On the opening night of the festival, the audience enjoyed the performances by local artist Thu Le, Lorenzo Bernadi from Italy and French artist Gerard Abiton with their "Chaconne" performance - a classical structure composed by Johann Sebastian Bach in the baroque era.
In addition, 40 young guitarists from Hanoi, HCM City, Can Tho and the Conservatory of HCM jointly performed new guitar accompaniments at the event.
The festival introduces audiences to five special concerts with unique music space, including the "Festival’s nocturne” concert, inspired by the “Serenade” work of talented musician Franz Schubert, on the evening of November 1.
On November 2, the city's guitar lovers will be introduced to the modern guitar models in the trend of international integration made by young artist Tran Dinh Vu. On the same day, there will be an exchange and joint performance by artists from Japan and Vietnam, entitled "Friendship concert".
A joint performance by guitarists Lorenzo Bernardi of Italy (L) and Thu Le from the host country. (Photo: VNA)
The following evening will feature a concert entitled "Romance in the Night" with the participation of artists Salvatore Fodera (Italy) and Paul Cesarczyk (Poland).
"The Magic of the Guitar" concert will wrap up the festival on the night of November 4, featuring the performance by Japanese guitarist Tomonori Arai and the solo performance from guitarist Rene Izquierdo (Cuba-US).
In addition to the concerts, the organisers are also holding a guitar competition on the Southeast Asian scale, with three categories featuring an open contest, a competition for candidates under 18 years old and an amateur event for Vietnamese candidates, thereby motivating the development of classical guitar among Vietnamese youngsters.
Speaking at the opening, Associate Professor, Dr. Ta Quang Dong, Director of the Conservatory of HCM City, said that starting in 2014, the festival has become a special culture of HCM City, offering a chance for young Vietnamese guitar talents to exchange with famous guitarists from around the world to learn and improve their experience.
