Funeral master enshrines old tradition in new generation, and a modern show

Master Seng Norn works in the business of shepherding souls from life to death, and he’s survived a few brushes with the latter.

Six years ago, he slipped into a coma, suffering from tuberculosis. His wife purchased his coffin. His grandsons set up his musical instruments for a performance and waited for him to die.

At 75 years old, Seng Norn is now one of a few remaining masters of kantoaming, ancient Cambodian funeral music. Last month, he found himself in New York City on his first trip outside of the Kingdom. The musician was selected to perform as part of American artist Taryn Simon’s multidisciplinary work An Occupation of Loss at the Park Avenue Armory.

Simon brought together 30 “professional mourners” from across the globe, from Cambodia to Kyrgyzstan, placing them inside tall, concrete columns that amplified the somber performance. The exhibition ended on September 25, and Seng Norn returned home, to Siem Reap – the only place in Cambodia where kantoaming is still taught.

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