Vietnam’s famous pianist, People’s Artist Dang Thai Son, gave a one-hour performance in Ho Chi Minh City on May 2.

A collection of 13 albums of Son’s performance of classical music, which were recorded over the last 20 years, was made public on the occasion.

A book, titled “A pianist loved by Chopin - The Dang Thai Son story,” which was first published by Yamaha Music Media Cooperation in Japan in 2003, was also introduced to the audience.

Vietnam’s Phuong Nam Film was authorised to release the collection and publish the Vietnamese version of the book, written by Japanese journalist Yoshiko Ikuma, for the first time.

The book tells about how Son overcame numerous difficulties and became a famous artist in the world’s classical music circle. One hundred special copies of the book were sold at the concert to raise funds in support of child patients suffering from cancer.

Dang Thai Son is the first Vietnamese and also the first Asian artist to win the first prize at the Concours Chopin in Warsaw, Poland, in 1980. He has performed in over 40 countries and worked as a lecturer at many music schools and conservatoires. He has also been selected a jury member at several prestigious world piano contests.