59-year-old Tuyet Loan, shown here performing at Montana Jazz Club, is still a fiery jazz singer.

Singer Tuyet Loan is comfortable knowing that her jazz tunes are not Vietnam’s favorites.

Wearing long black gowns with her thick curly hair, Tuyet Loan reminds people of Dinah Washington, America’s renowned “Queen of the Blues.”

Her love for western music made jazz her fait accompli. Her strong voice bellows jazz standards, many of which are still rare and esoteric in Vietnam, where jazz first hit less than 50 years ago.

Loan does not kid herself about the relative obscurity of her chosen genre here.

“Jazz has only a very select group of listeners,” she says.

In fact, it’s very hard to find any jazz music outside of the country’s two biggest cities, Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.

“I only have a small following and it’s difficult because the local music scene is swamped by foreign pop music,” Loan says.

But she says she’ll never quit jazz.

“I’d rather perform less than switch to other genres with larger audiences,” she says.

“I have found a small but dedicated following. I have hardcore fans and perform just as well even when there’s only one person in the audience.”

She points out that few artists in Vietnam are dedicated to performing jazz. Even some pop signers add a jazz song or two to their repertoire, but the style is hardly their main passion.

“I feel at peace when I walk roads less traveled, but that doesn’t mean I feel content with my singing skills and have stopped trying to improve myself,” she says.

“I put all my heart and soul into my performances.”

Loan misses the music desperately if she doesn’t sing for a day.

“I initially performed jazz to make a living, but the more I indulge in it, the more passionately I’m in love with it.”

Portrait of the artist

Loan’s been singing live for more than 40 years.

She began singing at 14 to earn money and help her mother support her family.

She sang pop music at first, but she didn’t become very popular. But a veteran jazz musician encouraged her to draw on her powerful, resonant voice to play jazz music instead.

She heeded the advice and her love affair with jazz began as soon as she started listening to English songs and studying English.

She studied with the jazz artist for one year before joining the popular Yellow River band and then going solo afterwards.

Her jazz performances won instant praise from locals and foreigners alike.

Club and cabaret owners – particularly of venues popular with foreigners – began inviting her to sing.

Soon, jazz singing was supporting her and her two small children after her divorce. And she even found extra money to support her six younger brothers and sisters.

However, it was not until 1994 that she released her debut album, “Tuyet Loan - Jazzlady of Vietnam.”

On the album, Loan sings with Singapore’s Jazz Friend band, whom she met on a trip to the island city-state.

The band said she’s the best jazz singer in Southeast Asia.

Her second album, “Jazz Tuyet Loan - For Once in My Life,” contains old classics and new jazz songs. It was released late last year.

But Loan says her true passion is singing in front of an audience.

“Audiences prefer jazz, a highly improvisational genre, to be performed live,” she says.

“But an album does bring an artist closer to their fans’ hearts.”

At 59, Loan still performs every night at Sax N’ Art Jazz Club at 28 Le Loi Street, District 1, and the Montana Jazz Club at 30 Dong Khoi Street, District 1 where she has carved a comfortable niche for herself.

Aside from opening her own jazz bar, her greatest wish – albeit a simple one – is to sing for the rest of her life.

Reported by Diem Thu