CENTRAL and NORTH ASIA (Inner Asia)

When speaking of Central and North Asia, one refers to regions and spheres of musical cultures rather than to specific countries—musical practices and musical thoughts do not recognize political boundaries and spill over large areas. Can speak of music of Mongolia (independent country) and Siberia (a region); the music culture of Turkestan and Central Asia, which includes the mainly Turkic-speaking republics (Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgystan and Kazakhstan), the Persian-speaking republic of Tajikistan, northern Iran and northern Afghanistan, and the music culture of Tibet (including those countries in which there is a large Tibetan Buddhist population, such as Bhutan, Nepal and China). The majority of urban inhabitants of Central Asian Turkestan are Muslims.

 Vocal Music and Musical Instruments

--Much of Central Asian folk music developed out of a nomadic life style with portable instruments and the human voice.

--Accompanying instruments limited to small, portable plucked or bowed lutes.

--Tibetan Buddhist repertoires are performed by large choruses of Buddhist monks living in monasteries. The aesthetics of sound (instrumental and vocal) are similar to those of the folk music.

 The nomadic (now semi-nomadic) Mongolian and Siberian peoples have developed a number of interesting vocal techniques.

--Both narrative and lyrical songs. ). In narrative songs, the melodic aspect is more limited in order to emphasize the words. But more lyrical songs emphasize elaborate vocal ornamentation (trills, tremolos) over text/words. Use a wide range in singing (3 octaves).

 The horse is important in Mongolia and among the Turkic peoples of Central Asia and Siberia as it provides transportation and food. Morinhur – one-or two- stringed bowed lute (fiddle) with the pegbox carved in shape of horse’s head used to accompany various song types, including epics/legend songs. The body is covered with horse hide and the strings and bow are made from horse hair, which has magical powers.

 --Epics are one of most common types of performance art in Inner/North Asia . (Origin of lute: A Mongol Epic song about a man who tried to steal, but couldn’t, so he killed a nomad’s horse. Then he laments it and decides to bring the horse back to life by making it an instrument.

--Thus the origin of the horse-headed lute (Strings of horse-hair and all other parts symbolizing parts of a horse’s body).

--A good epic singer can sing it for weeks and improvise details, characters, etc.

--The Chinese have made this story one of “class-conflict”, bending it to their ideology. (It is, for example, difficult to tell the difference between a rich and poor nomad. Mongolian society is a largely egalitarian society, compared to surrounding people.)

TUVAN THROAT SINGING

 Tuvan – nomadic herders in the steppes or mountains along the Silk Route . Descendants of Genghis Khan.

 --Known to experiment with vocal capabilities.

--A novel vocal style in which an individual singer produced what sounds like more than one melody at a time.

In their deep past they were largely outdoor, rural musical practice; now throat singing is taught in conservatories in the cities of Inner Asia, researched by ethnomusicologists who learn to perform the style. It is now heard at music festivals in the U.S. and in concert halls. Performers and listeners have adapted.

 Khoomii (“throat”)--multi-phonic (solo chord) singing. Overtone singing that sounds like whistling.

-- music conveys attachment to the terrain, depicting sounds of nature, elements of water (running water) and light, transformed into music.

 Huun-Huur-Tu –(“sun propeller”) Name of one type of throat singing. Refers to the refraction of the sun’s rays that occur at dawn and dusk on the Tuvan landscape (similar to the separating or refracting of sound achieved in throat singing).

 To understand “overtones” –Different sources of sound, whether voices or instruments, are identified by the qualities (acoustical). Each pitch does not consist of a single sound but of a fundamental tone—which our ear perceives as the basic pitch of the sound—and a series of harmonics (called overtones). For example a string vibrates along its entire length, producing the fundamental. At the same time the string also vibrates independently at various subdivision—at half, one third, etc.—each at a different higher pitch and volume (producing harmonics). The combination of these harmonics with the fundamental creates the characteristic tone colors of different instruments. (A gentle placing of finger on string can stop the fundamental from vibrating and you hear the first harmonic). It is usually difficult to separate the harmonics from fundamental tones by ear (throat singing being a striking exception).

 LISTEN FOR 2 separate layers of sound: One is a low, rough, sustained tone, the other a higher line that moves actively at a faster tempo. (They do not think of them separately).

 Kargya – sung in very low register and often has a text

Sygyt – sung in high register (with high pitches) with clear harmonics that sound like whistling. (Referred to by outsiders as “khoomii”)

 Songs sometimes use Russian folk song style (Russians dominated them politically for a time). Russian lyrics telling of life among nomadic peoples in the arid plains and rugged mountains of Inner Asia . Sometimes no words at all. But singer vocalizes melodies.

--Sometimes accompanied by plucked and bowed lute.

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