Paul Zetter – Spring Jazz Concert 2011

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The great jazz piano trio renaissance begins in Vietnam

Our jazz reviewer Paul Zetter catches up with Vietnam’s new jazz piano trio led by Nguyen Tuan Nam at rehearsals and asks them about their forthcoming concert in Hanoi on 10th March as well as the current health of Vietnamese jazz.

From Europe to the Americas to Asia there is a resurgence of the jazz piano trio – piano bass and drums. Spurred on in the early 2000s by the popularity of concert hall performances and pristinely recorded CDs from the likes of Keith Jarrett, Brad Mehldau, E.S.T and the Bad Plus who combined jazz with European folk, pop, rock and classical forms along with Latin and African elements, the international festival and concert hall circuit is awash with new trios. They are giving jazz a new acceptability with new audiences. No longer the domain of smoky clubs, jazz has left the back alleys and is firmly entrenched in the concert hall. And as with so many things in the arts that are resurgent, Vietnam is making its contribution.

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Unassuming and with a disarming air of modesty about them, Nguyen Tuan Nam, piano, Dao Minh Fa, bass, and Nguyen Hung Cuong are friendly and talkative about jazz and what they’re trying to achieve – there’s no hint of cool, hip jazz aloofness here. I start off by asking them about their forthcoming concert at the Hanoi Opera House and if it’s not taking a risk playing the top venue in Vietnam with no special guest stars to boost the line-up and with a programme of mostly contemporary jazz originals instead of safer evergreen standards that everyone knows.

‘My idea’ replies Nam,

‘is to show another side of Vietnamese jazz. Audiences need to see the young generation of players and what we’re about. Although we’re not playing the usual jazz standards we have chosen an accessible programme full of beauty and melody that is an entry point for our music.

Drummer Cuong adds that people are interested to see and hear a trio perform and improvise together.

‘Jazz creates connections through communication so how well we know each other in real life as friends is reflected on how we communicate on the stage’.

Pha, the bassist, continues that although the jazz piano trio format is quite new in Vietnam he feels there is another dimension of interest;

‘the musical space created by only three people playing together gives the audience an easy way to engage with the music and absorb the interplay between the musicians’.

I continue by asking if there is a danger that just playing occasional concerts in high status venues doesn’t give players the day to day playing experience all jazz musicians need to hone their craft. Nam admits that there is a need for more clubs and music venues but also adds strategically that playing high profile venues like the Opera House builds audiences who go on to sustain jazz in Vietnam. It’s an interesting chicken or egg argument. Either make more jazz venues and attract audiences to them or build up the fan base and then make the jazz venues.

The trio ends on an optimistic note. They feel the amount of high quality jazz musicians visiting Vietnam maintains and builds interest in the music and that discerning young people looking for something beyond pop or rock are becoming more and more interested in jazz.

Once we’ve built a fan base we plan to incorporate more Vietnamese elements in our music to make it more original and reflective of who we are,

concludes Nam.

I’m looking forward to the concert on the 10th. I have a feeling the audience will be witness to another step in the evolution of Vietnamese jazz.

Check our original post for ticket detail.

Nam’s website http://nguyentuannam.com/

Words and Photos by Paul Zetter