Bach Yen: The first Vietnamese female singer to tour around the US, the "muse" of musician Lam Phuong

Bach Yen is a famous female singer before 1975 with a special deep voice. Over the past decades, singer Bach Yen has brought Vietnamese music, especially traditional folk songs, to audiences around the world.

Referring to singer Bach Yen, one cannot help but mention the song "Dem Dong" by musician Nguyen Van Thuong. Many singers have performed this song, but the most successful performer is probably female singer Bach Yen when she was the first singer to convert this song from tango to slowrock. "Winter night chose my singing voice when I was just 15 years old" - she confides.

It was also the Winter Night that made her shine and brought her to the top of her career, becoming more known to music-loving audiences and loved by everyone. She also shared, "... the song "Dark Night" followed me all over the world until my hair was dew point, my age was also less young, but the audience still asked Bach Yen to sing Winter Night".

Singer Bach Yen's real name is Quach Thi Bach Yen, born in 1942 in Soc Trang. 10 years old has stepped on stage to perform. By the age of 15, with the song "Dark Night" by musician Nguyen Van Thuong, Bach Yen's name was established as the most famous new music star in Saigon.

In 1961, Bach Yen decided to go to France to study vocals and improve her performance. Here, she was accepted as a singer by Mr. Pham Van Muoi, singing at the restaurant "La Table Du Mandarin" owned by him on Rue de l Echelle, District 1, Paris. Also during this time, Bach Yen was invited by French company Polydor to record and tour some European countries. Although she has a high income while abroad, Bach Yen still clearly determined that she studied to return home to perform.

In 1963, Bach Yen returned to Saigon and sang at the Tu Do tea room of Mr. Ngo Van Cuong - a man who had lived for a long time in France and continued to reign in the top of the most popular singers in Saigon at the time. at that time.

Perhaps until now, there is no Vietnamese singer as respected as Bach Yen in his youth. Not only is the singer vouching for music shows in Saigon, Bach Yen is also invited to tour many countries around the world. In 1965, singer Bach Yen was invited to the US to perform for a long time, appeared on American television channels and released discs in the US as an entertainment symbol of the East.

Bach Yen has many "unique" ones. She was the first and only Vietnamese to appear on the famous American Ed Sullivan Show in 1965, the only Vietnamese artist who had the opportunity to perform on the same program with famous American names. like Bob Hope - Bing Crosby - Pat Boone - Frankie Avalon... is the first and only Vietnamese singer to sing the Hollywood soundtrack in the movie "The Green Berets"...

Bach Yen is probably a rare Vietnamese singer who can sing in many different languages, in addition to Vietnamese, there are also English, French, Italian, Latin, and no matter what language she sings, she can conquer the native audience. . In addition to her skillful voice, in her youth, Bach Yen also possessed a charming beauty and a small body typical of Asians. Although she mainly sings foreign music in foreign countries, in Bach Yen she always exudes a Vietnamese charm, no matter where she performs in the world, she often goes on stage with the national ao dai.

Singer Bach Yen is the dream lover of many men. However, no one made the singer Bach Yen really vibrate. When singing in the US and France, the female singer was pursued by many people, but she refused all foreigners because she kept her promise to her mother: "If you live in the US, you can't cut your hair short like a boy, let alone get married. foreign husband".

There used to be many oral stories revolving around musician Lam Phuong's love for singer Bach Yen as well as the birth of a series of immortal love songs during that period such as Desperate Love, Sad Autumn, Last Minute, Waiting for You, etc. Please have a good time...

Lam Phuong never said that these songs were composed for Bach Yen. Bach Yen also denied that she was the image and inspiration of Lam Phuong's songs at this stage. However, from 1961, when Bach Yen went abroad to practice, Lam Phuong wrote the above songs. In an interview with journalist Hoang Nguyen Vu in the book Fate and Halo, female singer Bach Yen said that Tuy Hong repeatedly said that hundreds of Lam Phuong's compositions were for Bach Yen. The woman at the top of the table with her hands and knees always has sensitivity to the unusualness of her husband...

Bach Yen also confessed that she once refused Lam Phuong's marriage proposal and accepted to marry musician Tran Quang Hai (son of Professor Tran Van Khe) after only 24 hours of knowing each other. Lam Phuong had very close feelings in Bach Yen's family and musician Tran Quang Hai also gave Lam Phuong special affection.

Like a predestined relationship, when he met musician Tran Quang Hai in Paris, less than 24 hours later, he proposed to her and "urgently" sent 400 wedding cards to relatives and friends, making Bach Yen both touched and surprised. , is both funny. "At that time, I had a contract to perform in the US, it took 3 months to expire, but he told me not to go anymore. And so I followed my husband," she confided.

Bach Yen did not dare to believe that the wedding seemed like a "closed eyes and feet" that changed her life and career. Professor Tran Van Khe - her father-in-law - was also stunned when her son suddenly announced the wedding. He "sold faith, half doubt" that the young couple "had something to do with each other, so they rushed to get married quickly" but also rest assured because the future bride is a talented and intelligent person.

Singer Bach Yen has no children in common with musician Tran Quang Hai, but her husband's stepdaughter is taken care of by her extremely thoughtfully and thoughtfully. When she was alive, Professor Tran Van Khe was very proud of the famous bride and gave many sweet compliments: "Every time she raises her voice, Bach Yen sings the purest Vietnamese language and the freshest Vietnamese soul".