Ancient-Contemporary Music From Thailand

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
If the only Thai music you've ever heard is the Westernized pop played in Thai restaurants, this two-CD set will be a revelation. The tunes here, based on folk forms that leave plenty of room for individual interpretation, run the gamut--there are lullabies, ensemble pieces for fiddle, percussion and gong, Thai folk rock tunes that make use of Western drum kit and electric keyboards, and a Thai brass band playing the National Anthem. The erudite notes by Bruce Gaston give you an in-depth look at Thailand's musical history and music theory, as well as helpful hints for listening to the complexities of the music, but you can plunge into the discs without doing the heavy reading and still appreciate them. --j. poet

Tracks:

The Maiden Plays In the Water Overture
Lullaby
Prasat Wai
Royal Lullaby
Wind In The Coconut In Trees
I've Lost My Chance To Be Your Husband
Cherd Nai

Tracks:

Tra Nimitr
Maha Nimitr
Javanese Suite
The Chinese Doctor's Puzzle
The Votive Candle (Laotian)
The Votive Candle (Toa)
Busaba's Votive Candle
The Yogin Makes A Fire Sacrifice

Amazon.com

If the only Thai music you've ever heard is the Westernized pop played in Thai restaurants, this two-CD set will be a revelation. The tunes here, based on folk forms that leave plenty of room for individual interpretation, run the gamut--there are lullabies, ensemble pieces for fiddle, percussion and gong, Thai folk rock tunes that make use of Western drum kit and electric keyboards, and a Thai brass band playing the National Anthem. The erudite notes by Bruce Gaston give you an in-depth look at Thailand's musical history and music theory, as well as helpful hints for listening to the complexities of the music, but you can plunge into the discs without doing the heavy reading and still appreciate them. --j. poet

Album Description

Imagine the inhabitants of the Menam Basin being called to dance and sing by the birds and monkeys, or imagine trying to become familiar with how the traditions of the ancient Indian and Khmer cultures developed. Elders no longer speak the story of how the Thais have lived and dreamed in their land for more than 1,000 years. However, their music does speak through its textures, rhythms and pitches.

Ancient-Contemporary Music from Thailand does not refer to the folk traditions where generations of common experience come together in a music that is obvious and necessary to all who share in that particular life style. Instead this music was created to heal the spiritual wound of either-or-ness and move toward a more humane cultural balance.

This unique balance is achieved through the freedom the musicians have to travel along the melodic path (tang in Thai). The pivotal notes are not fixed but left to the discretion of the player. It must be remembered in Siamese music there is no notational system, it is exclusively an aural tradition. This has a profound influence on the nature of the music.

The first work on the disk is a traditional second level tune dating back to the Ayudhya Period of the 15th century. The disk travels the road leading from traditional to contemporary, bringing with it the standard Western set of drums, both snare and cymbal. This music has achieved great popularity among orchestras throughout the country. Many of the compositions heard here are considered to be part of the standard classical repertoire.

Customer Reviews:

developing "thai ears".......2001-10-27

You don't have to be a scholarly music student to appreciate this 2-CD set; rather, by simply being open, mindful and reading the introductory material on Thai music traditions by Bruce Gaston, you can let yourself succumb to the enchantment of this ancient and at the same time very modern music. It is at once as beautiful, exotic and yet recognizable as the profusion of orchids cascading from trees in a Bangkok garden. Be open to the music and develop "Thai ears" to listen with.

For those of us who have spent time in Thailand, it is an aural and textural trip back to paradise.

developing "thai ears".......2001-10-27

For those of us who have spent time in Thailand, it is an aural and textural trip back to paradise.

Serious Thai music.......2001-02-26

These CDs are serious!! Not for anyone who searching for easy listening things you've find in many Thai imagse. But you're hearing a compilation pieces of arts which not easily to get along with but it worths to, in my humble opinion these music (not include the westernized pieces which present in these CDs for educational purpose) could compare with the works of great composers like Bach, Marler, Messiaen... to name a few.

Track Listings:

Track Listings

Troubled All The Time

Sweet Honey Bee [Import]

Vivacitas: Live at Glasgow 2002 [Live] [Import]

When a Man Loves a Woman

Yes Indeed [Box set]

Wind-Up Toys

When I Stop Dreaming: The Best of The Louvin Brothers

Voice Trek Christmas Live

We're A Happy Family - A Tribute To The Ramones

Wolf [Import]

Way I Mate [CD-single] [Import]

We Beheld His Glory

More of the Most Romantic Jazz Music in the Universe