The show at the August Revolution Square on Aug. 15 featured well-known artists like Xuan Hinh, Tan Minh, Dang Duong, Hoang Hai, and Lam Bao Ngoc.
From 6 p.m. people carrying national flags thronged the venue. Around 4,000 tickets had been sold while a big crowd stood outside the fence in the square and Hoan Kiem pedestrians-only street.
The event opened with a projection of historic sites such as Nha Rong Wharf, Tan Trao banyan tree and Pac Bo forest.
After a speech by Hanoi people’s committee chairman Tran Sy Thanh, fireworks lit up the sky for three minutes.
Hundreds of dancers performed to “Bai ca Ho Chi Minh” (Song of Ho Chi Minh), a piece composed by Ewan MacColl with Vietnamese lyrics by Phu An arranged for symphony orchestra.
A choir and soloists then recreated the fervor of the August Revolution with songs such as “Diet Phat Xit” (Destroy the Fascists) composed by Nguyen Dinh Thi, “Du Kich Ca” (Guerrilla Song) composed by Do Nhuan, “Tieng Goi Thanh Nien” (Call of the Youth) composed by Luu Huu Phuoc, and “Cung Nhau Di Hong Binh” (Together as Red Soldiers) composed by Dinh Nhu.
For “Muoi Chin Thang Tam” (August 19) composed by Xuan Oanh, performers carried hundreds of flags on stage to recreate the moment the revolution triumphed with flags flying across the city.
The performance ended with the broadcast of Ho Chi Minh’s Declaration of Independence on Sept. 2 1945.
The second part of the program, titled “Ba Dinh Sunlight - The Leader’s Voice Lives On,” featured Dong Hung and Khanh Linh performing “Nguoi Ha Noi” (The People of Hanoi) composed by Nguyen Dinh Thi.
The Dien Bien Phu campaign was recalled through Do Nhuan’s “Hanh Quan Xa” (Far March) and “Tren Doi Him Lam” (On Him Lam Hill), performed by Hoang Hai. Dancers illustrated the legendary bicycle brigades that carried hundreds of kilograms of supplies and weapons for the campaign.
Dang Duong and boy band Oplus evoked memories of the Ho Chi Minh Trail and the spirit of young soldiers with a mashup of Huy Thuc’s “Bac Dang Cung Chung Chau Hanh Quan (Uncle Ho Marches With Us) and Tran Chung’s “Bai Ca Truong Son” (Song of Truong Son).
The “Hanoi - From the Historic Autumn of 1945” concert took its audience through different stages of Hanoi’s history, from the heroic and tragic wartime to the youthful and modern present.
A mashup of "Tinh Yeu Hoa Binh" (Love for Peace) and "Ha Noi Niem Tin Hy Vong" (Hanoi, Faith and Hope) performed by Hoang Hai and Lam Bao Ngoc. Video by Loc Chung
Xuan Hinh performing alongside young singers. Video by Loc Chung
The show closed with Van Mai Huong performing a new song, “Hanoi Light Up the City,” composed by Duong Cam.
The concert ended with low-range fireworks and the projection of images of Hanoi in a mapping display.
Van Mai Huong's performance. Video by Loc Chung
Firework performance at the end of the concert. Video by Loc Chung
“Hanoi - From the Historic Autumn of 1945” was organized by the city and directed by People’s Artist Tan Minh. It also featured music director Duong Cam, orchestra conductor Dong Quang Vinh, and scriptwriter-director Tuyet Minh.
