Music of Bhutan

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Monks playing lingm at Lhuentse Dzong
Lhuentse Dzong
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The music of Bhutan is an

culture and plays a leading role in transmitting social values. Traditional Bhutanese music includes a spectrum of subgenres, ranging from folk to religious song and music. Some genres of traditional Bhutanese music intertwine vocals, instrumentation, and theatre and dance, while others are mainly vocal or instrumental. The much older traditional genres are distinguished from modern popular music such as rigsar.[1]

Instruments

Bhutanese dranyen

dramnyen (similar to a large three-stringed rebec); modern musicians often update these instruments for use in rigsar.[2][3]

Other traditional instruments include tangtang namborong (four-holed bamboo bass flute), kongkha (bamboo mouth harp), and gombu (bull or buffalo horn). Newer instruments include the

yangchen, brought from Tibet in the 1960s.[1][4]
: 139–140 

While Bhutanese folk music often employs stringed instruments, religious music usually does not.[1] Unlike many countries, Bhutanese folk music is almost never incorporated into popular music.[4]: 132 

Religious music

Monks playing dungchen, Dechen Phodrang monastic school, Thimphu
dungchen, Dechen Phodrang monastic school, Thimphu

Bhutan was first united in the 17th century, during the reign of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal (1594–1652); the same period saw a great blossoming of folk music and dance. Religious music is usually chanted, and its lyrics and dance often reenact namtars, spiritual biographies of saints, and feature distinctive masks and costumes. Today, Bhutan has a robust tradition of monastic song and music not normally heard by the general public.[1][5] The language used in these lyrics is generally Chöke.[4]: 138, 146 

Cham
Main article: Cham dance

The

tsechus
.

Folk music

The influence of

Bumthangkha.[4]
: 138, 146 

Vocal and behavioral discipline for traditional singing requires thorough training in order to master the correct pitch, facial expressions, gestures, and overall conduct while performing.[4]: 142 

Along with traditional music, masked dances and dance dramas are common participatory components of folk music, and feature prominently at Bhutanese

tsechus (festivals).[4]: 133–4, 142–4  Energetic dancers wearing colorful wooden or composition face masks employ special costumes and music to depict a panoply of heroes, demons, death heads, animals, gods, and caricatures of common people. The dances enjoy royal patronage and preserve not only ancient folk and religious customs but also perpetuate the art of mask making.[8]

Bhutanese folk songs include a variety of subgenres, including zhungdra and boedra, as well as several minor varieties such as zhey and zhem, yuedra, tsangmo, alo, khorey, and ausa.[1][4]: 134  Traditional song and dance are also an integral part of archery in Bhutan, known for lyrics that range from literary and sublime to provocative and burlesque.[9]

Zhungdra
Main article: Zhungdra

Buddhist allegories, such as Yak Legbi Lhadar, in which the singer tells of his former life as a yak slaughtered in connection with a non-Buddhist ritual in the Gasa District.[1]

Zhungdra is characterized by the use of extended vocal tones in complex patterns which slowly decorate a relatively simple instrumental melody. Untrained singers, even those with natural singing ability, typically find it challenging to sing zhungdra. This has reduced the popularity of zhungdra compared with rigsar, the fast-paced pop Bhutanese music style based on electronic synthesizers.

Boedra
Main article: Boedra

Tibetan music") is the second of the two dominant forms of Bhutanese folk music. Instrumentation for boedra often includes the chiwang, which symbolizes a horse. In contrast to Zhungdra, Boedra evolved out of Tibetan court music.[1][4]
: 136, 161 

Zhey and zhem

The paired zhey and zhem (

tsechus (festivals). They contain elements of both zhungdra and boedra. The quick-stepped zhey are performed by men, while the more flowing zhem are women's dances. Zheys originate in the 17th century, and although there is considerable variety among contemporary zheys, most of them share common tunes and dance formats. Dancers originally performed barefoot and without any elaborate uniform, however the tradition of wearing long gowns, headgear and traditional boots was established in the 1970s.[11]

In honor of the 2011 royal wedding, Bhutanese dancers performed four major zheys (Goen Zhey of Gasa, Wang Zhey of Thimphu, Nub Zhey of Trongsa, Woochupai Zhey of Paro) and four minor zheys (Auley of Laya, Locho of Sha, Bonghur Zhey of Haa, and Miritsemoi Zhey of Chukha).[11][12]

The Goen Zhey is of central importance among all zheys. Its origins lie in the coming of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, the founder of Bhutan. According to tradition, when he came in 1616 to at Bangdekha below Wakeyla, a place between Gasa and Laya, the people of Goen in Gasa offered the elaborate dance. Requiring two days and 21 dancers to complete, the dance has 25 intricate steps. Dancers wear red woolen gho, black tego undershirt, and red-and-white kabney in the fashion of ancient warriors. The zheypon (dance master) wears an elaborate headdress.[11]

The Woochhu Zhey, from the Wochu Village ("Jackal River Village"; modern Woochhu Village in Lungnyi Gewog, Paro), also bases its origin in Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, first performed by a lama in the procession to receive the Zhabdrung.[11][13]

One particularly endangered performance is the Wang Zhey of

Drukpa lamas. Though the Wang Zhey was once routine in rabneys, archery matches, and weddings of well-to-do families, it is now less frequently performed, and young Bhutanese do not know its significance.[11][12]

Tsangmo

Tsangmo (Dzongkha: ཙང་མོ་; Wylie: tsang-mo), also considered a literary genre, are very popular in Bhutan. They consist of sung couplets, the first of which describes a relevant scenario, followed by the second couplet, which conveys a point such as love, hate, abuse, or ridicule. Tsangmo may be sung in a call-and-reply fashion, and may be a means of competition.[1][4]: 135–6, 163 

Lozey

Lozey (Dzongkha: བློ་ཟེ་; Wylie: blo-ze), literally translated as "ornaments of speech," refer to two distinct vocal traditions. The first is a short exchange lines, while the second is a collection of ballads that vary from region to region. They all concern traditional customs, dress, and literature. Rich in metaphor, they are known and recited by ordinary people in modern language. Like Tsangmo, Lozey may be sung in a call-and-reply fashion, and may be a means of competition. Certain Lozey are sung in vernacular language.[1][4]: 135–7, 162 

Popular music

Main article: Rigsar

The modern popular

Bollywood filmi song "Sayonara" from the film Love in Tokyo. Since the 1960s, a great number of Bhutanese artists have covered or produced a staggering volume of rigsar music.[4]
: 132, 139, 145–8 

Rigsar gained popularity on the Bhutan Broadcasting Service, making way for the rigsar band Tashi Nencha to established the first recording studio in Thimphu in 1991. Prior to this period, Bhutanese people primarily listened to filmi and other kinds of Indian pop music. Rigsar is the dominant style of Bhutanese popular music, and dates back to the late 1980s. The first major music star was Shera Lhendup, whose career began after the 1981 hit "Jyalam Jaylam Gi Ashi".[2]

By the end of the 1980s, rigsar was no longer so popular, its detractors citing repetitive, simple tunes that were often copied directly from foreign music.[2] Since 1995, with founding of the Norling Drayang recording label, rigsar has returned to relative popularity as a fusion of elements and instruments from English language pop, Indian and Nepalese music. Rigsar remains ubiquitous in Bhutan, heard in on public streets, in taxis, and on buses, and even used by the government to deliver health and sanitation education.[4]

There is also a small underground metal scene with bands like Forsaken [15]

Bhutan has also been seeing a boom in the popular music such as the B-Pop show that was held to promote creativity in May 2018 by M-Studio in collaboration with the Ministry of Information and Communications.[16]

Institutions

The

Government of Bhutan.[17][18][19] The Academy's performers participate in festivals, tour schools within Bhutan, and perform for tourists.[4]
: 149–50 

The

Institute of Language and Cultural Studies (ILCS) at Semtokha, Thimphu, was the only university level institute to offer elective courses on traditional and modern Bhutanese music, song, and dance as of 2003.[4]
: 150–1 

Aa-Yang Ensemble, started by Jigme Drukpa in 2010, is a private performing group. The ensemble includes members from north, east and south of Bhutan, making it one of the more culturally diverse music groups in Bhutan. In 2013 the group toured Sweden for 23 days.

Khuju Luyang, a private performing arts group with international stage presence. Khuju Luyang won the folk music and dance competition in 2006 and received the silver medal from the Royal Government of Bhutan for preservation of folk dance and music.[20][21]

See also

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 9780313328497
    . Retrieved 2011-10-16.
  2. ^ a b c Penjor, Ugyen (2003-01-19). "From Ngesem Ngesem to Khu Khu Khu... Rigsar Music Woos Local Music Fans". Kuensel online. Archived from the original on 2012-07-16. Retrieved 2011-10-30.
  3. ^ "Rigsar Dranyen". RAOnline. 2011-06-17. Retrieved 2011-10-30.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Kinga, Sonam (2003). "The Attributes and Values of Folk and Popular Songs" (PDF). Journal of Bhutan Studies. 3 (1): 132–170. Retrieved 2011-10-30.
  5. ^ Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. Worden, Robert L (1991). Andrea Matles Savada (ed.). Bhutan: A Country Study. Federal Research Division. Religious Tradition – Buddhism.
  6. ^
    ISBN 0-89281-918-9
    . Retrieved 2011-10-16.
  7. ^ "Sounds of the Thunder Dragon". The Rhythm Divide. 2005-05-11. Retrieved 2011-10-16.
  8. ^ Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. Worden, Robert L (1991). Andrea Matles Savada (ed.). Bhutan: A Country Study. Federal Research Division. Festivals.
  9. ISBN 978-1-59311-735-1
    . Retrieved 2011-09-25.
  10. ^ Levy, John (1971). "Note for Tashi Laso (track 1)". Tibetan Buddhist Rites from the Monasteries of Bhutan, Vol IV (Media notes). Lyrichord. p. 3.
  11. ^ a b c d e "A Gift from the Sacred Past". Bhutan Observer online. 2011-10-11. Archived from the original on 2011-10-13. Retrieved 2011-10-14.
  12. ^ a b Wangchuck, Rinzin (2011-10-16). "The Wang Zhey Surprise". Kuensel online. Archived from the original on 2012-06-14. Retrieved 2011-10-29.
  13. ISBN 978-1-59311-735-1
    . Retrieved 2011-10-15.
  14. ^ "༈ རྫོང་ཁ་ཨིང་ལིཤ་ཤན་སྦྱར་ཚིག་མཛོད། ༼རི༽" [Dzongkha-English Dictionary: "RI"]. Dzongkha-English Online Dictionary. Dzongkha Development Commission, Government of Bhutan. Archived from the original on 2011-08-25. Retrieved 2011-10-23.
  15. ^ "Metal Bhutan". www.facebook.com.
  16. ^ "B-Pop show held to promote creativity – KuenselOnline". www.kuenselonline.com. Retrieved 2018-10-23.
  17. Government of Bhutan
    . Retrieved 2011-10-15.
  18. ISBN 978-90-04-15551-0
    . Retrieved 2011-10-15.
  19. ISBN 978-0-313-33530-3. Retrieved 2011-10-15. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help
    )
  20. ^ "Building Business from a Nightingale Song". Business Bhutan online. 2010-10-22. Retrieved 2011-10-16.
  21. ^ "Report to the Board of Directors: Core of Culture Dance Preservation – Bhutan Dance Project, 2004–2006". Core of Culture online. Retrieved 2011-10-16.
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