Definition

Presentation Made By: Jannah Marie P. Quijano Alexis G. Romero Ruth B. Umerez II-Nitrogen The music of Myanmar or Burma has similarities with and related to any other musical traditions in the region, including Chinese Music, Indian Music and Thai Music.

History Of Myanmar Music

Ancestors of Myanmar called Prome Dynasty entered Southern parts of Ayeyarwady River from the upper parts of Chinese Rawsuko River over thousands years ago. Myanmar ancestors were said to be Mongolian. This Dynasty came to ruin in about 1 century AD. It was said Prome Dynasty was an excellent country influenced by culture of ancient India. Music is also influenced by that of China and India.

Another things are that a Myanmar king attacked and captured Ayuddaya, Thailand. And the culture of Thailand came into Myanmar. Thai music contains as parts of Myanmar music. Then the country became a colony of British Empire in 19 century. To consider the facts about Myanmar music, it is mixed with from some countries.

Myanmar Type of Music

Traditional Music
Classical Tradition

Traditional music from Burma is melodious, generally without harmony, and usually in 4/4 time) or 2/4 or 8/16 . There are "the segments combined into patterns, combined into verses, combined into songs [that] make Burmese music a multileveled hierarchical system...The Burmese musician manipulates the various levels of the hierarchy to create the song.

Burmese classical music ensembles can be divided into outdoor and indoor ensembles. The outdoor musical ensemble is the sidaw also called sidawgyi which was an outdoor ensembles in royal courts used to mark important ceremonial functions like the royal ploughing ceremony. It consists of a hnegyi , a large double reed pipe and sidaw, a pair of ceremonial drums, as well as the si and wa , a bell and clapper and the gandama, a double-headed drum. Today, sidaw music is played at festivals.

Maha Gita

Other instruments used in classical music include the saung (a harp) and pattala (a xylophone). The indoor form is the ensemble, which is basically a female singer accompanied by a traditional ensemble consisting of the saung, pattala , migyaung (a zither ), palwe ,( a flute) and in the past, included the tayaw , (a fiddle) and hnyin (a small mouth organ).

Translated as "great music" in Pali, the Mahagita is an extensive collection of Burmese classical songs, called thachin gyi. The collection is divided into several different types of songs, including the following: kyo, bwe, thachin gan, the oldest repertoires; pat pyo, royal court music; lwan chin, songs of longing; lay dway than gat; myin gin, music that makes horses dance; nat chin, songs used to worship the nat, Burmese spirits; yodaya, music introduced from Ayutthaya, Talaing than, music adapted from the Mon people and bole, songs of sorrow.

 Folk Traditions

Burmese music includes a variety of folk traditions. A distinct form called the byaw , is often played at religious festivals and is sung to the beat of a long and thin drum, with occasional interruptions by the beating of a larger drum. The traditional folk ensemble, typically used in the nat pwe, Burmese theater and art, and festivals is called the hsaing waing. Although its origin is unknown, it is believed to have come from the Ayuthaya kingdom, or in the least been heavily influenced by the Ayuthaya gong and drum ensembles in the 18th century through repeated invasions by the Konbaung dynasty and has many similarities to other Southeast Asian ensembles.

Popular Music

Rock music, called stereo in Burmese has been a popular form of music since the 1980s, having been introduced in the 1960s. Pop music emerged in the 1970s and was banned by state-run radio stations. Hip hop and rap emerged in the late 1990s and is now the prevailing genre of music among Burmese youth today.Bands like Iron Cross, Emperor and Big Bag are popular among the middle-aged and some groups of youth.

MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

Myanmar Harp (Saung) The body is made of padauk, the famous Myanmar mahogany. The flat bar is made of cutch wood. It is covered with the leather of a female deer. And the strings are made of silk.

Myanmar Xylophone (Pattalari) Ancient musical instrument with the sound box underneath, with the seven graduated keys, it can produce melodious and unique sounds to the ears.

Myanmar Hne(Oboe) A metal horn, a wooden flute and a palm reed. It is a double-reed woodwind instrument having a high pitch. Is one of our traditional wind instruments in Myanmar. It has been used in Myanmar since ancient time

Myanmar Pot Drum (Ooh Si)

Goblet-shaped drums about 25cm across the head. The drum is made by hollowing out a single block of light wood about a meter long. It is played vertically, resting on the drummers chest and suspended by a chord from the drummers neck.

Myanmar Flute (Palwei) A high-pitched woodwind instrument consisting of a slender tube closed at one end with keys and finger holes on the side and an opening near the closed end across which the breath is blown.

Myanmar Cymbals (Lin-kwin) A percussion instrument consisting of a concave brass plate that makes a loud clashing tone when hit with a drumstick or when used in pairs.

Myanmar Brass Gongs-Circle (Kyee-naung Waing) A large bronze disk, of having an upturned rim, that produces a vibrant, hollow tone when struck, usually with a stick or hammer that has a padded head.

Myanmar Shan Osi (Shan Long Drum) It can be ring . It is somewhat a flat piece of rock, usually hanged around pagodas or monasteries. The purpose of using these is just like using bells, so that people can ring it by hitting with a stick.

And May the Almighty Father Bless You!