• About Jeff von der Schmidt, the Hà Nội New Music Ensemble & LA International New Music Festival

Sound Travels with Jeff von der Schmidt

~ A blog about new music, travel and food

Sound Travels with Jeff von der Schmidt

Tag Archives: Anthony Bourdain

The Eternal City of Huế

07 Saturday Oct 2017

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Ancient Ensemble of Tonkin, Buddhism, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Music, Travel, Uncategorized, Vietnam, Vu Nhat Tan

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Ancient Ensemble of Hue, Ancient Ensemble of Tonkin, Anthony Bourdain, Buddhism, Dam Quang MInh, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Hue Citadel, Kodo Drummers, Lan Huong, Perfume River, Sado Isalnd, Thien Mu Pagoda, Vu Nhat Tan

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Eternal Việt Nam and the Sông Hương, the River of Perfume, in Huế. Photo by Lan Hương.

It has been eleven years since I visited the city of Huế, considered the Vatican of Vietnamese Buddhism. Despite the horrific battles fought here in 1968 during the Tết Offensive, a calm spirituality infuses the area. You glimpse this on the long highway road from Đà Nẵng. Sandwiched between busy shops and food stands are more Buddhist temples that I could count.

The language is different. The cuisine is different. The atmosphere is different.

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Welcome to Sound Travels!

28 Monday Aug 2017

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Contemporary Music, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, LA International New Music Festival, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Travel, Uncategorized, Vietnam

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Anthony Bourdain, Bill Clinton, Chasen's Restaurant, Food, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Jeff von der Schmidt, Julia Child, Kaiseki, LA International New Music Festival, Tambuco Ensemble, Tomasso Restaurant, Travel

2017-05-24 10.34.42

A big thank you to all my blog readers around the world!

Thanks to everyone who reads my blog, all 22,347 of you, from every continent on Planet Earth!

Let me start my post with gratitude to my Top Ten Countries, grouping them in a geographical if not statistical order. Those readers start, naturally close to home since I live in California, with the United States and Canada. Southeast Asian friends and travelers to Việt Nam, Singapore and Malaysia are big readers and then, perhaps, journey to the inspiring Old World of England, Germany and France (which is becoming new again in the 21st century), looking for tips and ideas from my posts. People interested in the vibrant life colors of Latin America join in from Brazil and México. All in all, our readership is in over 150 countries from every continent around the globe.

After almost four years and 115 posts, it’s time for a little upkeep. Let’s welcome my new blog name of Sound Travels!

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The Only Sign in Chinese: The Women’s March in Los Angeles with Joan Huang

22 Sunday Jan 2017

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Uncategorized, Women's March

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Anthony Bourdain, Barack Obama, California, Cultural Revolution, Diane Feinstein, Hanoi, Joan Huang, Kamala Harris, LA International New Music Festival, London, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, Sir Ian McKellen, The Women's March

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The Sister Cities of Los Angeles by City Hall.

“I just wish more American’s had passports.” CNN’s Anthony Bourdain to President Barack Obama in Hà Nội, Việt Nam.

All of us in Los Angeles aren’t surprised that our City of Angels had one of the largest turnouts in the United States on Saturday January 21, 2017 for The Women’s March. Our County, which has a population larger that 42 states in our country, is represented by a female majority of Supervisors, effectively making them equal to many U.S. governors. Our State is represented in Washington D.C. by Senators Diane Feinstein and Kamala Harris, whose parents are Jamaican and Indian.

And if you thought Los Angeles only lives in its cars, you didn’t ride the Metro yesterday!

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Where the Dragon Descends: A Trip to Hạ Long Bay, Part One

13 Tuesday Dec 2016

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Buddhism, Cat Ba Island, Halong Bay, Hanoi, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Travel, Uncategorized, Vietnam

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Anthony Bourdain, Arnold Schoenberg, Ascending Dragon, Au Co Boat Tours, Buddhism, Cat Ba Island, Emeraude Boat, Hanoi, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Vietnam

A world of clouds and dragons in Ha Long Bay.

A twilight world of clouds and dragons in Hạ Long Bay.

When the dragon meets the clouds, peace is at hand. Vietnamese Proverb

Listen well to my story, because once upon a time in a distant land there was a fairy princess named Âu Cơ. She lived high in the mountains and had a warm heart. With her abundant kindness, Âu Cơ became a skilled doctor, healing the mountain people of their sicknesses with endless compassion. But one day she was very frightened by a monster, who scared her so much, Âu Cơ turned herself into a crane and flew far far away to safety.

And where did her crane wings fly her to safety? To the protection of Hạ Long Bay, where the dragon descends into the ocean.

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The Obama Combo: Bún Chả Hương Liên in Hà Nội’s French Quarter

22 Thursday Sep 2016

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Cong CaPhe, Contemporary Music, Diplomacy, Food, Hanoi, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Travel, Uncategorized, Vietnam, Vu Nhat Tan

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Ambassador Ted Osius, Anthony Bourdain, Asia, Bun Cha Huong Lien, CNN Parts Unknown, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Kim Ngoc Tran, Los Angeles International New Music Festival, Michelle Obama, Nguyen Minh Nhat, Nguyen Thien Dao, Pierre Boulez, President Obama, Ton That Tiet, Vietnam, Vietnam War, Vu Nhat Tan

Where to order the Obama Combo.

Where to find the Obama Combo in Hà Nội’s French Quarter.

“Jeff,” texted my friend Vũ Nhật Tân, “I want to take you and Jan for Obama bún chả in French Quarter, not far from where you stay. They are now so busy that we should meet at 10:30 AM for early early lunch or 5 PM for early early dinner. OK?”

That’s a text message that was easy to answer!

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The Superpower Street Food of Hà Nội and a Home Cooked Meal

17 Saturday Sep 2016

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Composers, Food, Hanoi, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Kim Ngoc Tran, LA International New Music Festival, Music, Southwest Chamber Music, Travel, Uncategorized, Vietnam, Vu Nhat Tan

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Anthony Bourdain, Asia, Autumn Moon, Banh Ca Bun Da, Chuyen Pho Bo, Cong Caphe, Hanoi, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Hanoi Street Food, Kim Ngoc Tran, Mon Hue Restaurant, Pham Truong Son, Pho Bo, Pho Suong, Tran Thu Thuy, Vietnam, Vu Nhat Tan

With Tran Thu Thủy, my Vietnamese tutor, upon arriving in Hanoi.

With Trần Thu Thủy, my Vietnamese tutor, the first photo upon arriving in Hà Nội last week.

I didn’t leave my heart in San Francisco, even though the City by the Bay is home to some of my oldest dearest friends on Planet Earth.

When I have to find where I left my heart, I need to get on an airplane, fly 24 hours (via Tokyo, Taipei or Hong Kong) and begin another chapter, what is now the eighth, in my ongoing love for a country that will always lurk in the background of being an American.

I left my heart in Hà Nội, Việt Nam.

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And The River Sings of Eternity: From Huế to Paris for Tôn Thất Tiết

30 Thursday Jun 2016

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Composers, Contemporary Music, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, LA International New Music Festival, Music, Paris, Travel, Uncategorized, Vietnam

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Andre Jolivet, Anthony Bourdain, Asia, Buddhism, Dam Quang MInh, Dong Kinh Co Nhạc, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Kent Nagano, Los Angeles International New Music Festival, Nguyen Thien Dao, Olivier Messiaen, Thich Nhat Hanh, Ton That Tiet, Vietnam, Vivan Diep, Vu Nhat Tan

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Sunset in Paris on the Seine from the Pont des Arts.

My friend Tôn Thất Tiết, who I would describe as a hybrid Vietnamese French composer who is fundamentally Vietnamese, writes the most patient music I’ve ever encountered. Poised from years of Buddhist thought and traditions, his command of stillness inspires me. And like the metaphor of water he often invokes, his music conceals endless energy underneath a calm surface.

Tiết was born in Huế, Việt Nam in 1933, went to Paris in 1958, studied with Messiaen’s friend André Jolivet and became a French citizen in 1971. In 1993 he founded the France-Việt Nam Music Association to promote the development of traditional music in Việt Nam.

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Street Food Heaven: A Tour of Jalan Penang Road & New Lane Hawker Stalls

04 Thursday Feb 2016

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Asam Laksa, Eastern and Oriental Hotel, Food, Georgetown, Hermann Hesse, Malaysia, Penang Island, Travel, Uncategorized

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Anthony Bourdain, Asia, Eastern and Oriental Hotel, Georgetown, Hermann Hesse, Jalan Penang Road, Jooi Hooi Cafe, Line Clear Nasi Kandar, Malaysia, New Lane Hawker Stalls, Penang Island, Salman Rushdie, Spice Garden, Spices, Sup Hameed, UNESCO World Heritage Sites

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The 1885 Eastern & Oriental Hotel in Georgetown.

During the time I was in the UNESCO World Heritage City of Georgetown on Penang Island in Malaysia, I didn’t recognize the big impact it would exert on my life. But as my memory takes over from those experiences with the Straits of Malacca, I know that I’ll never be the same again.

Not only are the peoples and religions of China, India, Pakistan, Burma, Bangladesh, or Sri Lanka all mixed up with the remnant of former British Malaya in a dazzlingly vibrant textile of culture. What is now apparent, to the world’s intangible benefit, is a vibrant and alive composite cuisine that, for me, changed my taste forever. There is no going back. I’ve crossed a food Rubicon because of Malaysia.

Salt and pepper will never be the same again.

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Autumn in Asia: New Roles as Artistic Advisors in Hà Nội, Việt Nam Begin in October

17 Monday Aug 2015

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Composers, Contemporary Music, Food, LA International New Music Festival, Music, REDCAT, Southwest Chamber Music, Travel, Vietnam

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Anthony Bourdain, Ascending Dragon, Asia, Hanoi, Hanoi Philharmonic Orchestra, Kim Ngoc Tran, LA International New Music Festival, Leonard Bernstein, Nguyen Thien Dao, Pham Minh Thanh, Song Hong Ensemble of Hanoi, Southwest Chamber Music, Tanglewood, Ton That Tiet, Vietnam, Vu Nhat Tan

Jan and I at

At Phở Sương, or Happy Noodle, in the Old Quarter of Hà Nội in 2013.

Jan and I are thrilled, honored, and excited to begin a new adventure this October, one which I am happy to share with all my blog readers around the world.

Soon after my last post about our Los Angeles International New Music Festival at REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall, an official invitation arrived from Dr. Lê Anh Tuấn, Deputy Rector of the Việt Nam National Academy of Music in Hà Nội. Dr. Tuan was inviting us to serve as Artistic Advisors to the Hà Nội Philharmonic Orchestra and play a key role in the founding of the Hà Nội New Music Ensemble.

Our answer? An obvious and immediate YES, YES, YES!

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Orchard St. Memories, Katz’s Deli, Russ & Daughters & a Visit to The Russian Tea Room

17 Tuesday Mar 2015

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Elliott Carter, Food, Hollywood, LA International New Music Festival, Music, New York City, Southwest Chamber Music, Travel, Uncategorized

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Anthony Bourdain, Brooklyn, Carnegie Hall, Elliott Carter, Katz's Deli, Lower East Side, New York City, Orchard Street, Russ and Daughters, Russian Tea Room, Tenement Museum

Central Park in the snow.

Central Park in the snow.

Woody Allen might be right, that cities look best in a rainstorm. But for me, a fresh blanket of snow frames the layers of memory New York City contains for my wife Jan’s family better than an umbrella. Leaving the Ukraine because of the deadly pogroms of Tsarist Russia (what else is new?) they arrived, liked so many other immigrants, at Ellis Island and eventually settled in New York City in the 1890s.

Fast forward to 2015. Today, almost at the very spot where Jan shopped as a young girl for new clothes before the Jewish High Holidays, is a great museum of the American Story. You can hear many old voices there and learn about immigration in real terms on the Lower Eastside of New York City. Adding Jan’s family’s history and her own memories of Orchard Street to the Tenement Museum story stitches one more seam into the American quilt.

And as for dealing with cold, icebox temperatures, let’s just admit that it’s somewhere in Jan’s Russian Jewish DNA.

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