ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
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Classical Music
Classical music traditions were largely borrowed from Siam musicians in
the late 1800s, who borrowed the traditions from Cambodian conquests
centuries earlier. Myanmar classical music, as played today, was codifi ed
by Po Sein, a colonial-era musician, composer and drummer who also
designed thehsaing waingg (the circle of tuned drums, also known as
paq wainggg) and formalised classical dancing styles. Such music is meant
to be played as an accompaniment to classical dance-dramas that enact
scenes from the Jataka or from the Ramayana.
Musical instruments are predominantly percussive, but even the hsa-
ing waingg may carry the melody. These drums are tuned by placing a
wad of paq-saa (drum food) – made from a kneaded paste of rice and
wood ash – onto the centre of the drum head, then adding or subtracting
a pinch at a time till the desired drum tone is attained.
In addition to the hsaing waing, the traditional hsaingg (Myanmar
ensemble) of seven to 10 musicians will usually play: the kye waingg (a
circle of tuned brass gongs); thesaung gauqq (a boat-shaped harp with
13 strings); thepattalaa (a sort of xylophone); the hnehh (an oboe-type in-
strument related to the Indianshanai); the pa-lwe (a bamboo fl ute); the
mi-gyaungg (crocodile lute); thepaq-maa (a bass drum); and the yagwin
(small cymbals) and wa leq-hkouqq (bamboo clappers), which are purely
rhythmic and are often played by Myanmar vocalists.Folk
Older than Myanmar classical music is an enchanting vocal folk-music
tradition still heard in rural areas where locals may sing without instru-
mental accompaniment while working. Such folk songs set the work ca-
dence and provide a distraction from the physical strain and monotony
of pounding rice, clearing fi elds, weaving and so on. This type of music is
most readily heard in the Ayeyarwady Delta between Twante and Pathein.Rock & Rap
Western pop music’s infl uence fi rst came in the 1970s, when singers such
as Min Min Latt and Takatho Tun Naung sang shocking things such as
Beatles cover versions or ‘Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree’.
This led to long-haired, distorted-guitar rock bands such as Empire and
Iron Cross (aka IC) in the 1980s. Two decades later, no-one’s bigger than
Iron Cross – try to see them live (you’re sure to see them on videotape
at teashops or on all-night buses). Another big band is Lazy Club who
played concerts in the US in 2009.
Bands such as these (all of whom usually sing in Burmese, even if
they have English names) have a stable of several singers who split stage
time with the same backing band. Iron Cross, for example, features one
of Myanmar’s ‘wilder’ singers, Lay Phyu, but it can also tone it down as aTRADITIONAL BURMESE MUSIC CDSThese music CDs can generally be found outside Myanmar:
» Mahagitá Harp & Vocal Music from Burma (2003; Smithsonian Folkways)
» Music of Nat Pwe: Folk & Pop Music of Myanmar (2007; Sublime Frequencies)
» Pat Waing The Magic Drum Circle of Burma (1998; Shanachie)
» U Ko Ko Performs on the Burmese Piano (1995; Ummus)
» Various artists Burma: Traditional Music (2009; Air Mail Music)
» White Elephants & Golden Ducks Enchanting Musical Treasures from Burma
(1997; Shanachie)The beautifully
painted little
parasols you see
around Myanmar
are often made in
Pathein – in fact
they’re known
as Pathein hti
(Pathein
umbrellas).Myanmar dance
scholars have
catalogued
around 2000
dance move-
ments, including
13 head move-
ments, 28 eye
movements, eight
body postures
and 10 walking
movements.