Understanding Traditional Issan Music Scores

[simon43]

Jazzbo, a copy of the book would be greatly appreciated, if only for improvement of my Thai reading skills Please let me know the costs involved for this.

Thanks!

Simon

[jazzbo]

Hello Simon -- just send me a PM with your address and I'll send the one I bought for putting up with my irascible nature... they had several in stock. Jazzbo

[Tilokarat]

Speaking of Honey Sri-Isaan,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWFpw1M4-2U

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUsqUppt1g4

This final song is a tribute to the life and music of Honey Sri-Isaan:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUYeSlZSVAE

[bina]

stole a snippet from a different thread the 'do u like thai music thread' : can any one tell me what these are/sound like...

lam tad, pleng choi

bina

israel

[jazzbo]

While (whilst) in the USA I have managed to locate a copy of Terry E. Miller's book on Lao music in a university ethno-musicology library and copied the 100+ page 2 chapters on Kaen instrumental music plus the glossary. The book is out of print.

[dci1812]

Simon43,

I arrived at this website because I was searching for how to read Thai music. I was never able to find anything that could explain it well, so I had to figure it out using a video on youtube posted by KruTuckShop.

The below link should take you to my Google Docs page which has a short paper I wrote up titled "Comparison of Thai and Western Music Notation". Hopefully someone will find it as useful as I have.

https://docs.google.com/?authuser=0#home

Good luck with your studies and let me know if you have any questions.

Paul

[bina]

glad this thread popped up again. recently i had a friend bring back a phin for hubby (who plays guitar but wanted a phin). being thai, and non educated, the only way he has taught himself to play is by sounding out the notes, and watching utube clips of some of the masters. had an other friend send a cd recently, it was the best present we ever received. ihave to hear the cd daily, and hubby has moved the cd in to his mp3, he sits with earphones, listens and plays along. progress is amazing. i on the other hand,have tried. thsi method does not work for me. i need methodical teaching methods. also, i feel husband is musically inclined as he can sit at a piano (which he never even saw until he lived here) and pick out whatever he hears. he cannot understand why i cant learn to play the phin just like him. (lack of talen? no musical ear? learning methods differ? same reason why he's been here 6 years and still only speaks thai?) at any rate, we are still looking for more cds with phin, or videocds for him to listen/watch... any help, appreciated. also, anyone ahve any ideas as to how to turn his acoustic phin to electric?

no, we do not have the money to order an electric phin from overseas, we need improvisation here... any ideas?

we travel, he hangs out and plays... and yes, he actually travels in his salong, in the hotter weather he feels more comfortable. we love it when folks do a double take to see a dark skinned guy in a skirt. (this is in a park near beer sheva, btw; hence the palm trees and balmy weather)

bina

israel

[simon43]

How about another update to this great thread?

A year or so ago I purchased a good quality Khaen with the help of Jazzbo, and whilst I was still living in Thailand I started to learn how to play basic chords etc.

Since the start of this year, I have been living and working in Myanmar. There is very little 'nightlife' here so I brought my Khaen with me and spend time every evening playing/learning chords/melodies.

I can say that everything that I can now play on the Khaen bears little resemblence to Thai or Lao songs! But I can actually play my own self-composed melodies quite well, and my playing of this strange instrument is an instant hit with the Burmese kids (and staff) at the school where I teach

Simon

[TheGhostWithin]

Hi Simon, this thread has been really interesting for someone just myself getting into the Khaen. I am very fortunate to be being helped to learn by someone who has learnt "by ear" but is taking the time to convert the notations into the chords for me and I thread the notes into the music. I am not someone that is musically inclined.. I grew up listening to rap music and instruments were for the "rich kids" (of which I was not one of them).

I am learning the khaen and finding that time spent by myself listening to the sounds the Khaen makes, and linking it with sounds I have heard on various videos and tutorials is making a difference.

Out of curiosity do you know the story of your new Khaen (which is not I would guess more than 1 year old?).

I bought a new Khaen recently as my original Khaen was not playing the high B note, which whilst my new Khaen was in transit began playing. Now that my new Khaen has arrived, I have noticed that the low C is not working and have read the only way to resolve this is to take the Khaen apart and adjust the reed this way which I am very nervous about doing.. the cost of postage here exceeded the cost of even the instrument.