DENTON, Texas (UNT) – Faculty and students from UNT's College of Music will perform three concerts and teach master classes in Vietnam later this month as part of a visit conceived and organized by a doctoral violin student.
Chuong Vu, who was born and raised in Vietnam, wanted to share the talents of his fellow students and faculty members from UNT with aspiring musicians in his native country.
Many students and faculty members in the college spend the summer teaching and performing internationally during the summer – another group will be going to Europe in June, for example. These ventures not only enrich the educational and professional careers of students and faculty, but they allow for international collaborations and bolster UNT's reputation abroad.
"International collaborations are important experiences for our students and faculty," said College of Music Dean James Scott. "With more than 1,000 concerts performed during the fall and spring semesters in addition to classes, workshops and other activities, summer is the perfect time for our students and faculty to travel and make connections worldwide."
The group traveling to Vietnam includes Vu and cello doctoral student Dan Totan, as well as Scott and College of Music faculty members Felix Olschofka, violin professor; Daphne Gerling, viola professor; Clay Couturiaux, professor of conducting and conductor of the UNT Concert Orchestra; and UNT alumna, Grace Ho, cello.
They will perform three concerts:
- May 21 at the National Academy of Music Concert Hall in Hanoi
- Mozart's Flute Quartet in D major, K. 285, with James Scott, flute; Bui Cong Duy, violin; Daphne Gerling, violin; Nguyen Hong Anh, cello
- Mendelssohn's Piano Trio in D minor, Op. 49, with Tran Thai Linh, piano; Chuong Vu, violin; Grace Ho, cello
- Brahms' Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34, with Nguyen Huy Phuong, piano; Felix Olschofka, violin I; Nguyen My Huong, violin II; Daphne Gerling, viola; Dan Totan, cello
- May 24 at the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory Hall in Ho Chi Minh City
- Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio in A minor, Op. 50, with Eva Joo Eun Young, piano; Chuong Vu, violin; Grace Ho, cello
- Mozart's Flute Quartet in D major, K., 285, with James Scott, flute; Tang Thanh Nam, violin; Daphne Gerling, viola; Clay Couturiaux, cello
- Brahms' Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34, with Eva Joo Eun Young, piano; Felix Olschofka, violin I; Le Minh Hien, violin II; Daphne Gerling, viola; Dan Totan, cello
- May 29 at the Ho Chi Minh City Opera House
- Elgar's Introduction and Allegro for String Quartet and String Orchestra, Op. 47, with Felix Olschofka, violin I; Chuong Vu, violin II; Daphne Gerling, viola; Grace Ho, cello
- Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante for violin, viola and orchestra in E flat major, K. 364, with Felix Olschofka, violin; Daphne Gerling, viola
- Brahms' Concerto for violin, cello and orchestra in A minor, Op. 102, with Chuong Vu, violin; Dan Totan, cello
The May 29 program will feature UNT performers as soloists with the Ho Chi Minh City Symphony Orchestra and include an educational program with Couturiaux as conductor speaking to the audience about the music on the program and about UNT.
The group from UNT will collaborate with award-winning Vietnamese performers for two concerts of chamber music May 21 and 24, including Bui Cong Duy, the 1997 first prize gold medalist winner of the International Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians; Eun-Young Joo, who has performed with orchestras worldwide including the Vivaldi Chamber Orchestra in Moscow and the Janacek Chamber Orchestra in the Czech Republic; and Tran Thai Linh, first prize winner of the 7th Asian Symphonic Band Competition in Thailand.
Reflecting both the European and Russian influences that have historically shaped classical music in Vietnam, the programs will include pieces by Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn and Brahms.
Students with the Vietnam National Academy of Music and the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music will have the opportunity to attend master classes by the UNT faculty members in between the concerts. The group from UNT will also meet with Ho Chi Minh leaders at top universities, including the University of Technology, University of Economics, University of Arts, University of Education and Saigon University. The meetings will give the group from UNT a chance to discuss the university and educational opportunities for Vietnamese students, and to discuss potential collaborations and exchanges with the Ho Chi Minh universities.
"UNT has an excellent College of Music and I thought it would be good for us to take our knowledge abroad," Vu said.
The trip will be funded by the UNT College of Music, the Ho Chi Minh City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera, the Vietnam National Academy of Music, the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music, the Youth Delegation and Student Assistance Center of Ho Chi Minh City, Hoang Vi Premier Jewelers (Houston, TX) and E-Mart (the Vietnamese division of Samsung).