Overheard in the Barnyard:
The-An was a student of Stephan Rak. He did the arrangement, available from his web site, I think.
Enjoy,
John
I enjoyed that video. I think a great deal of sincerity comes across.
But I’m going to criticize — just a little, because I don’t like to criticize — but I will in this case because I don’t think it will hurt anyone and maybe it will help a little.
When Rak-style tremolo effects succeed, the result can be compelling. A sort of cinematic illumination occurs. But take it too far and it gets too rough. The beauty evaporates into crashing noisiness.
In this case, the piece eventually became a little too noisy and chased off the gentle mood that had been so nicely built in the beginning. It’s not the fault of the guitar playing, but rather that the arrangement itself calls for too much of a good thing. Sometimes less is more.
Back to the positivity: it looks like there’s a goldmine of Vietnamese guitar players and guitar music on YouTube!
Thank you for opening that door, John Nguyen.
And could someone please comment on what "Beo Dat May Troi" means? Thanks!
It means "Scattering Water-Fern, Drifting Cloud." This is a popular folksong in northern Vietnam, mostly used as lullaby.
John Nguyen
great playing.
Comments! Hooray! 🙂
great playing. a lot of techniques. harmonics, pull offs, tremolo. highly enjoyable.
Nice playing all 3 videos.
A little boring though for european ears,But I could listen to this a lot during meditation or before sleep