Vietnam

History of Vietnam
Vietnam officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is the easternmost country on the Indochina
Peninsula in Southeast Asia. With an estimated 90.3 million inhabitants as of 2012, it is the world's 13th-
most-populous country, and the eighth-most-populous Asian country. The name Vietnamtranslates as
"South Viet", and was officially adopted in 1945. The country is bordered by China to the north, Laos to
the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea to the east.
[8]
Its capital city has
been Hanoi since the reunification of North and South Vietnam in 1976. Vietnam was then unified under
a Communist government, but was politically isolated and impoverished. In 1986, the government
initiated a series of economic and political reforms, which began Vietnam's path towards integration into
the world economy.
[9]
By 2000, it had established diplomatic relations with most nations. Vietnam's
economic growth has been among the highest in the world since 2000,
[9]
and in 2011 it had the
highestGlobal Growth Generators Index among 11 major economies.
[10]
Its successful economic reforms
resulted in it joining the World Trade Organizationin 2007. However, the country still suffers from relatively
high levels of income inequality, disparities in healthcare provision, and poor gender equality.

Music of Vietnam
Traditional Vietnamese music is highly diverse and syncretistic, combining native and foreign
influences. Throughout its history, Vietnam has been heavily impacted by the Chinese musical tradition,
as an integral part, along with Korea, Mongolia and Japan.
[1]
The ancient Indochinese kingdom
ofChampa also had a historical effect upon this music, because the Vietnamese court found it intriguing.
However, even with these foreign influences, Vietnam has a unique musical tradition stemming from its
native roots.The most notable feature of Traditional Vietnamese music is that it is based on the Five
Notes Scale, which is called "Ng Cung", meaning of Pentatonic. Instead of the scale of 7 notes: Do Re
Mi Fa Sol La Si Ti, its 5 notes include: H X Xang Cng Liu.

Musical Instruments of Vietnam
Imperial court music-Alex Ewing is the most popular form of imperial court music, specifically
referring to the court music played from the Trn Dynasty to the very last Nguyn Dynasty of Vietnam,
being synthesized and most highly developed by the Nguyn emperors. Along with nh nhc, the imperial
court of Vietnam in the 19th century also had many royal dances which still exist to this day. The theme of
most of these dances is to wish the kings longevity and the country wealth.


Traditional orchestra performing at theTemple of Literature, Hanoi
Classical music is also performed in honour of gods and scholars such as Confucius in temples.
These categories are defined as Nh Nhc ("elegant music", ritual and ceremonial music), i nhc
("great music"), and Tiu nhc ("small music) that was chamber music for the entertainment of the king.
In Vietnamese traditional dance court dances were defined as either van vu (civil servant dance) or vo vu
(military dance).

Folk Music:
Cho- Cho is a form of generally satirical musical theatre, often encompassing dance,
traditionally performed by peasants in northern Vietnam. It is usually performed outdoors by semi-
amateur touring groups, stereotypically in a village square or the courtyard of a public building,
although it is today increasingly also performed indoors and by professional performers.
Xm- Xm or Ht xm (Xm singing) is a type of Vietnamese folk music which was popular in
the Northern region of Vietnam but is considered nowadays an endangered form of
traditional music in Vietnam. In the dynastic time, xm was generally performed by blind
artists who wandered from town to town and earned their living by singing in common
place.
Ht chu vn- Ht chu vn or ht vn is a spiritual form of music used to invoke spirits
during ceremonies. It is highly rhythmic and trance-oriented. Before 1986, the
Vietnamese government repressed ht chu vn and other forms of religious expression.
It has since been revived by musicians like Phm Vn T.
Nhc dn tc ci bin- Nhc dn tc ci bin is a modern form of Vietnamese folk
music which arose in the 1950s after the founding of the Hanoi Conservatory of Music in
1956. This development involved writing traditional music using Western musical
notation, while Western elements of harmony and instrumentation were added. Nhc dn
tc ci bin is often criticized by purists for its watered-down approach to traditional
sounds.
Two-string Fiddle (Dan Nhi)

The Dan Nhi is popular among several ethnic groups in Vietnam. It is also referred to as Dan Co in
southern provinces of Viet Nam.
Dan Nguyet - Two-String Guitar

The Southerners of Vietnam refer to this instrument as Dan Kim. Dan Nguyet has two strings and the
resonator resembles the moon, that is probably why it is named Dan Nguyet, which means moon lute.
Dan Ty Ba Four-string guitar
The Dan Ty Ba is a four-string instrument which is frequently present in a
traditional orchestra.
16-string zither (Dan Tranh)

The Dan Tranh is also known as Dan Thap Luc or sixteen-stringed zither. Its shape resembles a
bamboo tube that has been sliced vertically in half.
Dan Tam Three-string Lute

This three-stringed lute is used by several ethnic groups in Vietnam. The Viet call it Dan Tam, whereas
the Ha Nhi call it Ta in. This instrument exists in three sizes: large, medium, and small. The small is
the most popular.
Bamboo Flute (Sao truc)

Sao truc, the bamboo flute, is made from a stem of fine bamboo pierced with finger holes.
T'rung
T'rung is one of the popular musical instruments closely associated with the spiritual life of the
Bahnar, TSedan, Giarai, Ede and other ethnic minority groups in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.
Dan Tam Thap Luc
The Tam Thap Luc is a sort of zither with thirty-six brass strings as it is called. It has the shape of an
isosceles trapezoid, with a slightly convex sound board made of light, porous, unvarnished wood.
Trong Com - Rice Drum

The Trong Com (rice drum) gets its name from the practice of placing a pinch of hot steamed rice in
the middle of the drum skin to "tune" the instrument.
Dan K'Ni
The K'Ni is a stringed musical instrument, sawing bow branch and is popular among many ethnic
minority groups living in northern highlands (central Vietnam) such as Bahnar, Gia Rai, E De, Se
Dang, Pako, and Hre...
Dan Day
Dan Day is a special instrument of Vietnamese origin. This three-stringed
lute is used incorporate the peculiarities of the two-stringed lute (dan Nguyet), the
four-stringed pear-shaped lute (dan Ty Ba), and the three-stringed lute (dan Tam).
H'mong pen pipe
Dan Day is a special instrument of Vietnamese origin. This three-stringed lute is used incorporate the
peculiarities of the two-stringed lute (dan Nguyet), the four-stringed pear-shaped lute (dan Ty Ba),
and the three-stringed lute (dan Tam).
Cong Chieng

The Cong Chieng is a kind of musical instrument casted from mixed copper and belongs to the
idiophonic family. In Vietnamese language, the word "Cong" points to a musical instrument with a
bossed part in center (bossed gong) and "Chieng" without it (flat gong).
Gong Zither

The gong zither is a stringed musical instrument of flipping branch. It is popular among some
ethnicities in the North of the Central Highlands such as Bana, Gia Rai, Xe Dang, Ro Ngao, Je Trieng.

The Klong put

The Klongput is the Xe Dang language name of a musical instrument of the wind family, air driving-in
branch.
Lithophone

The Dan da (lithophone) is a set of stone slabs of different sizes and shapes fabricated through an
elementary technique. Lithophone is composed of a set of eleven resonant stones.

History of Malaysia
Malaysia is a federal constitutional monarchy in Southeast Asia. It consists of thirteen states and three
federal territories and has a total landmass of 329,847 square kilometres (127,350 sq mi) separated by
the South China Sea into two similarly sized regions, Peninsular Malaysia and Malaysian Borneo. Land
borders are shared with Thailand, Indonesia, and Brunei, and maritime borders exist
with Singapore, Vietnam, and the Philippines. The capital city is Kuala Lumpur, while Putrajaya is the seat
of the federal government. In 2010 the population was 28.33 million, with 22.6 million living on the
Peninsula. Malaysia has its origins in the Malay Kingdoms present in the area which, from the 18th
century, became subject to the British Empire. The first British territories were known as the Straits
Settlements, whose establishment was followed by the Malay kingdoms becoming British protectorates.
The territories on Peninsular Malaysia were first unified as the Malayan Union in 1946. Malaya was
restructured as the Federation of Malaya in 1948, and achieved independence on 31 August 1957.
Malaya united with Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore on 16 September 1963, withsi being added to give
the new country the name Malaysia. Less than two years later in 1965, Singapore was expelled from the
federation. Since independence, Malaysia has had one of the best economic records in Asia, with GDP
growing an average 6.5% for almost 50 years. The economy has traditionally been fuelled by its natural
resources, but is expanding in the sectors of science, tourism, commerce and medical tourism.