The Art of the Vietnamese Zither: Đàn Tranh

Tri Nguyen's mission is to bring the đàn tranh (zither) to new audiences by combining Vietnamese traditions with Western classical harmonies and other styles. Unfortunately, the results of his laudable efforts to transcend cultural borders verge on the saccharine and soporific. The Art of the Vietnamese Zither is a compilation of previously released recordings. Most are taken from Nguyen's debut album Consonnances from 2013 (reviewed in #108), featuring the Ilios Quartet.

At times the contrasting sonorities of the string quartet provide an atmospheric foil for the sensitive zither playing, but there are too few surprises. Three other tracks on the album, which are based on a collaboration with the oud player and percussionist Qaïs Saadi, are an uncomfortable meeting between Vietnamese melodies and Arabic modes and rhythms. For the final track, ‘Black Riding Horse’, Nguyen is joined by a varied group of Vietnamese musicians in an up-tempo, modern arrangement of a famous folk song, which playfully mimics the sound of a galloping horse. It's a slightly strange ending to an uneven album.