MUSIC: Music of Thailand

Music of Thailand

Lesson 1: Fundamental Music of Thailand

·         Sukhothai – capital of the new Thai Kingdom from about 1250 to 1350

·         Ayutthaya – city farther to the South

-          Remained the capital for over a hundred years, during which time there was intermittent warfare between the Thais and the Burmese of northwest

-          Was destroyed by the Burmese in 1767

·         Yodaya – group of Burmese songs

·         Phama – Thai word for Burma

-          prefix of titles of several Thai compositions

·         Thai Music is amalgamation of the music of the Thais, the people of Southern China, Burma, Khmer, Indian and Javanese elements

Tonal System of Thai Music

·         Similar to the pentatonic scale of china

·         Composed of seven tones but the fourth and seventh tones are usually omitted

·         Thai music never uses all seven pitches with equal emphasis

·         In Thai Music, 5 of the 7 pitches are selected and are used as the basis of a composition

Polyphonic Stratification

·         Polyphonic Stratification – one main melody is played simultaneously with a number of versions and variants itself

·         Polyphonic – term used to describe many lines of music sounding simultaneously

·         Stratification – refers to layers of simultaneous melodies, which are interrelated but are not independent

·         Harmonic Music – organized vertically, clusters of interrelated pitches forming chords follow a systematic movement from one to another

·         Variation of melody is either fast or slow

·         Thai traditional music is always in duple meter.

Lesson 2: Thai Musical Instruments

Most of the instruments used in Thai music can be traced from four sources:

1.       Brought by Thai from China (mostly stringed)

2.       Those adopted and adapted from Khmer (mainly melodic percussion type)

3.       Other foreign sources

4.       Those from Thai themselves

Thai music may be conveniently discussed also under four main headings:

1.       Melodic percussion

2.       String

3.       Wind

4.       Rhythmic percussion

Three Types of Thai Musical Ensembles

A.      The Pi-phat Ensemble

The principal musical ensemble. Played in ceremonial functions

1.       Ching

-          Percussion instrument

-          Pair of cymbals made of thick metal

2.       Pinai

-          Made of hardwoods and marble

-          Has 4 small reeds, round pieces of Palmyra palm leaves placed in two double layers and tied to a small tube made of brass, silver, or metal

-          Used with the ensemble accompanying the shadow plays

3.       Ranat Thong Thum

-          Consists of 16 gongs arranged in a circular frame

4.       Ranat Ek

-          Wooden xylophone with 21 keys of a special type of hardwood connected to each other by cords at each of its nodes

-          Shaped like a Thai river boat curved upwards

5.       Khong Wong Lek

-          Small circle of gongs

6.       Taphone

-          Barrel-shaped drum made of a solid block of teakwood or jackwood

B.      Mahori Ensemble

Consists of melodic and rhythmic percussion instruments, the flute and strings, and frequently described as the combination of Khruang Sai and Pi-phat ensembles

1.       Chakee

2.       Thom

3.       Sao-duang

4.       Sao-saam-saay

5.       Ranat Thum

C.      Khruang Sai Ensemble

Infrequently heard today in Thailand. Consists only of stringed instruments, the flute and rhythmic percussion. May be of 3 sizes: small, medium, large.

1.       Chakee

2.       Ramana