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The history of the Vietnamese songs is divided into four main sections of periods starting from the very foundation of the first Vietnamese Dynasty:
1. The First period: This period lasted between the 10th to15th centuries. This period was characterized by the combined influences of both the Chinese and the Indian music
2. The Second period: This period lasted between the subsequent 15th and the18th centuries. It was strongly characterized and was dominated by the influence of the Chinese.
3. The Third period: This period started in the 19th century and lasted right upto the beginning of the Second World War. This period was strongly characterized by the originality and entity that often is associated with the traditional Vietnamese songs. This period also saw the introduction of some superficial influence of the Western music.
4. The Fourth period: This period started from 1945 and still continues. This period has been characterized by the continuous decline of the traditional Vietnamese songs. It has also seen umpteen new attempts to restore the traditional Vietnamese songs. This period also marks the development of a new European style in the Vietnamese songs.
The musical language of the Vietnamese songs is characterized by the usage of some musical scales such as:
- The Ditonic Scale: The alternating voices used in the Vietnamese songs used prominently in the Hai Duong province in North Vietnam
- The Tritonic Scale: The scale used in the Vietnamese songs meant for children and the Vietnamese folksongs of the Hai Duong province and the Nghe Tinh province.
- The Tetratonic Scale: Used in the Vietnamese songs used as lullabies in Thanh Hoa province in North Vietnam and in the Quang Nam province in Central Vietnam.
The Vietnamese songs are composed of a number of genres of music:
- Court music
- Ceremonial music
- Religious music
- Village music
- New Western style music
- Music of the proto-Indochinese music .
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