Huong Thanh

Huong Thanh (Vietnamese spelling, Hương Thanh) is a Vietnamese singer of various genre, including Cai Luong and jazz fusion. Thanh hails from a family of musicians, her father being a notable performed in the Cai Luong tradition, which she learned started at the age of 10. In addition to Cai Luong, Thanh performs jazz orchestrations. Hailing from Ho Chi Minh City, she has lived in France since the age of 17. In 2007, France Musique honored her with the Musique du monde award. Her early discography includes Chuyện ba người (1995), Moon and Wind (ACT Music, 1999), and Tales from Vietnam, de Nguyên Lê (ACT Music, 1996).

Hương Thanh was born in Saigon to a family of South Vietnamese musicians. Her father, Hữu Phước (died 1997), was a master of Cải lương singing. There is at least one sibling, a sister, Hương Lan. From the age of 10, Huong was trained in Cải Lương and in traditional singing. At the age of 14, she studied at various schools for music and theater, and at 16 she gave her stage debut. In 1977, as a result of the political events in Vietnam, she emigrated to Paris.

Huong Thanh Trio

In 1995, she met the Vietnamese guitarist Nguyên Lê, who had her first contact with jazz and world music. In 1996, she sang at the invitation of UNESCO to celebrate the anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights. With her sister, Hương Lan, she recorded in Los Angeles, California, US in 1997. In the following years, she worked alongside Nguyên Lê with Michel Alibo, Paolo Fresu, Paul McCandless, and Dhafer Youssef. The CD, Fragile Beauty, which was recorded in the duo with Nguyên Lê in 2007, finished in the spring of 2008 in the World Music Charts Europe (April 2nd place, May 4th place). In 2007, she received the Prix Musique des Musiques du Monde for her interpretation of the traditional music of Vietnam. This prize is connected with studio recordings and in 2008 the CD Viet Nam was released: Musique Du Théâtre Cai Luong. Here Huong, in collaboration with traditional musicians, interprets some of the most popular pieces of Cải lương and the traditional music of the three regions of Vietnam. With this repertoire, she toured with her Huong Thanh Trio.

Vietnam music and traditional music

• Chuyện ba người, 1995
• Chuyện phim buồn, 1996
• Duyên ta như mây, 1996
• Tơ duyên, 1996
• Sao em nỡ vội lấy chồng, 1998
• Viet Nam: Musique du théâtre Cai Luong, Ocora, 2008
• L'Arbre au Rêves, Buda Musique / Universal Music France, 2011

Jazz and world music

• Moon and Wind, ACT Music, 1999
• Dragonfly, ACT Music, 2001
• Mangustao, ACT Music, 2004
• Fragile Beauty, ACT Music, 2007
• Camkytiwa: Les fleurs du levant, Buda Musique / Universal Music France, 2013

Collaboration

• Tales from Vietnam, de Nguyên Lê, ACT Music, 1996
• Magreb and Friends, Nguyên Lê, ACT Music, 1998
• Saigon Inspiring,Limborg, Terra Humana, 2006
• Charles Darwin, XII Alfonso, 2012
• A Million Stars, Geir Lysne, ACT Music, 2014
• Vinasounds Vol.1 EP, Nodey/Modulor, 2016

Compilation

• 2007, Musique du monde award, France Musique