Cao Văn Lầu (1892–1976), also known as Sáu Lầu (''Lầu the Sixth'' in Vietnamese), was a Vietnamese musician. He was the original composer of the song

vọng cổ ''Vọng cổ'' (, Hán tự: , "nostalgia") is a Vietnamese song and musical structure used primarily in the '' cải lương'' theater music and '' nhạc tài tử'' chamber music of southern Vietnam. It was composed sometime between 1917 and 19 ...

which started a new genre of

cải lương ''Tuồng cải lương'' (, Hán-Nôm: 從改良) often referred to as cải lương (Chữ Hán: 改良), roughly "reformed theater") is a form of modern folk opera in Vietnam. It blends southern Vietnamese folk songs, classical music, '' hát ...

music in the 1920s. He was born on 22 December 1892 in Long An province,

French Cochinchina French Cochinchina (sometimes spelled ''Cochin-China''; french: Cochinchine française; vi, Xứ thuộc địa Nam Kỳ, Hán tự: ) was a colony of French Indochina, encompassing the whole region of Lower Cochinchina or Southern Vietnam fr ...

. At the age of 4, he moved to

Bạc Liêu Bạc Liêu () is a provincial city and capital of the Bạc Liêu Province in the Mekong Delta region in southern Vietnam. It is a medium-sized town with a population of approximately 150,000. The former name of the city is Vĩnh Lợi. Histor ...

and spent all his life there. In Bạc Liêu, he studied

chữ Hán Chữ Hán (𡨸漢, literally "Chinese characters", ), Chữ Nho (𡨸儒, literally "Confucian characters", ) or Hán tự (漢字, ), is the Vietnamese term for Chinese characters, used to write Văn ngôn (which is a form of Classical Chines ...

with a monk and then attended a French primary school. In 1907, Lầu stopped schooling because of his

poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse < ...

. In 1908, he began learning music from local musician Lê Tài Khí and began his music career four year later. In 1913, he married a woman named Trần Thị Tấn. Because Tấn was not pregnant after three year of marriage, Lầu was forced to send his wife back to her family due to local custom. This separation was inspired Cao Văn Lầu in comprising his best known love-song

Dạ cổ hoài lang ''Dạ cổ hoài lang'' (, ''"Night Drum Beats Cause Longing for Absent Husband"'', Chữ Hán: 夜鼓怀郎) is a Vietnamese song, composed circa 1918 by songwriter Cao Văn Lầu, colloquially known as "Sáu Lầu," from Bạc Liêu. It was a mas ...

(Night Drum Beats Cause Longing for Absent Husband), a song that have a great influence in

music. He died on August 13, 1976, in

References

External links

Ca Mau club spreads music rooted in native soil
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cao, Van Lau Vietnamese musicians 1892 births 1976 deaths People from Bạc Liêu Province People from Long An Province