Bands compete not just against each other, but also against taped music that is played when the players take a breather and sometimes as a substitute for live performers.
Hanoi city's main funeral hall often uses a taped revolutionary song glorifying fallen soldiers for state officials.
Loan said even if little research had been done on Vietnam's music for the dead, he believes it will stand the test of time to comfort future generations.
"This music never dies in the heart of the Vietnamese people. Part of it was lost and then resurrected, having entered the spiritual life of the Vietnamese," Loan said.
Hanoi resident Le Vinh Ha agrees. "The music is very much in need because, without it, nothing can fill in the emptiness (in the heart)," she said after attending her grandmother's funeral.
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