The Moon Uncle’s Father: A Vietnamese Music Legend with a Famous Daughter-in-Law and Grandson

Do Nhuan – a prominent name in Vietnamese music.

He joined the revolution in 1943 and was arrested and imprisoned in Hoa Lo and Son La prisons. During his imprisonment, he and his fellow inmates crafted instruments from dried gourd shells, electrical wires, and cardboard tubes, and wrote songs such as Chieu Tu (Prison Evening), Tieng Goi Tu Nhan (Call of the Prisoners), and Vieng Mo Tu Si (Visiting the Martyrs’ Graves).

After his release, he continued to compose many songs encouraging the resistance, including Duy Kich Ca (Guerilla Song), Ao Mua Dong (Winter Coat), Hanh Quan Xa (Marching Far Away), Chien Thang Dien Bien (Victory in Dien Bien), Duy Kich Song Thao (Guerillas of Thao River), and Viet Nam Que Huong Toi (Vietnam, My Homeland). Among these, Chien Thang Dien Bien was used as the signature tune for Hanoi Radio and Television.

Composer Do Nhuan and his son, Do Hong Quan.

Notably, he was the first Vietnamese to write an opera, Co Sao (Miss Sao), in 1965, marking a significant turning point in the history of academic music in Vietnam. He went on to compose other operas such as Nguoi Tac Tuong (The Sculptor) in 1971 and Nguyen Trai o Dong Quan (Nguyen Trai in Dong Quan) in 1985, the latter being his final opera, based on a play by Nguyen Dinh Thi.

Do Nhuan was also the only musician of the first generation of Vietnamese modern music to receive formal training in the Soviet Union, studying at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory from 1960 to 1962. He served as the first General Secretary of the Vietnamese Musicians Association from 1958 to 1983. In recognition of his immense contributions, he was posthumously awarded the Ho Chi Minh Prize for Literature and Arts.

The composer’s descendants beside his portrait.

“Chu Cuoi” Do Hong Quan – The Excellent Successor of His Father and Proud Head of a Musical Family

As the eldest son of composer Do Nhuan, Do Hong Quan was born in 1956 and grew up immersed in music. When he was just 4 or 5 years old, his father taught him to play his first notes on the piano. “I still vividly remember the first time I performed at the Opera House; it was the song ‘Inh La Oi’. I was so little that my father had to put two extra chairs for me to reach the piano. After I finished playing, I clumsily jumped down and almost fell. I heard laughter in the theater, and when I looked up, I saw my father looking at me affectionately,” Do Hong Quan recalled in an interview.

At the age of 8, he became a student of artist Thai Thi Lien, the mother of renowned pianist Dang Thai Son, and studied in the same class as Dang Thai Son. Later, Do Hong Quan studied at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory from 1976 to 1981, graduating with excellence (red diploma), and continued his research program until 1985. There, he studied composition with Professor A. Leman and orchestra conducting with Professor L. Nikolaev.

Composer Do Hong Quan and his wife, Meritorious Artist Chieu Xuan.

His work, Rhapsody Vietnam, won second prize in a composition competition for Soviet Union musicians. After returning to Vietnam, he composed major instrumental works such as Ballet Hong Hoang, Nang Xa Mi, Tu Tau Dan Day, Giao Huong Mo Dat, and numerous film scores, including Co Lau, Tro Ve, and Dat Nuoc Dung Len.

In 2005, Do Hong Quan was elected Chairman of the Vietnamese Musicians Association, half a century after his father served as General Secretary. Professor Trong Bang once commented: “He is the perfect successor.”

Do Hong Quan is also the only “Chu Cuoi” (Moon Uncle) on Vietnamese screens. The composer shared: “I was first invited as a musician to write the music for the film ‘Thang Cuoi’, but the director, Do Minh Tuan, couldn’t find the right actor to play Chu Cuoi, so he asked me to try out for the role. I agreed immediately. After the audition, everyone thought I suited the part, and right then, the makeup artist cut my hair to create the iconic bowl haircut of Chu Cuoi.”

Do Hong Quan as “Chu Cuoi” in the film.

The composer has a happy family with Meritorious Artist Chieu Xuan. Their family is affectionately called the “musical family”, as all three generations are involved in the arts. Their youngest daughter, Do Hong Khanh, born in 2004, reached the live shows of The Voice Kids and is currently studying vocals at the Vietnam National Academy of Music.

Meritorious Artist Chieu Xuan once shared that she spends a lot of time talking to her daughter to ease the pressure of having a famous father and grandfather: “I told Khanh that first and foremost, she must study and gain a solid foundation of knowledge if she wants to pursue a long-term career. After acquiring that foundation, she can break free and do what she is passionate about. Only then will she have the energy to continue without feeling tired. The family will always be there to support her and set aside our egos to embrace new things.”

Do Hong Khanh carrying on the family’s musical tradition.