Vietnamese music is an umbrella term for the traditional, courtly, folk, and popular musics of Vietnam, spanning millennia of development and reflecting influences from neighboring East and Southeast Asia as well as later European and American styles.
At its core, traditional Vietnamese music is modal, largely pentatonic, and highly vocal, with genres tied to regional dialects, poetic forms, and ceremonial contexts. Characteristic timbres come from instruments such as đàn bầu (monochord), đàn tranh (16‑string zither), đàn nguyệt (moon lute), đàn nhị (two‑string fiddle), sáo trúc (bamboo flute), and a rich array of drums and gongs.
Since the early 20th century, Vietnam’s popular styles incorporated Western harmony, dance rhythms (waltz, tango), chanson aesthetics, and later rock, pop, hip hop, and EDM, resulting in distinct currents such as nhạc tiền chiến (pre‑war songs), nhạc đỏ (revolutionary music), nhạc vàng/bolero Việt Nam, and contemporary V‑Pop and Vinahouse.
