French orchestra dazzles Hanoi audience in elegant Vietnamese ‘ao dai’

The orchestra brought not only a distinctive musical program but also a striking visual experience.

Dressed in ao dai, four female musicians brought a touch of grace and cultural charm to the performance.

Against the backdrop of Baroque music, the program went beyond the familiar collection of Vivaldi concertos.

Instead, works by Giovanni Antonio Guido guided audiences through four movements – spring, summer, fall, and winter – offering a fresh perspective on the musical interpretation of the seasons.

Alongside celebrated composers such as Antonio Vivaldi, Georg Friedrich Handel, and Jean-Philippe Rameau, the program introduced audiences to lesser-known names in Vietnam, including Johann Adolf Hasse, with Serpentes Igei in Deserto, and Riccardo Broschi, with Son qual nave.

Both composers were prominent figures in the European Baroque tradition during the 18th century.

However, their works, particularly Baroque arias written for castrato or countertenor voices, are rarely staged or performed live at concert venues in Vietnam.

Their inclusion reflected the production team’s serious commitment to presenting the rich diversity and expressive range of European Baroque music.

While the instrumental pieces evoked nature through the changing movements of the four seasons, the arias and duets expanded the musical narrative into the emotional world of human experience.

Some melodies conveyed profound sadness and the intense pain of love, while others expressed anger, strength, and dramatic emotional power.

The interplay between voices and instruments added another distinctive dimension to the evening.

Countertenor Théo Imart, soprano Marie Zaccarini, and countertenor Stéphane Wolf took on the vocal parts, bringing contrasting emotional colors to the program’s four-season structure.

‘Every performance in Vietnam feels like celebration’

Among the evening’s highlights was Stefan Plewniak, the talented Polish conductor and violinist whose return to Hanoi once again demonstrated his energetic and expressive approach to classical music.

Under his direction, the orchestra delivered the characteristic qualities of Baroque performance, combining rhythmic vitality, fluidity, and dramatic intensity with the precision demanded by the European classical tradition.

Plewniak also encouraged audience participation, clapping along during particularly lively passages of the four-season program.

His enthusiasm quickly spread through the auditorium, prompting an enthusiastic response from concertgoers.

Speaking to the press on the sidelines of the event, Plewniak said the orchestra had visited Vietnam in the spring of this year, making the current trip its second tour of Hanoi within the same year.

“Every time we perform for audiences here, it feels like a celebration,” he said.

“You always welcome us with such warmth and openness.

“We truly love your culture, your country, and the way you treat your visitors.

“All of this makes us feel so at home, as though we are being welcomed back.

“That is why we would love to return to Hanoi once or twice every year.”

Baroque music is distinguished by its extraordinary sensitivity and expressive depth.

It is a vibrant language, rich in emotion and as graceful as a dance, while remaining energetic, diverse and, in some ways, spiritual.

These qualities make Baroque music a bridge between cultures and a universal language that can be understood and appreciated by people in every country, he said.

The orchestra will return for another performance, titled 'Four Seasons with Love,' at the same venue on Friday evening.

The orchestra had previously performed in Vietnam on several occasions, including the Four Seasons Concert and The Seasons ballet in 2024, the opera Carmen in 2025, and the French Excellence concert in April 2026.