Author: Hiệp Dương (Học Trò)
Translator: Claude Code (Anthropic AI)
In several previous essays, I gathered what I had taught myself, hoping to find a method for composing a song. Starting from small analytical pieces about individual songs—such as Phôi Pha, Lặng Lẽ Nơi Này, Buồn Đến Bao Giờ, Chiều Phi Trường, Hoa Rụng Ven Sông, Nghìn Trùng Xa Cách, Trên Ngọn Tình Sầu—I continued to discuss the definition of motive/motif and the methods for developing them. However, I noticed I had not yet systematized the methods for constructing a complete verse, from a melodic idea, developing the idea, then closing it. I diligently discussed motives, then seventeen ways to create variations from motives (in the essay "Understanding Melodic Development in Phạm Duy's Music" - 2009), and left the golden fish dangling there, letting it swim wherever it wished. During this winter break (2023), I reviewed the materials and found in the book "Great Songwriting Techniques" (author: Jack Perricone) a chapter devoted to this topic (Chapter 9: Developmental Techniques). I then tried to review the "classic" songs to see if they followed these methods, and discovered many interesting details. Additionally, a "virtual friend" asked me, "I hear about motif quite a bit but it seems too vague and abstract for me," so I wanted to take this opportunity to try (again) the work of defining motives and development methods for a complete verse, without focusing too much on technical terminology, only presenting the main concepts.
So then, what is a motif/motive? After many years of struggling and pondering, I now think a motive is simply the first phrase of a verse. Most easily visible are the famous songs of the two composers Trịnh Công Sơn (TCS) and Phạm Duy (PD). Here are some examples of motives from composer Trịnh Công Sơn:
Một đêm bước chân về gác nhỏ (One night walking home to the small attic) - "Đêm Thấy Ta Là Thác Đổ"
Mưa vẫn mưa bay trên tầng tháp cổ (Rain still drifting on the ancient tower) - "Diễm Xưa"
Em đứng lên gọi mưa vào Hạ (You rise and call the rain into Summer) - "Gọi Tên Bốn Mùa"
Ngày tháng nào đã ra đi khi ta còn ngồi lại (What days and months have departed while we still sit here) - "Tình Xa"
Môi nào hãy còn thơm, cho ta phơi cuộc tình (What lips are still fragrant, for me to lay out my love) - "Ru Ta Ngậm Ngùi"
Tôi ru em ngủ, một sớm mùa Đông (I lull you to sleep, one winter morning) - "Tôi Ru Em Ngủ"
Ru mãi ngàn năm giòng tóc Em buồn (Lulling for a thousand years your sad flowing hair) - "Ru Em Từng Ngón Xuân Nồng"
Tình yêu mật ngọt, mật ngọt trên môi (Love's sweet honey, sweet honey on lips) - "Lặng Lẽ Nơi Này"
The common characteristic of these phrases is that they express a complete idea, serving as the foundation for the next phrase. Therefore, we should not define a motive as part of a phrase; for example, in the phrase "Tôi ru em ngủ, một sớm mùa Đông" (I lull you to sleep, one winter morning), we should not think there are two motives: "Tôi ru em ngủ" and "một sớm mùa Đông," but rather should consider those two segments as two "traits" (features) of one motive.
Motives in Phạm Duy's music are the same; most pieces can be easily identified by the first phrase:
Ngày đó có em đi nhẹ vào đời (That day you gently entered my life) - "Ngày Đó Chúng Mình"
Ta ngắt đi một cụm hoa thạch thảo (I pick a cluster of aster flowers) - "Mùa Thu Chết" (PD and Bùi Giáng, after Guillaume Apollinaire's poem)
Rồi đây anh sẽ đưa em về nhà (Soon I will take you home) - song of the same name
Tôi yêu tiếng nước tôi, từ khi mới ra đời, người ơi (I love my country's language, since I was born, oh beloved) - "Tình Ca"
Làm sao tôi biết, yêu đương là khúc đoạn trường (How was I to know, that love is a passage of sorrow) - "Yêu Là Chết Ở Trong Lòng"
Chiều rơi trên đường vắng, có ta rơi giữa chiều (Evening falls on the empty road, there I fall amid the evening) - "Đường Chiều Lá Rụng"
Let me repeat: a motive must express a complete idea, so when we see a song where the motive seems too short, we should not hesitate to select the entire phrase, even if it's a bit long. For example, in "Về Miền Trung," we should select the whole phrase "Về miền Trung! Miền thùy dương bóng dừa ngàn thông" (To the Central region! The land of willows, coconut shadows, thousand pines) as the motive, rather than identifying only "Về miền Trung" as the motive. Previously, I was often "confused" when analyzing such songs, not knowing whether to choose the first three words or the entire phrase as the motive. Since "agreeing" to use the criterion of expressing a complete idea, identifying motives has indeed become easier than before.
A characteristic of popular (pop) music is that each verse must have at least four phrases, so what should we do with the second phrase? The book "Great Songwriting Techniques" points out that the best approach is to reuse the rhythm and change the pitches (repeat the rhythm/change the pitch: rrcp). The pitches can all move up together, all move down together, half up and half down, half down and half up, or even stay the same as the first phrase. But we must try to keep the second phrase's rhythm identical, or only slightly changed from the first phrase. Let's compare with the examples just mentioned:
Mưa vẫn mưa bay trên tầng tháp cổ(Rain still drifting on the ancient tower)
Dài tay em mấy thuở mắt xanh xao(Long are your arms through ages, pale blue eyes)
Ngày tháng nào đã ra đi khi ta còn ngồi lại(What days and months have departed while we still sit here)
Cuộc tình nào đã ra khơi ta còn mãi nơi đây(What love has sailed away while we remain forever here)
Môi nào hãy còn thơm, cho ta phơi cuộc tình(What lips are still fragrant, for me to lay out my love)
Tóc nào hãy còn xanh, cho ta chút hồn nhiên(What hair is still dark, to give me some innocence)
Ta ngắt đi một cụm hoa thạch thảo(I pick a cluster of aster flowers)
Em nhớ cho, mùa Thu đã chết rồi(Remember well, Autumn has died)
Làm sao tôi biết, yêu đương là khúc đoạn trường(How was I to know, that love is a passage of sorrow)
Làm sao tôi biết, yêu đương là tiếng thê lương(How was I to know, that love is a mournful sound)
Chiều rơi trên đường vắng, có ta rơi giữa chiều(Evening falls on the empty road, there I fall amid the evening)
Hồn ta theo vạt nắng, theo làn gió đìu hiu(My soul follows the patch of sunlight, follows the desolate breeze)
In some works, most notably those of composer TCS, we see he didn't hesitate to use that same rhythm for the entire verse, without adding or removing any notes, because the verse itself was already very clear and complete. Most evident is "Diễm Xưa," which has only four phrases, each with eight syllables and a fixed rhythm, repeated twice before moving to the chorus, yet this song has stood the test of time:
Mưa vẫn mưa bay trên tầng tháp cổ(Rain still drifting on the ancient tower)
Dài tay em mấy thuở mắt xanh xao(Long are your arms through ages, pale blue eyes)
Nghe lá thu mưa reo mòn gót nhỏ(Hearing autumn leaves, rain singing, wearing down small heels)
Đường dài hun hút cho mắt thêm sâu(The endless road making eyes deeper)
Mưa vẫn hay mưa trên hàng lá nhỏ(Rain still falls on the row of small leaves)
Buổi chiều ngồi ngóng những chuyến mưa qua(Afternoons sitting watching the passing rains)
Trên bước chân em âm thầm lá đổ(On your footsteps, leaves silently fall)
Chợt hồn xanh buốt cho mình xót xa.(Suddenly the soul turns cold blue, making one ache.)
As other senior analysts have written about Trịnh Công Sơn's poetry and music, I secretly think TCS was first and foremost a poet. When composing a song, he probably had both poetry and music in his head. Therefore, with a complete eight-syllable poem like the one above, adding even one note would be difficult. With some other pieces, of course, after the second phrase has repeated the rhythm of the first, to escape monotony and predictability, the composer had to work at adding and subtracting from the motive to create a complete verse.
An example is "Tình Xa." After two very straightforward opening phrases, TCS continues using the rrcp technique in the third phrase ("Từng người tình bỏ ta đi, như những dòng sông nhỏ" / Each lover leaves me, like small rivers). In the final (fourth) phrase, the composer reuses the latter half of the third phrase ("Ôi những dòng sông nhỏ" / Oh those small rivers); then the next segment reuses the three words "lời hẹn thề" (promises) which is an element of the motif, and concludes the verse with "là những cơn mưa" (are the rains). The word "là" (are) functions as a conjunction, another method for developing the motive.
Ngày tháng nào đã ra đi, khi ta còn ngồi lại(What days and months have departed, while we still sit here)
Cuộc tình nào đã ra khơi, ta còn mãi nơi đây(What love has sailed away, while we remain forever here)
Từng người tình bỏ ta đi, như những dòng sông nhỏ(Each lover leaves me, like small rivers)
Ôi những dòng sông nhỏ, lời hẹn thề là những cơn mưa.(Oh those small rivers, promises are the rains.)
In another piece, "Bốn Mùa Thay Lá," the conjunction is masterfully employed by TCS, in both music and lyrics:
Bốn mùa như gió ………. Bốn mùa như mây(Four seasons like wind ………. Four seasons like clouds)
Những dòng sông nối đôi tay liền với biển khơi.(Rivers connecting hands with the open sea.)
Not only using techniques like rrcp, conjunctions, and subtraction, TCS also often used the extension technique, making phrases longer. In "Lặng Lẽ Nơi Này," we see "một mình tôi đi" (I walk alone) is extended through repetition, lengthening the phrase, emphasizing "I go," "I return." But most prominent are the final two words "với tôi" (with me), added like an exclamation mark, when most of the song consists of four-syllable phrases:
Trời cao đất rộng, một mình tôi đi, một mình tôi đi(Heaven high, earth wide, alone I walk, alone I walk)
Đời như vô tận, một mình tôi về, một mình tôi về(Life seems endless, alone I return, alone I return)
Với tôi.(With me.)
Composer Phạm Duy likewise uses the extension technique very fluently in "Đường Chiều Lá Rụng." After the first two phrases using the rrcp technique, he reduces the five-word motive to three words, then with the melodic line B D B / G B G / D G D, he extends it, winds around, sequences downward—a "priceless" depiction of a "yellow leaf flying" from the previous phrase.
Chiều rơi trên đường vắng, có ta rơi giữa chiều(Evening falls on the empty road, there I fall amid the evening)
Hồn ta theo vạt nắng, theo làn gió đìu hiu.(My soul follows the patch of sunlight, follows the desolate breeze.)
Lá vàng bay, lá vàng bay,(Yellow leaves fly, yellow leaves fly,)
Như dĩ vãng gầy / tóc buông dài / bước ra khỏi / tình phai.(Like the gaunt past / with hair let down / stepping out of / faded love.)
Lá vàng rơi, lá vàng rơi,(Yellow leaves fall, yellow leaves fall,)
Như chút hơi người / giã ơn đời / trên nẻo đường / hấp hối.(Like a human's last breath / bidding life farewell / on the path / of dying.)
Then, just like the dying lyrics, the music again sequences upward, extends, like final remaining efforts, only for the melodic arc to slowly sink back to the tonic. Note that he uses the extension technique for three words (dĩ vãng gầy / gaunt past), four words (hoàng hôn mở lối / twilight opens the way), or six words (từng chiếc thuyền hồn lướt trôi / each soul-boat drifting) very easily, naturally, without any apparent effort.
Hoàng hôn mở lối / rừng khô thở khói / trời như biển chói(Twilight opens the way / dry forest breathes smoke / sky like a blazing sea)
Từng chiếc thuyền hồn lướt trôi / Neo đứt một lần cuối thôi / Cho cánh buồm lộng gió vơi / gió đầy.(Each soul-boat drifting / Anchor breaks one final time / Let the sail billow with diminishing wind / with full wind.)
Chiều ôm vòng tay / một bóng thuyền say / thuyền lơ lửng mãi(Evening embraces / a drunken boat's shadow / boat floating endlessly)
Từng tiếng xào xạc lá bay / Là tiếng cội già khóc cây / Hay tiếng lòng mình khóc ai / giờ đây.(Each rustling sound of flying leaves / Is the sound of old roots crying for trees / Or the sound of one's heart crying for someone / now.)
After all the rustling, floating, crying, the music returns to the two opening phrases, differing only in the final five resigned notes, "đang chờ phút đầu thai" (waiting for the moment of reincarnation).
Chiều tan trên đường tối, có ta như rã rời(Evening dissolves on the dark road, there I am as if falling apart)
Hồn ta như gò mối, đang chờ phút đầu thai.(My soul like a termite mound, waiting for the moment of reincarnation.)
We have just reviewed the rrcp method, reusing the rhythm in the second phrase. There are two main solutions when moving to the third phrase: either continue that rhythm to the end of the song, as in "Diễm Xưa," or add and subtract to lengthen or shorten phrases as in "Tình Xa" or "Lặng Lẽ Nơi Này," then find a way to conclude the verse to transition to the chorus. The example of "Đường Chiều Lá Rụng" is somewhat special because it has no chorus, so the body is longer than usual. In a previous essay titled "Song Structure in Phạm Duy's Music," I didn't classify it but grouped it with several songs under the subheading "elaborate sections, melodic arcs, and rhythms," but actually, "Đường Chiều Lá Rụng" should be classified as Sentence form, and rrcp is actually another name for Sentence, where the second phrase repeats the first, then the third phrase onward must do something different—if it stays the same, it must stay the same all the way to the end of the verse. In that essay, I described in detail the structure of a Phạm Duy song, hoping that the reasoning in this essay will supplement any shortcomings in the previous one.
The twin sibling of the Sentence technique (rrcp) is none other than Period, where the second phrase is completely different from the first. Then, because the motive is no longer clearly visible in phrase two, it must be repeated in phrase three. Finally, phrase four will either resemble phrase two or be extended/contracted, with connecting phrases to create a complete verse. Let's look at some examples from TCS and other composers:
Em đứng lên gọi mưa vào Hạ(You rise and call the rain into Summer)
Từng cơn mưa, từng cơn mưa, từng cơn mưa, mưa thì thầm dưới chân ngà.(Each rain, each rain, each rain, rain whispering beneath ivory feet.)
Em đứng lên mùa Thu tàn tạ(You rise as Autumn withers)
Hàng cây khô, cành bơ vơ, hàng cây đưa em về giọt nắng nhấp nhô.(Rows of dry trees, lonely branches, rows of trees escort you to undulating drops of sunlight.)
(Gọi Tên Bốn Mùa - TCS)
Tôi ru em ngủ, một sớm mùa Đông(I lull you to sleep, one winter morning)
Em ra ngoài ruộng đồng, hỏi thăm cành lúa mới.(You go out to the rice fields, asking after new rice stalks.)
Tôi ru em ngủ, một sớm mùa Thu(I lull you to sleep, one autumn morning)
Em đi trong sương mù, gọi cây lá vào mùa.(You walk in the mist, calling trees and leaves into the season.)
(Tôi Ru Em Ngủ - TCS)
Trời mưa mãi mưa hoài, thần tiên giấc mơ dài(The sky rains on and on, fairy-like dreams so long)
Vào cuộc đời sỏi đá biết mình si mê(Entering this rocky life, knowing oneself infatuated)
Buồn ơi đến bao giờ, còn thương đến bao giờ(Sadness, until when? Still yearning, until when?)
Khi mùa thu còn mang tiếng buồn đêm hè(When autumn still carries the sad sounds of summer nights)
(Buồn Đến Bao Giờ - Lê Uyên Phương)
Em ơi, quên đi, bao nhiêu xót xa(Darling, forget the many sorrows)
Những chiều thiết tha bên nhau(Those intimate afternoons together)
Em ơi, xin em, xin em nói yêu đương đậm đà(Darling, please, please speak words of deep love)
Để rồi ngày mai cách xa.(So that tomorrow we may part.)
Anh ơi, bao nhiêu tang thương, mỗi khi(Darling, how much sorrow, whenever)
đã rời giấc mơ yêu đương(I have left the dream of love)
Anh ơi, xin anh, xin anh cúi trên cơn mộng dài(Darling, please, please bow over this long dream)
Để chờ ngày mai lên nắng …(To wait for tomorrow's sunshine...)
(Lời Gọi Chân Mây – Lê Uyên Phương)
As you can see, when discussing Lê Uyên Phương's (LUP) music, the dividing line between the motive and its developments becomes unclear, because LUP's music is winding, with the composer sometimes adding, sometimes subtracting words. The two pieces I just mentioned are actually easier to classify than some others, like "Đá Xanh" or "Dạ Khúc Cho Tình Nhân." However, we still see very skillful add-and-subtract techniques, as in "Vũng Lầy Của Chúng Ta":
Motive: Theo em xuống phố trưa nay, đang còn chất ngất cơn say(Following you downtown this noon, still staggering from intoxication)
Motive repeat: Theo em bước xuống cơn đau, bên ngoài nắng đã lên mau(Following you stepping into pain, outside the sun has risen quickly)
Development in Sentence style, but phrase 3 keeps phrase 2's rhythm: Cho nhau hết những mê say, cho nhau hết cả chua cay(Giving each other all the intoxication, giving each other all the bitterness)
Phrase 4 uses the extension technique to the end of the verse with triplets, no more resting at all, the music goes continuously to the end of the verse: Cho nhau chắt hết thơ ngây, trên cánh môi say, trên những đôi tay, trên ngón chân bước về, tình buồn, tình buồn.(Giving each other all the innocence distilled, on intoxicated lips, on pairs of hands, on toes stepping home, sad love, sad love.)
Due to such additions and subtractions, the beginning or end of lyrics of a phrase or phrase segment will fall on either the first beat, or the third beat (if in 4/4), or the composer will skillfully place the motive's rhythm at different positions. This rhythmic displacement is also a way to make the song less formulaic and rigid. Another method also belonging to the add-and-subtract category, but adding or subtracting rests, reduces the space between two phrases, making the music more urgent. The passage just analyzed contains all the techniques being discussed.
(Vũng Lầy Của Chúng Ta – Lê Uyên Phương, illustration from internet)
Another example is "Buồn Đến Bao Giờ," where LUP skillfully makes the chorus ending phrase fall on three different beats: beat 1, the weak part of beat 1, and beat 2, creating a sense of emptiness and surprise because it ends on the weak beat 2:
Em ơi, lá đổ hoa tàn,(Darling, leaves fall, flowers wither,)
Đếm tuổi cuộc đời trên hai bàn tay trơn(Counting life's years on two empty palms)
Em ơi, em ơi,(Darling, darling,)
Xuân nào tàn, Thu nào vàng, môi nào ngỡ ngàng.(What Spring has faded, what Autumn turned golden, what lips are astonished.)
(Buồn Đến Bao Giờ – Lê Uyên Phương, illustration from internet)
Another composer perhaps very "fond" of this displacement combined with the add-and-subtract technique is Từ Công Phụng. See how he extends phrases in the chorus of "Như Chiếc Que Diêm," and makes the first two phrases end on beat 3 (gian dối, tăm tối / deceitful, dark), making the phrases languid, not formulaic.
Vì lời em sớm muộn gì cũng một lần gian dối(Because your words sooner or later will once be deceitful)
Tình anh sớm muộn gì cũng đưa vào tăm tối(My love sooner or later will lead into darkness)
Đời anh sớm muộn gì, đời em sớm muộn gì, tình ta sớm muộn gì, cũng hấp hối.(My life sooner or later, your life sooner or later, our love sooner or later, will all be dying.)
In the final section, the composer sets a phrase of 6 beats, not equal to the standard 4 beats of a measure, so the music truly matches the lyrics (prosody), creating a sense of emptiness when "the herd of horses has gone far":
(Như Chiếc Que Diêm – Từ Công Phụng, illustration from internet)
Thôi cũng đành như tấm gương tan, mờ phai vết xưa(So it must be like a shattered mirror, old traces fading)
Xót dùm cho tấm thân ta, ngựa bầy đã xa(Pity my poor self, the herd of horses has gone far)
Những đêm mơ, thấy tan hoang, hương tình vừa chớm muộn màng.(Those dreaming nights, seeing devastation, the fragrance of love just beginning, too late.)
Just now we covered the two main methods for creating a verse: Sentence (rrcp) and Period, along with techniques for extending and shortening phrases. There are many songs with somewhat unusual openings and developments, but we can also classify them as rrcp, like "Un Homme Et Une Femme," music by Francis Lai, lyrics by Pierre Barouh, Vietnamese lyrics by Phạm Duy titled "Anh Và Em":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3y8tsDUl0s
Đời ta yên vui (ba đa ba đa- đa ba đa ba đa)(Our life is peaceful and happy (ba da ba da- da ba da ba da))
Cùng ca hát lên (ba đa ba đa - đa ba da ba đa)(Together let's sing (ba da ba da - da ba da ba da))
Tình trong trái tim (ba đa ba đa - đa ba đa ba đa)(Love in the heart (ba da ba da - da ba da ba da))
Là câu nói thương yêu, cao như tiếng diều.(Is a phrase of love, high as the sound of kites.)
Lời ca bao la (ba đa ba đa- đa ba đa ba đa)(The song's words are vast (ba da ba da- da ba da ba da))
Biển xanh cũng mơ (ba đa ba đa - đa ba da ba đa)(The blue sea also dreams (ba da ba da - da ba da ba da))
Được như chúng ta (ba đa ba đa - đa ba đa ba đa)(To be like us (ba da ba da - da ba da ba da))
Tình như nước xanh lơ, không gieo gió mưa.(Love like pale blue water, casting no wind or rain.)
Francis Lai's music is too famous with "Love Story" (Vietnamese lyrics by Phạm Duy titled "Chuyện Tình"), with a four-word motive, then immediately repeating with those same notes, and sequencing like Zhuge Liang (just like that, like that) to the end of the verse. So it is also a variant of rrcp, but using not just the rhythm but also the notes from the previous phrase to pivot to the next phrase!
Biết dùng lời rất khó, để mà nói rõ(Knowing how to use words is hard, to speak clearly)
Ôi biết nói gì, cuộc tình lớn quá. Chuyện tình đáng nhớ,(Oh what to say, the love is too great. A memorable love story,)
tuy cũ như là biển già trắng xoá, Cuộc tình quý giá(though old as the white-foamed aged sea, A precious love)
như những ngọc ngà nàng dành cho ta(like the pearls and ivory she saved for me)
Ôi biết nói gì?(Oh what to say?)
(Love Story – Francis Lai, illustration from
internet)
Speaking of Francis Lai, I'm very fond of his other pieces, such as: Concerto Pour La Fin D'Un Amour, Un Homme Qui Me Plaît, 13 Jours En France, La Bicyclette, L'Amour D'Aimer (Emmanuelle 2), La Chanson De Mélissa (Bilitis), Thème de Bilitis, (L'Amour Est Bien) Plus Fort Que Nous, La Leçon Particulière, Du Soleil Plein Les Yeux, and several others. His distinguishing feature is that he only writes music and collaborates with top-tier arrangers like Christian Gaubert or Jean Musy, and lets others write lyrics, like Catherine Desage, Didier Barbelivien, or Pierre Barouh. I should add that composer Phạm Duy wrote Vietnamese lyrics for several other pieces besides the two analyzed above, but placed them in the category "Nhục Tình Ca" (Songs of Carnal Love), which are rather steamy and "taboo," so not many Vietnamese people dare to sing them again. The French are fairer; they evaluate his music as very valuable—with pieces written for films like Emmanuelle 2, Bilitis, Madame Claude, when the music has soared far beyond the content of those three films he was invited to score.
The most distinctive characteristic is that the first phrase—the motive—in the pieces I just mentioned by him is very beautiful, containing many small melodic ideas that can be used for further development. His sequencing method is also very straightforward, following the rrcp style of "Love Story" to gradually sequence to the end of the song. Most evident is "(L'Amour Est Bien) Plus Fort Que Nous" (French lyrics: Pierre Barouh, Vietnamese lyrics by Phạm Duy titled "Tình Vẫn Trói Ta"). In my humble opinion, this is the best song from the film "Un Homme Et Une Femme" (A Man And A Woman) starring Anouk Aimée and Jean-Louis Trintignant. The film won two Oscars in 1967 (Best Foreign Film and Best Screenplay). (After watching this film, I was so captivated that I immediately ordered the two sequels: "A Man And A Woman, 20 Years Later" and "Les Plus Belles Années d'Une Vie," both directed by Claude Lelouch. Unfortunately, the third one had no English subtitles, only Dutch subtitles, so I was a bit "lost" because my French is still weak; when they speak a lot, I don't understand much.) The jazz version sung by Nicole Croisille with Pierre Barouh can be called exquisite:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9qPulvWkA4
Dù vẫn bên nhau nhưng ngờ vực lẫn nhau(Though still together but suspicious of each other)
Dù nói yêu nhau nhưng lời chỉ thoáng mau.(Though saying we love each other, the words pass quickly.)
Dù muốn xa nhau cho khỏi buồn đau(Though wanting to be apart to avoid sorrow)
Tình vẫn không cho ta lìa xa nhau.(Love still won't let us part.)
. . . .
Người thì thường mong cho người sống xa người(People often wish to live far from others)
Người thì thường mong cho đời chóng quên đời(People often wish for life to quickly forget life)
Voilà! Mình muốn sống trong lẻ loi(Voilà! One wants to live in solitude)
Mà tình thì lại trói ta mà thôi.(But love keeps binding us still.)
Another piece also following the rrcp approach is "Concerto Pour La Fin D'Un Amour," in the film "Un Homme Qui Me Plaît" (American title: Love is a Funny Thing) starring Annie Girardot and Jean-Paul Belmondo. Composer Phạm Duy wrote Vietnamese lyrics titled "Cho Cuộc Tình Tàn." The melody is quite winding from the very first phrase, then sequences along the harmonic flow.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2meVZitYFxg
Tình đã tàn theo ngày tháng cuốn đi vội vàng.(Love has faded as days and months swept away hastily.)
Người đã chìm sâu vào dĩ vãng xa ngụt ngàn!(She has sunk deep into the distant, misty past!)
Đời đã quạnh hiu, đời thêm vắng tanh, mênh mang.(Life has become desolate, life more empty, boundless.)
Đời còn buồn tênh, lùi lũi đám ma đi ngang!(Life still deeply sad, a funeral procession silently passing by!)
Đời như giọt mưa sầu vẫn khóc cho uyên ương(Life like drops of sorrowful rain still crying for the lovebirds)
Đã ly tan! Đã ly tan!(Already parted! Already parted!)
The last piece I want to introduce is "Thème Principal de la Musique du Film Bilitis." In the sheet music I found online, there were absolutely no lyrics. Yet composer Phạm Duy turned it into a truly noble, elegant, sacred love song—nothing at all "carnal" about it, only "gently escorting" each other along. What a pity for such a beautiful song with lovely lyrics to be forgotten in a corner. The song is called "Nơi Trần Thế" (On Earth). It opens with a five-syllable motive, first a continuous F-G-A, then leaping straight up to the celestial realm with the note F, then descending to B. Then Francis Lai has the music hop up to E, then land back on A, and so on, and so on until the end of the verse. The chorus is nothing other than a repetition with slight rhythmic variation, the melodic arc going up then down, rather than gradually ascending like the verse:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5jhIBkMQLA
Một bầy tiên hát mừng(A flock of fairies singing in celebration)
Cập tình nhân kia, yêu thương lẫy lừng(That pair of lovers, with resounding love)
Cùng dìu nhau đi, mênh mang bước đường(Together escorting each other, boundless path ahead)
Để bầy tiên ngoan xôn xang cõi lòng.(Making the good fairies' hearts flutter.)
Bầy tiên xin đón chào(The fairy flock welcomes)
Cập tình nhân kia, Thiên Thai bước vào(That pair of lovers, entering Paradise)
Cùng dìu nhau đi, nhẹ nhàng lên cao(Together escorting each other, gently rising high)
Tình đẹp như hoa, đẹp tựa trăng sao(Love beautiful like flowers, beautiful as moon and stars)
Cùng đàn ca, cho người hát nên lời(Together playing and singing, so people may voice the words)
Kể chuyện nghe, nơi trần thế con người,(Tell the story, of the mortal world of humans,)
Người yêu nhau là như đã lên trời.(Those who love each other have already ascended to heaven.)
Người khi đã yêu rồi(When one has loved)
Là bao xướng vui!(There is such elation!)
To create a chorus from a verse, in my humble opinion, the development method is similar: a musical idea taken from the verse, then developed to contrast or differ from the verse in notes, rhythm, and lyrics, and then finding a way to return to the verse. Following the same reasoning, there are actually seventeen development methods as discussed in the essay "Understanding Melodic Development in Phạm Duy's Music." Actually, I only discussed songs with four-phrase verses, aiming to inspire readers to leisurely tinker and compose on their own. There are still many other songs with longer verses, which will perhaps be your future music analysis exercises?
To conclude this essay, I hope readers clearly recognize what a motive is: that only the motive and its repetitions along with additions and subtractions of each phrase can create a genuine song. If you find some nice poem, then follow someone else's poetry to write a song, it's "asking for trouble," because not everyone can be a poet like Trịnh Công Sơn or Phạm Duy who can conceive poetry simultaneously with music. The music will be bland because there is no motive, no repetition of the motive to create interest for the listener to continue appreciating, or no additions and subtractions to make the song less monotonous. Those who only discuss idly, analyze idly without daring to think about daily practice of creating songs (like me!) also have a small benefit: their level of musical appreciation will develop a little each day, knowing how to classify what is good music, what is bad music, without wasting time listening to the whole song; just listening to the first two phrases is enough to skip to another song, or eagerly wanting to continue listening to see how the author completes a verse, then a chorus, and the entire song with full arrangement and orchestration.
Southern California 12/28/2023
Translated from "Tản Mạn Về Âm Nhạc" by Hiệp Dương
