Music of Cambodia An example of the “music and culture project” West Point Jr High

Where is Cambodia?

 Cambodia is part of the Asian continent and is mushed between Thailand and Vietnam.  Cambodia is now an independent nation but was ruled over by the communist party known as the Khmer Rouge for many years. Under their cruel control about 2 million Cambodians were killed in just a four year period. The country was directly involved in the Vietnam war and America’s effort to stop the spread of communism in that part of the world.

What is their music culture?  Cambodians use music in religious dances, many of which depict stories and myths.  Dance and music are nearly always connected when performing live music but as more western influences enter the country pop and modern music is becoming more common.

What makes their music unique?  Cambodian music is unique because it has a very wide range of musical timbres. Some of those timbres might sound harsh to western ears but with an appreciative ear the listener can enjoy the colors each sound brings to the performance.

How does their music compare to ours? Cambodian music primarily uses string, percussion and wind instruments- just like western music! But, the notes they choose are often very different from what we hear in western compositions. Cambodians are also known to bend pitches to create unique sounds and also use very different instruments from those used in western music. Their music is often not written and read in the manner we see but is more free flowing and interpreted by the musicians.

Example of Traditional Cambodian Music  Hear for yourself! What are some things you can see that are similar or different from the music you listen to? What do you think a Cambodian might think of YOUR music choices?  Traditional Khmer Music Traditional Khmer Music

Some of their unique instruments Because there are many instruments that could be described as “unique” I will share one wind, one percussion, and one string instrument.

Gourd Mouth Organ The gourd mouth organ uses a dried out squash (a gourd) with several pipes of various lengths fitted with reeds inside that are used to change the pitch. Goard Organ Demonstration

Tro Khmer The Tro Khmer is a two stringed instrument attached to a coconut or gourd as a resonating chamber. The strings are bowed or plucked and the pitch is changed by the performer pressing the string and changing its pitch. Tro Khmer Demonstration

Roneat Thung The Roneat Thung is a percussion instrument using wooden slates cut at various lengths to create different pitches. This might be thought of as being similar to the xylophone although the note placement and order of the notes are very different. It is usually played with 2 soft mallets. Roneat Thung Demonstration

Concluding thoughts  Cambodian music is full of traits that make it special. They have a wide variety of instruments and musical timbres and love to combine dance with their music. While there are many differences in their music from what we hear in many of our homes, there are also many things that are common among them too.