Wednesday, January 14, 2015

CD Review: Tri Nguyen's 'Consonnances'

Tri Nguyen
Consonnances
Lunelios

The music of Vietnam is rarely available to mainstream, world music listeners. However, Tri Nguyen's new album, Consonnances, will hopefully reignite a global passion for the traditional and classical artforms of Vietnam's musical styles and influences. Tri's latest release contains thirteen different tracks of traditional and classical-tinged folk music on the dan tranh (a Vietnamese zither with close ties to the Japanese koto, Chinese guzheng, and the Korean kayagum), as well as classical strings. The contemplative, serene, and beautifully-sweeping melodies capture a very moving and emotive side to instrumental music rarely observed in other settings. Tri's utilization of melodic tones and cheery tempos makes Consonnances shine with inner and outer beauty. The classical undertones resemble Mongolian, Chinese, Japanese, and even American theatrical soundtracks from the 1940's and 50's. At any rate, Tri Nguyen is a welcome addition to the world of music and highlights the importance of Vietnamese music necessary for any music fan of Southeast and East Asia. ~ Matthew Forss

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