Australian band, Music of Joy, to tour Vietnam

Hanoi (VNA) – Music and yoga lovers in large cities across the country will get the chance to enjoy free performances by Australian multicultural band Music of Joy (MoJ).

The performances will be held between July 5 and 17.

The band will tour the southern city of Long An, the Central Highlands city of Da Lat, capital Hanoi, HCM City and the central city of Nha Trang.

The group consists of more than 20 singers and instrumentalists from diverse cultural backgrounds.

Music of Joy’s repertoire is accompanied by a great mix of eastern and western instruments, such as the harmonium, guitar, bass and flute, as well as saxophone, clarinet, table and dholak [South Asian two-headed hand drum], along with djembe [a rope-tuned skin-covered goblet drum played with bare hands, originally from West Africa], tambourine [a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils"] and didgeridoo [a wind instrument developed by indigenous Australians].

Bhajans – songs of the spirit, praise and adoration – form the main part of the group’s repertoire. To these ancient songs, Music of Joy has added traditional Indian village songs and music from Pakistan, Switzerland, Italy and Spain, as well as England, Israel, Russia and Africa, along with a number of home-grown compositions by members of the group.

The group members have a common goal of sharing music that is joyful and uplifting, and practise Sahaja Yoga every day, which has influenced the music they create.

For the past 20 years, the band has toured various countries including Singapore, Thailand, China and Malaysia, as well as India, Nepal, New Zealand, and Vietnam.

During the Vietnamese tour, which is sponsored by Sahaja Yoga Australia and Sahaja Yoga Vietnam, the band will perform at iSchool Long An in Long An Province at 4pm on July 5 and at Hoang Anh Gia Lai Hotel in Da Lat City at 5.30pm the next day.

MoJ will perform in Hanoi at 6.30pm on July 10 at Trong Dong Palace, 173 Truong Chinh Street, Thanh Xuan District, before departing for Nha Trang for a show to be held at 6pm on July 14 at iSchool Nha Trang, 25 Hai Ba Trung Street.

The show in HCM City will take place at 5.30pm on July 16 at the Students Cultural House, 643 Dien Bien Phu Street, District 3.-VNA