The similarities and differences between a popular contemporary musician and folk musicians... Types of music are many and all musicians play and compose various types of music. It is not difficult to know about popular contemporary musicians nowadays. However, “how to distinguish between contemporary musicians and folk musicians in the past” is a hard question to answer. This essay will discuss their similarities, their differences and how music is evolving in Vietnam. Traditional/folk music and modern music have a few similarities. Traditional music was similar to how life was, during the time period. Modern music shows emotion or describes people in everyday life. Folk musicians play from memory. They've learned music through hearing others play it. Contemporary musicians also can be influenced by older musicians or artists from a bygone era. However, they play music by the notes. The first difference is about the musical instruments. There are many different kinds of instruments. Contemporary musicians play modern instruments. In modern music you notice the instruments but pay attention to the lyrics of the songs. Folk musicians play traditional instruments. Listening to classical music you may notice more instruments playing. Another difference is the musicians’ income. The income for a professional contemporary musician can be huge when being a folk musician will never make them rich. Music plays a major role in Vietnamese life. Vietnamese music history is long and complex. It was handed down from one generation to another. Traditional Vietnamese music is highly diverse, combining native and foreign influences. Its history has been impacted by the musical tradition from China, Korea , and Japan… Songs written by popular musicians were heard by a great number of people through the radio, TV, internet... Song writers were also able to capture many aspects of life and share them with the public. Music had a major impact on people’s life, politicians, and the public during the Vietnam history . Traditional music and modern music have many differences but they also have some similarities. Nowadays, besides developing modern music, the preservation and development of traditional music play a very important part in musical life in Vietnam.