NATIONAL IDENTITY IN CONTEMPORARY VIETNAMESE SONGS: FROM THEORETICAL HERITAGE TO THE GOAL OF CULTURAL, PHYSICAL, AND AESTHETIC DEVELOPMENT
Abstract
This article examines the movement and transformation of national identity in contemporary Vietnamese songs under the multidimensional impact of globalization, while also considering the relationship between the theoretical legacy of musicology and the practical development of the human person. Building on the theoretical systems of classical scholars such as Tran, V. Khe and Pham Duy (on the Hơi–Giọng system), To. N. Thanh (on syncretism), and Dale, A. Olsen’s perspectives on popular music, the author provides an in-depth analysis of the process of “localization” through representative musical phenomena associated with Hoang Thuy Linh and Jack. The study shows that national identity has shifted from relatively static forms toward a form of “modern syncretism,” in which music, digital technology, and the language of music video (MV) converge to create a “cultural immune system” for young people. In particular, the article critiques the current condition of “surface culture” and the crisis of values through Dương, V. A’s theory of song lyrics. The findings affirm that promoting national identity in music is a key means of achieving the goal of comprehensive human development according to the Culture–Physical Development– Aesthetics model (Văn–Thể–Mỹ). Finally, the author proposes a coordinated set of solutions, including the development of qualitative and quantitative criteria for arts management, with the aim of advancing values that “orient people toward goodness and supreme beauty” in the digital age