MASTER CLASS

In order for the finalists to achieve the best results in the competition, the Organizing Committee provides a practice room for contestants under Category A to practice separately with their own teachers (if any).
Contestants under Category B & C will rehearse with the Symphony Orchestra of Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music under the guidance of Art Advisor, Orchestra Conductor, Meritorious Artist. Tran Vuong Thach.
During the preparation for the final round, each contestant will introduce their musical style and direction with a video clip shot at SIU, which will be posted on the competition’s official fanpage.

Honored Artist (H.A.) Tran Vuong Thach

is the conductor, former Director of HCMC Ballet, Symphony, Orchestra and Opera (HBSO) and currently the Deputy Chair of Vietnam Musician Association.
Upon graduating from the HCMC Conservatory of Music, H.A. Thach enrolled in Conservatoire royal de Liège (Belgium) and then Conservatorium Maastricht (Netherlands). He was awarded the title of Honored Artist (H.A.) in 2007.
During 2010-2021 period, he was the Director of HBSO. During his tenure as the Director of HBSO and later, as Deputy Chair of the Vietnam Musician Association, H.A. Tran Vuong Thach has developed many international cultural and art projects with French collaborators. Thanks to the collboration with Grenoble’s La Fabrique Opéra (France), the opera “Fredegone” was introduced to the audience in HCMC. He was instrumental in bringing the Caroline Nguyen’s opera “Sai Gon” to the wider Vietnamese audience. He is also active in the professional music and art scene.
H.A. Tran Vuong Thach is a permanent member of the Judge Council in Villa Saigon, a program for artists in diaspora orgnaized by Institut Français in HCMC.
H.A. Tran Vuong Thach was awarded the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres in 2020, commemorating his active contributions in arts, his efforts in artistic outreach and exchange, his part in the establishment, development, maintenance, and promotion the cultural exchange between Vietnam and France. The Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres conferred by the French Minister of Culture is reserved for the outstanding artistic individuals with immense contributions to the promotion of French arts and literature worldwide.

Art Advisor
Artist Le Tri Toan studied at the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music from 1985 to 1987 under the guidance of Professor Hoang Cuong and Professor Bui Cong Thanh.
In 1987, he received a scholarship to study abroad at the Rimsky-Korsakov National Conservatory of Music in Saint Petersburg (Russian Federation) under the tutelage of Professor Elena Komarova.
He completed his Master of Music degree in 1994.
M.M. Le Tri Toan performed with the Long Leningrad Orchestra (the predecessor of the Saint Petersburg Radio and Television Orchestra) in 1993.
From 1994 to 1996, he was a member of the international chamber orchestra – Ensemble XXI Moscow. With this orchestra, he toured throughout Russia and Europe.
From 2006 to 2020, M.M. Le Tri Toan was the Dean of the String Department of the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music. He taught Violin and Chamber Orchestra, and was also the Concertmaster of the Saigon Philharmonic Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra of the HCMC Conservatory of Music. He has been an active chamber musician, performing regularly as a member of the Saigon Quartet.
M.M. Le Tri Toan is currently Vice Dean of the Department of Western Musical Instruments of the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music.