Returning to Vietnam for a short period of time, conductor Le Phi Phi is busy with three big concerts in Hanoi and HCM City. Before the show of Macedonian band Synthesis in Hanoi, he spoke with VietNamNet about this trip to Vietnam.

What is the reason for your regular trips back to Vietnam and your participation in concerts in Vietnam, your family relationships or your attention to Vietnamese music?

Both. My parents are living in Vietnam. They are very old now so they further need my care. I’ve tried to arrange my working schedule in Macedonia to have more time for cooperation with Vietnam. Last year I returned to Vietnam twice. This year I planed to go home twice to work, besides my personal trips.

Why do you invite Synthesis to Vietnam?

Synthesis means “composition.” It is the composition between traditional and modern music. Some of the musical work that they are about to perform in Vietnam are not known by many Macedonians. Some of the works have even been lost in the past and have been resumed recently. That is a band that preserves traditional values of Macedonian music.

What do you think about the three young artists who will join the upcoming concert on February 22? What is your challenges of working with them?

There is a common thing for them (Luu Hong Quang, Nguyen Viet Trung and Aleksander Krzyranowski): they are self-confident though they are very young. It is difficult to play music works by Chopin and Tchaikovsky but they are very confident.

When playing music with young artists, conductors must be very experienced to help and instruct them. The responsibility of conductors must be double when they perform with young artists.

What is the think you dislike most when you work with an orchestra?

The first is unpunctuality and the second is inattentiveness. This time I’m very surprised with the orchestra of the Vietnam National Music Institute. Most of them are young students but they are quite experienced and hard-working.

What is the gap between Vietnamese and a Macedonian orchestras?

Not too wide. The Macedonian orchestra is at a medium-level, not the leading one in Europe. In Vietnam, I work with the top orchestras, such as the National Symphony Orchestra and HCM City Symphony Orchestra. Certainly, the personality of musicians in each country is different.

Could you reveal your future cooperation plan between Vietnam and Macedonia?

I plan to bring a Vietnamese music troupe to Macedonia to strengthen the cultural exchange between the two countries. That plan depends on many factors, but I will try to turn it into reality as soon as possible.

How will you choose the music troupe that you want to introduce in Macedonia?

I think I will choose that which belongs to the cream of Vietnamese culture, including classical music because many people asked me whether Vietnam plays classical music. They think that Asia, as well as Vietnam, doesn’t have the tradition of classical music.

Thank you!

Interviewer: Tuan Hai