Designed towards meaningful exchanges with practitioners of Vietnam’s music and film heritage and the surrounding communities at large, the Residencies strand provides a platform for a fuller and more active understanding of heritage values towards the creation of new and contemporary works.
In 2018 and 2019, three music residencies took place across locations in Vietnam.
Residency 1: August–September 2018 – Mo H’ra Village (Gia Lai) and Bỉnh Nghĩa Village (Ninh Thuan)
A pilot initiative took place in the provinces of Gia Lai and Ninh Thuận in August 2018, with participation of seven emerging Vietnamese artists (five musicians, one film-maker and one visual artist) who learned about the music of each locality (Bahnar gong music and Cham ritual music, respectively) and the wider social context.
- Participants: Tạ Minh Đức, Bùi Linh Hà, Xuân Hạ, Hà Thúy Hằng, Phạm Thị Tâm, Lý Trang, Phạm Thế Vũ
- Advisors: Nguyễn Xuân Sơn, Barley Norton, Joel Mills
Residency 2: January 2019 – Phu Sa Lab (Hanoi)
Over the course of 10 days, eight Vietnam-based contemporary musicians collaborated, exchanged and worked on ideas together at Phu Sa Lab, within the framework of the highly-acclaimed experiment Chém gió – a musical dialogue between traditional and Western wind instruments, developed and originally performed by Nguyễn Đức Minh, Quyền Thiện Đắc and the Đàn Đó Group.
The showcase on 23 January was thus the premiere of an expanded version of Chém gió, performed by 13 musicians on a diverse assortment of musical instruments from the North West, Central Highlands and South Central regions of Vietnam, as well as cello, guitars, drums, objects, amongst others.
- Participants: Alec Schachner, Alex Formosa, Bryan Wilson, Bùi Linh Hà, Hương Donna, Hoàng Quốc Tuấn, Phạm Thế Vũ, Zach Schreier
- Advisors: Nguyễn Đức Minh, Quyền Thiện Đắc, Đàn Đó Group (Đinh Anh Tuấn, Trần Kim Ngọc, Nguyễn Quang Sự)
Residency 3: June 2019 – Hội An
A wide celebration of music and culture across borders and ethnicities, the third FAMLAB Residency brought together upwards of 40 musicians from the Vietnamese regions of North West, Central Highlands and South Central (where a large Cham population are based), with the participation of master musicians from the provinces of Tuyen Quang, Lai Chau, Gia Lai, Dak Lak and Binh Thuan; contemporary musicians (both Vietnamese and international); and a number of emerging indigenous musicians.
Working in artistic advisors and co-ordinators roles are artists from Phù Sa Lab: Nguyễn Nhất Lý (music director for Lune Production performances such as My Village, À Ố, Palao, etc.), Nguyễn Đức Minh and Quyền Thiện Đắc, alongside a special guest: composer Ngọc Đại. Other notable names include the Đàn Đó Group (known for self-made instruments inspired by both indigenous music and quotidian objects), and singer Đỗ Nguyễn Mai Khôi.
The initiative also features three contemporary Scottish musicians known for their innovative approaches to sonic traditions: Tom Bancroft (drum set and bodhran drum), Esther Swift (harp) and David Shedden (bagpipes), as such creating a platform for exploring symbiosis and resonances between Vietnam’s and Scotland’s indigenous music forms, in all their parallels.
The Residency concluded with an outdoor concert taking place in the Đồng Hiệp Culture Park, in front of a 400-strong audience, showcasing new pieces developed collectively throughout the three weeks of the programme.
Participants:
- Artistic advisors from Phù Sa Lab: Nguyễn Nhất Lý, Hoàng Ngọc Đại, Nguyễn Đức Minh, Quyền Thiện Đắc
- Master musicians and artisans from Vietnam: Chu Văn Thạch (Tuyên Quang), Lò Thị Chăn (Lai Châu), Mai Khôi (Hà Nội), Đàn Đó Group (Đinh Anh Tuấn, Nguyễn Quang Sự, Trần Kim Ngọc) (Hà Nội), R’Châm Tih (Gia Lai), Thổ Minh Vượng (Bình Thuận), Xích Văn Trực (Bình Thuận), Y Cel Niê (Đắk Lắk)
- Artists from Scotland: David Shedden, Esther Swift,Tom Bancroft
- Emerging Vietnam-based musicians: Alec Schachner (Hà Nội / Mỹ), Bryan Wilson (Hà Nội / Mỹ), Hoàng Quốc Việt (Hội An), Jett Ilagan (Hà Nội / Philippines), Bùi Linh Hà (Hà Nội), Má A Nủ (Lào Cai), Teresa Group (Y Meret Niê, Điểu Hùng, Ngân Văn Chiến, Ages, Tis) (Đắk Lắk)
- Members of Palao group, Lune Production (Hội An): Huỳnh Đắc Phúc, Inra Jaka, Ja Yang, Kiều Ngọc Tá, Nguyễn Ninh, Nguyễn Thị Thanh Lâm, Phạm Ba Chinh, Quảng Đại Hữu, Thuận Ngọc Hòa, Thuận Ngọc Vũ Linh
- Members of Teh Dar group, Lune Production (Lâm Đồng): H' Nrũil Kră Jẵn, K'Rã Ján Điôn, La Y San, Nay Dấu, Y' Sắc Niê.
