung (the end of eighteenth century) when a diplomatic delegation to the capital of the Thanh dynasty (China) attended the longevity ceremony of Càn Long King. They explored many beautiful places in China and composed ten poems to praise the Chinese scenery after returning to Vietnam. King Quang Trung appointed musical mandarins to set these poems to music for his musical enjoyment. Later, the Đờn ca tài tử circle performed these musical pieces and called them Thập Thủ Liên Hườn. Kim tiền bản musical piece has twenty-six phrases of two bars each. It was played when the diplomatic delegation attended the king’s audience and was rewarded golden coins by the king.