National music of Thailand: musical styles and instruments

National music of Thailand: musical styles and instruments

In recent years, among Asian countries, the greatest interest among tourists is Thailand - its culture and history. Мhe music of Thailand, delivered everywhere, is of interest not only to music lovers, but also to many tourists. It harmoniously combines the classic romance and works of bards with a unique sound honed over the centuries.

Musical instruments

Traditional Thai musical instruments include wind, string, and percussion. The oldest and most popular stringed bowed instruments are the sau or ku sau sam sai. They are made of halves of coconut and differ from one another in the shape of the body and the number of strings. This group includes the citra khim, an instrument imported from China, and the thiakau, a large guitar played mostly by women.

Ensembles use a wooden plucking instrument, the "chorakhe," with three strings stylized in the form of a crocodile. Two strings with a high sound are made of silk, one with a low sound is made of copper. Wind instruments include the bamboo flutes pi chawa, khliy, and the pinay oboe, which resembles the Scottish bagpipe. Musicians from northeastern Thailand play the khina (khuen). It is a kind of harmonica made of bamboo stems, imported to the country and Laos during the Bronze Age of Southeast Asia.

Percussion instruments are used in traditional orchestras, Buddhist rituals, and to accompany Muay Thai fights. They are Thai big and small drums (khongs and glongs), "chingas", ranas (xylophones), and gongs.

Styles of Music

The Thai octave consists only of tones, which correspond to eight notes, while the European octave consists of semitones. This fact significantly distinguishes Thai music from Western music. The national songs are sharp, characterized by recitative and melismatics (quick alternation of sounds, notes). The ethnic composition of the country determined the formation of various musical genres:

Styles of Siamese music were influenced by Indian, Laotian, and Chinese cultures.

The Onion Thung appeared in 1937. From Thai the name translates as "child of the paddy field. The lyrics often talk about the plight of rural workers. The genre gained wide popularity after the release of the movie "Magic Love in the Country. And recently, Luk Thung had his own FM wave.

Mo Lam came to Thailand from Laos. Its tunes are reminiscent of rap music. The style is not popular throughout the kingdom, as the songs are sung in the dialect of the Isan region, which is in the northeast of the country. A khen, a small bamboo organ, is used to make music. Mo Lam, like Luk Thung, celebrates the lives of poor peasants. The style is a cultural heritage of the Thai people and is believed to have been passed down from generation to generation.

Kantrym was brought into the country from Cambodia and is popular in northern Thailand. The music is rhythmic, made with Khmer musical instruments.

Malay was born in the provinces on the border with Malaysia. It was created by Thai Muslims who emigrated from the neighboring country. It differs from the national music and resembles a mixture of Arabic and Malaysian motifs. The style is common in the southern parts of Thailand.

Capture Muay or Sarama. It is difficult to attribute this movement to any particular style. Saram music is performed by quartets playing oboes and drums. This tune is commonly used to accompany rounds of Thai boxing. At the beginning of the fight music sounds slow and solemn. During - speeds up. The alternation of sounds emphasizes the intrigue of the fight.

Phip Hut - The national Thai orchestra accompanies court theater and dance performances. Musicians accompany performances by playing drums, strings and wind instruments. All the flavor of the Thais is displayed in recitatives to 1-2 instruments.

In the 1880s European music began to seep into Thailand, and with it musical instruments. European bands began to be organized in the big cities of the kingdom. And with the development of information technology, jazz and pop music also spread to Thailand.

A music group in Thailand

Now the original music of Thailand can be heard only at special concerts or at national festivals. As in the resort areas, popular singles of world famous artists are played.

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