✩⡱ music & family!

In this week's blog, we were assigned to ask a family member about music - so, I decided to interview my mom, as she loves music and often talks to us about music that she likes!

Music is huge in my family, as we're both Catholic and Vietnamese. Playing a large part in Vietnamese culture, I wanted to see how the "musical life" of my mom is/was like growing up.

So, I decided to sit down with my mom and ask her a couple questions:

Me, the interviewer:                                                                                                                            My mom, the interviewee:

"What is your first memory of music?"

"I was around six years old, and your ông ngoại (my mom's dad and my grandpa) loved to sing. I grew up  in a family of music, and ông ngoại tried to teach me how to sing to record me."

My mom then sang for me the song which her dad tried to teach her:

The name is "Trả Lại Em Yêu", with a rough translation being "bring back the times of love", making it a happy song and fond memory for my mother.

"How did music impact your childhood?"

"I grew up with music, and daddy always sang (note - he still loves to sing, and he's adorable!) He always tried to teach me to sing, like I told you. My grandpa was also a musician, and he played the 'Đàn bầu' and 'Đàn nhị'. So, I was always surrounded with it."

pictured above is the "Đàn bầu" - it's a traditional Vietnamese instrument that's in the form of a monochord zither.

pictured here is the "Đàn nhị" or "Đàn cò" - it's another traditional Vietnamese instrument that is like a "two-string fiddle" in English.

"Were you involved in anything like band or choir in school?"

"No, but I was in a local dancing group that would dance."

"Oh, that's cool - what type of music did you dance to?"

"We just danced to music that was popular at the time, both English and Vietnamese music, for the local community."

"How did music impact the culture and society around you when you were growing up?"

"I always grew up listening to music, like I told you. But then the communists took over from the Vietnam War, and there was little time to listen to music. But luckily, we had tapes that daddy and Bác Huy [her oldest brother, my uncle] collected before communism took over, so we could still listen to those tapes. Communism calmed down in the 80s, so [your] grandpa started to play music again. He would play music like 'YMCA' and  'Boney M.'."

"Oh, that's interesting. Did you learn to play any instruments or lessons when you were younger?

"Yeah. I learned to play the guitar when I was in the refugee camps. I was in there for 6 months, and we could attend guitar lessons from a teacher that offered them."

"Oh, I didn't know that. Next question: Where did you listen to music when you were growing up? The car? Your room? The radio?"

"When I was a kid, still in Vietnam (VN), daddy had an Akai!"

[I proceeded to search this up, as I didn't know what it was.]

"It was a tape player with two large disks on the top. We would listen to the tapes daddy and Bác Huy collected in our house."

"What about when you were a teen? Where did you listen to music?"

"When I was a teen, I would listen to music on a boombox in my room - it wasn't a big one, but one of those mini boomboxes. I got it as a gift."

 < it was something like this!

"Oh, I've seen players like the Akai! That's cool. Next, what sort of music was popular when you were growing up? Did you listen to that kind of music, or something less mainstream?"

"New wave! I listened to a lot of new wave - new wave was popular with the Vietnamese community especially. It wasn't as popular with Western/American culture [hip hop and r&b were becoming popular].  I listened to a lot of artists like Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, and C. C. Catch."

"What was your favorite genre or artist at various points in your life?"

"Like I said before, I listened to a lot of new wave, so new wave was my favorite genre as a teenager. My favorite artist was Bad Boys Blue. I liked European music a lot, as that's what new wave music is. As I became an adult, I liked artists like Bryan Adams, Celine Dion, and Julio and Enrique Iglesias."

"Yeah, I remember seeing a lot of Julio Iglesias disks upstairs. Now, do you have a fond memory associated with a song you listened to when you were younger?"

"Cyndi Lauper's 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun'- when I went out with my friends, my friends and I would always play that song and dance to it."

"Aw, that's cute. Hmm, what do you think of music that kids listen to today?"

“Mmmm… kinda crazy. Too much rap and the lyrics are chaos. There has to be clean versions for songs that are super explicit, which makes me feel like it's not its original copy anymore - there’s a lot of filtering that makes the songs feel less original in my opinion."

"That's an interesting comment, hmm. What about if there are any song lyrics or specific songs that have a special meaning to you? Do you have one?"

"My first dance song with [your] daddy at our wedding - it was Julio Iglesias's cover of 'Can't Help Falling in Love' by Elvis Presley."

"Why did you decide to choose this song?"

"Because it's pretty, and the lyrics make me melt when I'm with him."

"That's so cheesy, omg. Next, do you think music has evolved in a positive or negative way throughout your lifetime?"

"It's positive. It's good that there is now a large variety, as music is a good thing. Feelings can be expressed through music so it helps people - music makes me happy. When I'm sad, I can listen to a song that makes me happy, and it takes my mind off of what makes me sad. Music is very impactful on my life. I listen to a lot of spiritual music now, because I have a strong and prioritized connection to God - besides prayer, music is there to help connect me with God."

"I see. So, what makes you feel connected to a piece of music?"

"The tune and lyrics. What draws me first is the sound/tune - if it doesn't sound good, then I won't listen to the song for its lyrics."

"I agree. OK - bonus question. What do you think of the music that I listen to?"

"Binh-An listens to a large variety of music - there’s soft, gentle music and it's positive. It drives her into more relaxation and concentration. Her upbeat music is good too. I don't like your screaming music though -it's too chaotic, and I don't want you to be in an atmosphere of chaos (lol). I like that you listen to music in a lot of languages, though, as it helps you (and others) learn more about other cultures and languages. Music connects you with a lot of things, like learning and feeling."

"Thank you! Any last words?"

"Music is a beautiful gift that God gave us - I see music as flowers, fun, uniting people, and making people happy and loving. It can be both spiritual and meditative too. I'm thankful for this great gift. Life without music would be very boring, and I'm glad I grew up in a family that prioritized music - especially happy music."

Through this interview, I was able to learn more about my mom, as well as let her reminisce over her childhood again. Music has truly evolved over the years, and it was fun to interview her about how her "musical journey" has changed over the years, and she was happy to think about it as well.