Nha Trang rocks out to global tunes

      A much-anticipated international music festival will open on Thursday on Tran Phu Boulevard in Nha Trang city.
The show, entitled Nong Len Ngon Lua Am Nhac (Burning the Fire of Music), is part of the Nha Trang Sea Festival. Admission is free and it will be broadcast live on Viet Nam Television’s Channel 3 (VTV3).
Artists from several of the world’s continents, with the exception of Africa, will be performing. Among the big names attending will be Sarbel from Greece, Bugo from Italy, pop and rock band Nehr from France, Natalia Fateeve from Russia, the band Speechwriters LLC from the US and Sophie Sugar from the UK.
On the map
Viet Nam has begun to prove itself on the world stage following the success of a number of international music festivals in the country such as the Cracking Bamboo festival in Ha Noi and HCM City last September and the Ha Noi Sound Stuff, the first international electronic music festival in Ha Noi in March 2008. Setting the stage for international music festivals in Viet Nam was the 2008 Asean Golden Voice Festival, said Nguyen Quang Minh, the general director of the Cat Tien Sa Company, one of the co-organisers of the festival.
However, the country still struggles with the logistics of organising major musical events.
"We lack the skills for organising such festivals," musician Quoc Trung said.
"We don’t have access to modern light and sound systems and lack experts in this field."
"Big festivals held in foreign countries are of the highest standard. We must be ten years behind. It’s also not easy to attract famous singers here," Trung said.
With the success of several cultural events, many feel Viet Nam has finally got its act together.
"We have successfully organised a number of world pageant beauty contests in Viet Nam. We hope more of these kinds of events will continue to be held in the country," Trung said.