Myanmar [(Union of) Burma; Myanmar Naingngandaw].

South-east Asian country, formerly known as the Union of Burma, occupying the westernmost part of the Indo-Chinese peninsula. The peoples of Myanmar include the Burmese proper, that is the Burmese-speaking people who live in the central and lowland areas of the country; their linguistic and cultural neighbours, the Arakanese (Burmese, Yahkaing), who occupy south-western Myanmar; and various peoples living in the hills, each with a unique language, culture, music and dance tradition.

I. Music and dance of the hill peoples.

II. Music and dance of the plains peoples.

III. 20th-century practice.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

ROBERT GARFIAS (I; II, 2 and 4); JUDITH BECKER/ROBERT GARFIAS (II,1; III); MURIEL C. WILLIAMSON (II, 3)

Myanmar

I. Music and dance of the hill peoples.

Little is known of the music and culture of the Burmese hill tribes beyond a few general anthropological studies. Three prominent groups are the Kachin in far northern Myanmar, the Shan, who are closely related to many ethnic groups in Thailand and who occupy north-eastern central Myanmar, and the Karen in south-eastern central Myanmar. There is also a large Mon minority who are related to the peoples of Cambodia and other regions of South-east Asia. The Mon peoples are also known as the Talaìng by the Burmese.

The Karen and Kachin were both indoctrinated with Christianity by British Protestant missionaries after the fall of the Burmese monarchy, and their music is of three types: traditional music, newer adaptations of Christian hymns, and interesting combinations of the two. All the hill tribes seem to distinguish between various genres of vocal music and dance music, which is dominated by gong rhythms. Most gongs used in this area are of the South-east Asian bossed type with narrow flanges, producing distinct pitches of a somewhat mellow tone quality. Gong patterns used for dance rhythms are generally not melodic but consist of short figures repeated many times, much like those used by the hill peoples of other parts of South-east Asia and the Philippines, to which a vocal or flute melody is sometimes added. The music is intended primarily for dancing, and the repeated patterns enjoin the community to participate in the dance. Among the Kachin and the Shan, another kind of dance music is played on an ensemble consisting of small bamboo panpipes and hnyìn (small bamboo free-reed mouth organs). This music is often played during mourning.

The Shan, unlike other hill tribes of Myanmar, are primarily Buddhist, and their music combines traditional gong, flute and mouth organ music with more complex ensemble music borrowed from the lowland Burmese through contacts made in the course of diplomatic relations and warfare. The Saw-bwà, princes of the Shan, modelled their courts on those of the Burmese kings and like them used special music to announce the beginning of the court day and its various hours. The Shan also use, as part of their traditional dance music, a unique framed gong instrument; this large bamboo structure has several gongs suspended in it, and a bamboo mechanism strikes all the gongs simultaneously, producing rich tone clusters on every beat.

The Karen have several unique instruments, including the hpà-si (bronze kettledrum or frog drum, so-called because of the small frogs that decorate four points around the drum head). It is struck in the centre of the head with a padded stick and sometimes also on the side with a thin stick. When not being played, hpà-si are sometimes turned upside down and used as containers for raw rice (see Bronze drum). The Karen also play a pa:ku (bamboo-keyed xylophone) and a t'na (small harp with five to seven strings). The t’na is similar in general shape and construction to the Burmese arched harp, with a small wooden resonator covered with deerskin. It is traditionally used to accompany love songs.

The Yahkaing are predominantly Muslim. Much of their music is similar to Burmese folk music, and although they have their own song genres they also use classical Burmese song forms. In addition to various types of drum, the hnè, an oboe with a composite double-reed, is popular and is played in a distinctive style by the Yahkaing. The Mon were at one time one of the great civilizations of the region; their capital was the city of Pegu. Both influenced by and influencing the music of Myanmar and Thailand, Mon music appears more closely related in structure to the various ensembles of Thai music. Gong-chimes (gong mon), xylophones (renad), the reed oboe (pi) and crocodile zither (cham) are shared with Thai music. The Mon in Myanmar, however, often add a small number of tuned drums to their ensembles, similar to the Burmese chauk-lòn-bat drum-chime.

Myanmar

II. Music and dance of the plains peoples.

1. Instrumental ensembles.

2. Classical vocal music.

3. The Burmese harp (saùng-gauk).

4. Theory.

Myanmar, §2: Instrumental ensembles

1. Instrumental ensembles.

The isolation of Myanmar has contributed to the survival of instruments extinct in other Asian areas and has resulted in a music system that is related to other South-east Asian music but is significantly different in sound and instrumentation from the music of the nearest peoples – the Thais, Cambodians and Laotians. The distinguishing feature of South-east Asian ensembles is the knobbed gong (with a raised central boss and a deep rim; see South-east Asia, §2). The widespread diffusion of knobbed gongs and other metalwork in remote areas of South-east Asia testifies to the antiquity of the blacksmith’s craft, and legends abound in which the central character is, or was originally, a blacksmith. A northern Burmese myth traces the origins of the Kachin people to an ancestor who was a smith. Similar ensembles are found throughout the lowland or valley-civilization areas of South-east Asia: the Irrawaddy valley in Myanmar, the Mekong valley in Laos and Cambodia, the Menam valley in Thailand, the Indonesian islands and the southern Philippines. These ensembles consist of a core of knobbed-gong instruments with xylophones, flutes, oboes, drums or string instruments; the combination varies from country to country. In addition to their morphological similarity, the instruments of South-east Asian ensembles also have common functions, the most important being to accompany theatre and religious rituals (the two are often inseparable). They also have a common basic musical structure, and it is this that provides the most cogent argument for considering South-east Asia as a single musical area.

The underlying phrase structure of these ensembles is outlined by a rhythmic pattern played by a combination of bell and clapper. The rhythmic patterns are two or four beats long (or multiples of four, e.g. 8 × 2, 16 × 2 or 32 × 2). This pattern is repeated as often as the length of the piece or section requires.

(i) Hsaìng-waìng.

In Myanmar the dominant outdoor percussion ensemble is the hsaìng-waìng. The term has two general meanings, referring both to the main instrument of the ensemble and, by extension, to the entire ensemble including that instrument. The drum circle is specifically called pat-waìng, although in common Burmese usage it is often called hsaìng-waìng as well. The hsaìng-waìng ensemble is the most characteristic one in Myanmar and is used for theatre performances, ritual and religious occasions or any festive occasion, such as the visit of a high government official. The instrumentation of the hsaìng-waìng ensemble can vary slightly and has evolved over time. The ensemble generally includes the pat-waìng, the kyì-waìng, the maùng-zaìng, the hnè, the chauk-lòn-bat and various punctuating instruments.

The pat-waìng is a drum-chime of 21 tuned drums suspended from the inside of a circular wooden frame (fig.1). The drums are made of wood with two laced heads and are 12 to 40 cm high. They have a range of more than three octaves. The wooden frame is approximately one metre high and is often ornamented with inlaid glass and painted gold. The player sits on a stool in the centre with only his head and shoulders visible from the outside. The drums are hung vertically within the frame so that the musician plays on the upper heads only. Unlike other Burmese and South-east Asian drummers who play rhythmic patterns on their drums, the pat-waìng musician plays melodies and the harmonic pitches required in the performance of traditional Burmese music. The pat-waìng drum circle, the leading instrument in the hsaìng-waìng ensemble, is rarely found outside Myanmar. A similar instrument has been recorded in Cambodia, but it uses fewer drums compared to the Burmese example. In India a circle of drums is depicted on temple reliefs. The presence of a similar instrument in ancient India, and the Burmese use of the Indian method of tuning drums with a mixture of cooked rice and ash applied to a painted brown circle on the upper head, indicate that the pat-waìng drum circle may be one of the few Indian musical instruments that survived the period of Indian influence in South-east Asia (c200–1000).

The kyì-waìng is a gong-chime of 21 small knobbed gongs set horizontally on a circular wooden frame (fig.2). This is one of the instruments common to South-east Asian percussion ensembles. The circular wooden frame, found in Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos, contrasts with the straight row found in island South-east Asia (Indonesia, northern Borneo and the Philippines). Among the Mon people of lower Myanmar the instrument occurs in another form, with the small knobbed gongs suspended from a U-shaped, upright circular frame. An alternative name is kyì-naung.

The maùng-zaìng is a gong-chime of 18 or 19 small, horizontal knobbed gongs mounted in five rows on straight wooden frames (fig.3). These knobbed gongs are flatter and generally larger than those of the kyì-waìng. The rows, starting from the one closest to the musician, usually contain three, three, four, three and five or six gongs. The frames are laid flat on the ground except for the largest, deepest-sounding group, which is usually propped up. This instrument is said to be a recent development, perhaps dating from the 1920s or 30s.

The hnè is an oboe with a conical body. It may have a large, flared metal bell loosely attached to the end (fig.4).

Rhythmic instruments include the chauk-lòn-bat, a set of six drums that are used to play the rhythmic pattern underlying melodic contours. The set consists of four barrel drums, the sahkún (a double-headed horizontal drum) resting on a low trestle, and the pat-má (large barrel drum) suspended from a rack; they are all played by one man.

Punctuating instruments include the byauk, a small, stick-beaten slit-drum; the walet-hkok, a clapper made from a piece of slit and hinged bamboo approximately 120 cm long; the yagwìn, cymbals approximately 30 cm in diameter; the sì, small hand cymbals approximately 3 to 5 cm in diameter (see Saùng-gauk, fig.2); the maùng, a large, knobbed gong suspended vertically (fig.5); and a variety of different drums for special uses in particular pieces.

This represents the ideal hsaìng-waìng ensemble, but a village with a few resources or a small touring company of musicians and actors can play all the traditional repertory with a much reduced complement of instruments. A small hsaìng-waìng ensemble might include only the pat-waìng, the kyì-waìng, the pat-má, the yagwìn, the sì and the hnè. Indeed, depictions of earlier ensembles and even photographs taken during the early years of the 20th century often show only the pat-waìng, the kyì-waìng, hnè and one large barrel drum.

The hsaìng-waìng ensemble, playing music of great verve and impetuosity, is an essential adjunct to every kind of dance or drama performance at spirit-worshipping rituals in central Myanmar and at Buddhist ceremonies. There are many professional hsaìng-waìng troupes as well as innumerable amateur ensembles. Professional companies with dancers and actors are largely based in Yangon (Rangoon) or Mandalay. During the dry season (October to April) the professional troupes tour almost constantly, reaching the smallest villages at least once a year, the prosperous towns more frequently. The traditional repertory of the professionals is disseminated throughout the country and imitated more or less successfully by the smaller, poorly trained village ensembles.

There is a close relationship between music, drama, dance and poetry. Accompaniment of theatre performances and religious ritual is the primary function of the hsaìng-waìng ensemble. In a drama, pieces or motifs are used to denote specific situations: the hero meditating in the forest is accompanied by a particular tune, the entrance of a rough king is accompanied by one of a limited group of appropriate compositions. In a nat-pwè (spirit-worshipping festival) a series of 37 tunes is played, each accompanying the entrance and dance of an actor portraying one of the 37 principal spirits of Burmese animism. The musical signals of the hsaìng-waìng ensemble are well known to the Burmese audience, so that theatrical and ritual pieces carry semantic meaning relating to a character, a situation or a mood. In the theatre, specific compositions and types of performance have associations with certain types of dramatic action on the stage. There are certain song types associated with love scenes, scenes of departure, horses, elephants, demons, battles, chase scenes and even acts committed in stealth. The only extant treatise on Burmese music, the Nara-lei-hká, compiled in the 17th century, includes a list of the 37 ritual songs connected with the 37 Burmese nat (spirits).

(ii) Other instruments and ensembles.

The hsaìng-waìng ensemble is the largest and most common of the ensembles used for outdoor music in Myanmar. Other ensembles that play for festivals and outdoor celebrations also take their names from the particular drums used. Each type of drum is used to play distinctive rhythmic patterns associated either with that instrument or with a particular festival. Among these drum ensembles are the si-daw, the bon-gyì, the ò-zi, the dò-bat and the byàw.

The si-daw (fig.6) is a pair of double-headed drums, 120 cm long and 60 cm in diameter, known as royal drums; they were played at royal ceremonies before the British occupation of Burma in the mid-19th century and are now played for important ceremonial occasions. One or more large hnè (hnè gyì), a maùng-zaìng, and a pair of cymbals may complete the ensemble.

The bon-gyì are double-headed drums about one metre long suspended horizontally across the chest of the musician and played on both ends. They are usually played in pairs, for rice-planting festivals or pagoda festivals, and may be joined by a hnè, yagwìn and walet-hkok or a full hsaìng-waìng ensemble.

The ò-zi are goblet-drums suspended vertically on the player’s chest. A palwei (bamboo flute) or a hnè often accompanies the ò-zi, which are used for pagoda festivals or any kind of celebration requiring a procession. Often the drummer dances as he plays.

The dò-bat are small, double-headed drums of various sizes, suspended horizontally across the chest. Like the ò-zi, the dò-bat drums are played in villages throughout Myanmar. They may be used in a procession making collections for a Buddhist charity or at any time when a festive atmosphere is desired. Dò-bat drums are usually played with hnè, yagwìn and walet-hkok.

The byàw are large, double-headed drums played with sticks in a village when someone is giving alms, or in the paddy fields when rice seedlings are being transplanted. The byàw drums may be accompanied by hnè, yagwìn, walet-hkok and kyì-waìng.

Folk ensembles dominated by percussion instruments playing for theatricals, pagoda festivals or agricultural rites are familiar to all Burmese regardless of social status, wealth or education. Together with this vigorous tradition, however, the Burmese enjoy a chamber music tradition that is only slightly less widespread. Its instruments are softer, used singly or sometimes in pairs and played indoors, but the repertory is largely the same as that of the hsaìng-waìng ensemble. However, whereas the drum-dominated ensembles are always part of a large-scale event – a theatre performance or a youth’s initiation into a Buddhist monastery – in which the music is functional and generally carries extra-musical semantic connotations, chamber music may be played and enjoyed for aesthetic pleasure alone.

(iii) History of the instruments.

The earliest known document with references to music in Myanmar is a description of a troupe of musicians and dancers sent by the Pyu of lower Myanmar to the court of a Tang dynasty emperor of China in the 9th century. Possibly the Pyu had the same racial and cultural background as the ethnic group later called Burmese. In the Chinese chronicle no instrument resembling the pat-waìng drum-chime or the kyì-waìng gong-chime is mentioned: apparently only chamber music instruments and musicians were sent. This could mean either that the Pyu did not use the hsaìng-waìng ensemble, or that they chose to send to China only their softer-sounding instruments; possibly they felt that the music of the hsaìng-waìng was too closely associated with peasant rituals. In any case, some instruments now used as chamber instruments appear to be the same as some of the 9th-century Pyu instruments. The most important of the modern chamber instruments was one of those sent to China, the saùng-gauk (arched harp; see §3 below). Another instrument still played that was sent to China is the mí-gyaùng (crocodile-zither), a long, narrow zither in the shape of a crocodile. Three metal strings pass over eight to ten raised movable frets on the flat belly of the instrument. This Burmese zither is related to similar instruments distributed widely in South-east Asia. While the crocodile shape is not always found elsewhere, the reptilian name remains in variants such as the Thai chakhē (‘alligator’, wooden tube zither) and the Indonesian kacapi (board zither). In Myanmar the mí-gyaùng is associated with the Mon, an ethnic group in southern Myanmar linguistically related to the Mon-Khmer peoples of Thailand and Cambodia.

Among the other instruments sent to China were two hnyìn (also called can, khene, khaen), free-reed mouth organs with two rows of eight pipes each, the longest pipe being about 1·5 metres long, closely related to the Chinese Sheng and the Japanese Shō. Although this instrument is no longer used by the Burmese, it is widespread among the tribal peoples of highland Myanmar and elsewhere in South-east Asia. The pat-talà, a trough xylophone with 21 keys suspended over a curved, boat-shaped resonator, is widely played now as a chamber instrument but was not mentioned in the Tang dynasty chronicle. It is related to the ranāt ēk of Thailand and the gambang of Java and is often used to accompany the voice or is played with the palwei (end-blown flute). The don-mìn, a zither directly related to the Thai khim and ultimately to the Persian santur, is also a popular instrument for traditional music or for newly composed tunes.

Western instruments that have been adopted by the Burmese are the violin, the Hawaiian guitar, the piano, the trumpet and the clarinet. The violin and the guitar, played with a sliding bar or rod in the Hawaiian style, are easily adapted to the traditional Burmese tuning system, but the retuning necessary to make the piano acceptable is more difficult. The violin replaced an older bowed fiddle (hùn tayàw) that has completely disappeared from Myanmar. It appears to have been similar in structure to the Thai so ū or Javanese rebab.

Myanmar, §2: Instrumental ensembles

2. Classical vocal music.

Burmese classical vocal music consists of one repertory, with two different formats for interpretation and performance. The repertory comprises several hundred traditional classical songs, clearly categorized, whose texts are contained in two large, regularly printed anthologies, the Maha Gi-tá and the Gi-tá Wí-thàw-dani. They are usually available in several editions and are basic reference works for all classical musicians. Most professional musicians know all the songs in this repertory of several hundred compositions, and many musicians often know several versions of many of the pieces. In addition, special theatrical compositions and newly composed pieces based on older texts derive their content and style from the traditional repertory. Most songs in the Maha Gi-tá and the Gi-tá Wí-thàw-dani are known as thachìn-gyì (‘great songs’). Both works contain essentially the same song texts, although certain texts are found only in one and variants of the same song occur in each. The Maha Gi-tá and Gi-tá Wí-thàw-dani contain only song texts; the melodies, fixed harmonic accompaniments and various instrumental interludes and introductions are all transmitted by oral tradition.

Both collections are organized according to song types. In both, the first three song types form the core of the thachìn-gyì; they are the old court songs and are the basis of the classical literature. The first category is called kyò, which means ‘string’; these elementary pieces were traditionally taught to apprentice harpists. The first piece in both books is called Pazìn taung-than kyò (‘The kyò of the sound of the dragon-fly's wings’) but is generally referred to by the words of the first line, Htan-tya-tei-shin; the song includes verbal imitations of the sound of the hsaìng-waìng. The student then progresses to the second kyò, called Thi-da (‘The river’), and on through the first 13 kyò. These songs are said to have been played when the king travelled in the royal barge (see also §3 below). The kyò songs are graded, making more frequent use of modal modulations and requiring more complex vocal and instrumental patterns as they increase in difficulty. Both hsaìng-waìng players and chamber music players still learn the basic kyò songs before attempting the more difficult repertory.

The second category, bwé, and the third category, thachìn-gan or thachìn-gán (‘elegant’, ‘noble’), include songs eulogizing the court and king. These first three categories form the basis of the classical repertory and are all set in the basic mode known as hnyìn-lòn by chamber music players and than-yò by hsaìng-waìng musicians. (Table 1)

The pat-pyò form by far the largest group in the collections; each book contains over 200 such songs. They are regarded by traditional musicians as the most complex and challenging of all thachìn-gyì songs: they were the old popular songs of the court and as such contain frequent quotations from other forms of music, so that the singer or instrumentalist must be familiar with the rest of the repertory to interpret them properly.

Another large song category in the traditional collections is yò-dayà. These songs, reputedly of Thai origin, date from the 18th century, when the Burmese king invaded Ayutthaya (Burmese: Yò-dayà), the ancient Thai capital. To Thai musicians, songs in this category sound unlike Thai music, but they are said to have resulted from the abduction of Thai musicians from Ayutthaya to the Burmese capital and the adaptation by Burmese musicians of their ancient music. Yò-dayà songs are usually performed in the mode palè (called pat-sabò by hsaìng-waìng musicians).

The kyò, bwé, thachìn-gan, pat-pyò and yò-dayà categories constitute most songs in the Gi-tá Wí-thàw-dani and Maha Gi-tá. Of the remaining categories, the myìn-gìn is a song in praise of the elegance and beauty of horses, performed instrumentally to kindle the spirits of the royal horses before battle. It was later used as a dancing exercise for the horses and is now always played in the theatre whenever there is need for a motif alluding to horses. A parallel to the myìn-gin is the hsin-gìn, a song used to make the elephants dance.

There are also about 30 short songs known as nat-chìn, usually associated with the worship of the Burmese spirits, and a small group of mon or talaìng songs, the latter derived from a Mon-Khmer group, once powerful in Myanmar, which survives as an ethnic minority around the city of Moulmein. Several groups of short strophic songs, in which the melody varies only slightly with each repetition to accommodate text changes, include the lament bàw-le and the teì-dat and deìn-than. There is also a small group of texts for the si-daw-than (si-daw music) and several different types of classical song, often sung without accompaniment. These are the laments or ‘crying songs’, lùn-gyìn and aing-gyìn, and other types of short unaccompanied song, yadú, yagan and è-gyìn.

These songs comprise a broad and varied collection of different types of music: the core of the old repertory found in the first three categories, old popular court songs pat-pyò, the lovely and clearly articulated yò-dayà songs, various forms of lament and short strophic songs, ceremonial pieces such as the si-daw and myìn-gìn and various types of unaccompanied song used in the theatre or as individual songs. The thachìn-gyì in these two works are thus not simply a collection of classical songs but include samples of the entire range of Burmese classical music, including the various theatrical, ceremonial and entertainment genres.

Myanmar, §2: Instrumental ensembles

3. The Burmese harp (saùng-gauk).

Two types of arched harp still exist in Myanmar. One, made by Karen and Mon hill peoples in the lower part of the country bordering Thailand, has five to seven strings tuned with pegs (see T. and T.A. Stern, 1971). The other, long associated with the Buddhist royal dynasties of Burma, is the ornate, 14-string saùng-gauk, traditionally tuned with cords encircling the arch, though now commonly tuned with pegs. The arched harp was the most esteemed of the Burmese royal court instruments. After the demise of the courts, the harp tradition has continued at the State School of Fine Arts in Mandalay. (For a discussion of the instrument's construction and history see Saùng-gauk.)

In performance (see Saùng-gauk, fig.2) the player braces the fingers of the left hand against the arch, shifting them agilely up and down; the left thumbtip with squared nail is placed against the string from the inside to raise the pitch or to produce frequent embellishments. The thumb may pluck from the inside in order to double octaves. The index finger and thumb of the right hand activate the strings from the outside in the centre of their length, separately or in pairs. A complex damping technique is also employed.

The oldest kyò (‘string’, possibly indicating the early use of the harp in song composition) songs are thought to have been popular at court in the early 14th century. Later, a set of 13 kyò were arranged in order of difficulty as basic training for musicians (see §2 above). Of these, no.6 (Hpaung Là Kyò), the first of three ‘barge songs’ said to describe an early king's ceremonial voyage in about 1370 from Ava up-river to ancient Tagaung, is the oldest known Burmese classical song.

Poems were written in a chosen form and then arranged by the harpist and singer in the melodic and metric patterns of the poems' assigned tuning and class. There is no evidence of musical notation until Western influence took effect in the 20th century, and songs were arranged for piano or xylophone. Theoretical concepts have reinforced oral transmission: metre is determined by wà (clappers) sounding the strong beat, and sì (hand cymbals) the weak beat. Symbols for each (Mandalay, o = wà, x = sì; Yangon, x = wà, o = sì), when placed over syllables of the poetic text, indicate the song's metric framework (Table 2). Most kyò songs are accompanied by pattern 1 and yò-dayà songs by pattern 2. Though syncopation occurs in the harp part, and caesuras and rubato characterize the singer's style, the metric pattern of a piece remains stable except in ad lib interludes and codas.

A hierarchy of open 5ths that originated in the oldest harp tuning (hnyìn-lòn), but is present in them all, defines the five tonal levels of the tì-gwet (instrumental patterns). Each tonal level consists of an open-string pitch and its meik (‘concordant’) a 5th above, and is named after the Burmese modal number of its root, with pauk (from apauk, ‘hole’) and tàw (from atàw, the solo instrumental cadential formula): No.1, tabauk-tàw (Western scale degree 1–5); No.6, chauk-pauk-tàw (3–7); No.5, ngà-bauk-tàw (4–1); No.4, leì-bauk-tàw (5–2); No.2, hnapauk-tàw (7–4). The five levels are learnt by rote in the first three kyò songs (ex.1), composed by Wun-gyì Padei-thá-ya-za (b 1672). Names of important intervals, melodic patterns and note names of a movable ‘do’ system (Williamson, ‘Aspects of Traditional Style …’, 1975, p.119) are also learnt in these songs that constitute the student’s introduction to Burmese musical theory. (For information on harp tunings see Saùng-gauk, ex.1 and ex.2).

Burmese musicians think of their music in a linear way. Governed by the beat of the singer's wà and sì, the harpist plays independently, following the vocal line or playing against it, in the tì-gwet of the tuning, with solo atàw concluding each couplet or stanza, as indicated in the song text. The atàw is typically announced by the singer’s than-gyá (‘fall of sound’) to the upper pitch of the desired level, and confirmed by root and 5th in the short or lengthy atàw of the harpist (ex.2). Modulation between atàw levels is called than-byaùng (Mandalay: ‘sound shift’, or ‘shift of pitch’) and remains within the tuning.

As noted above (see §2), song texts have been published in several editions. Gi-tá Wí-thàw-dani Kyàn includes 535 texts, indexed by harp tuning and song class (see Table 1 above). Songs in auk-pyan tuning, particularly seasonal songs and love songs, are characterized by long closing sections (thahpyan) in ad lib rhythm, with virtuoso harp cadenzas. Those in palè tuning, including the yò-dayà, the talaìng (mon), the bàw-le and the than-zàn (‘new songs’), have a brilliant harp style in a faster tempo. The teì-dat and the deìn-than of mode myin-zaìng also require florid harp accompaniment.

In the late 18th century and throughout the Kòn-baung dynasty, members of the royal family, ministers and musicians at court composed songs and became renowned harpists, including Prince Pyin-si, Princess Hlaing-hteik-hkaung-tin, Myá-wadi Wun-gyì Ù Sá (the most prolific of all composers), Ù Maung Maung Thaik, Daw Thu-za, King Thi-bàw and Ù Maung Maung Gyì, harpist for the last two kings (his pupils are indicated * below). During this period a virtuoso style of playing developed, characterized by faster tempos, long solo intoductions and interludes between stanzas, brilliant cadenzas and athan-zàn passages in free time and improvisational style. Eminent harpists of the early 20th century included Ù Maung Maung Lat*, Ù Sein Bei-da*, Ù Hpù-Gaung (Shan States), Daw Sàw Myá Eì Kyi* and Daw Hkin Hkin Galeì*. Mid-20th century and contemporary harpists in Yangon include Ù Bá Thàn, Ù Sein Hpei, Daw Myá Thwin* and Daw Tin Gu; in Mandalay Daw Hkin Mei*, Ù Bá Myín (pupil of Ù Sein-Bei-da and Ù Maung Maung Lat) and Ù Myín Maung, until 1996 staff harpist at the State School of Fine Arts (pupil of Daw Hkin Mei and Ù Bá Than).

Myanmar, §2: Instrumental ensembles

4. Theory.

Little written information exists on Burmese music theory or practice in either Burmese or any other language. The complex theoretical tradition is orally transmitted as a musician learns the repertory; as each composition is learnt, the increasing complexities of the system are further defined.

The basis of the Burmese tonal system is seven fundamental pitches from which all music is composed, each of which has its own name and associated animal. In some cases, however, vocal notes are not expected to correspond precisely with those of the fixed-pitch instruments. The basic seven notes may also be modified depending on the instruments used: one tonal system is used for the hsaìng-waìng ensemble, another for the saùng-gauk another for chamber music instruments; (Table 3), a fourth, the Western tempered system, is now also used and accepted as a medium for performing traditional Burmese classical music.

The pitches in the Burmese hsaìng system are identified by numbers in descending order. Pitch names in general use among musicians are derived from the finger-hole names of the hnè, and are as follows: than-hman (‘correct sound’), tonic or fundamental; hnapauk (‘second hole’), seventh degree; thòn-bauk (‘third hole’), sixth degree; leì-bauk (‘fourth hole’), fifth degree; ngà-bauk (‘fifth hole’), fourth degree; chauk-pauk (‘sixth hole’), third degree; and hkun-nathan-gyì (‘great seventh sound’), second degree.

The two traditional tonal systems of Burmese classical music differ not in intervallic structure but in fundamental pitch. Chamber music players of the saùng-gauk and pat-talà, for example, use a than-hman one degree higher than that used by the hsaìng-waìng musicians. Chamber music players now tend to tune than-hman close to the pitch D, and the hsaìng-waìng musicians tune it closer to C. Compared with the Western diatonic series, the seven-note Burmese series usually has somewhat lower seventh and third degrees, as well as a raised fourth, giving an impression of an equidistant tuning. However, equidistance is never mentioned by Burmese musicians. Certain Western scholars may have been led to attribute it to the intervals of the Burmese heptatonic system because they seem more nearly equidistant than those of the Western diatonic system. When Western instruments were first used by Burmese traditional musicians they were retuned to the intervals of the Burmese system. But when the piano is used now, Western tuning may be retained so that the pianist can take advantage of the chromatic intervals to suggest vocal notes not ordinarily available for modes played on traditional instruments.

There is no exact word for the various tonalities or modes in Burmese music. They are generally referred to as tones (athan). But the manner in which they are used strongly suggests that Burmese musicians recognize unique qualities for each of them, something that might not occur if each was merely a transposition of the other at another pitch. Each of these athan in Burmese music uses all the seven pitches but emphasizes five of them as basic pitches of the mode; the other two are regarded as secondary. The tuning of the two most important Burmese instruments, the pat-waìng (drum circle) and the saùng-gauk (arched harp), best demonstrates this system of primary and secondary pitches. These two instruments must retune for each athan. The upper range of the pat-waìng remains basically the same for all modes and uses all seven pitches, but the lower range must be retuned to produce the five different primary pitches of each athan. On various other Burmese instruments, such as the pat-talà or the kyì-waìng and maùng-zaìng, all seven pitches are available, and there is no need to retune for each mode; the player simply omits certain pitches, playing only the primary pitches of the mode. Nevertheless, these instruments are usually played in a style similar to that of the pat-waìng and saùng-gauk. The five basic pitches of the mode are emphasized in the low range by omitting the secondary pitches, which are used primarily in the high register of the instrument and have the character and quality of passing notes, suspensions or appoggiaturas.

The names of the athan for the hsaìng-waìng are different from those for chamber music instruments. Table 4 gives only the five basic pitches of the low range of the pat-waìng. It is assumed in every case that all seven notes are available and are used as secondary pitches on the pat-waìng in the upper register and on the gong instruments and hnè throughout the range. Some musicians consider that C is actually a secondary rather than a primary note in the mode hkun-nathan-gyi.

The athan names used by hsaìng-waìng musicians are functional rather than theoretical and include some that are tunings for the pat-waìng, intended to make certain pitches more easily available in the low register of the drum circle. Hsaìng-waìng tunings, with the exception of than-yò hnapauk and ngà-bauk auk-pyan, can be grouped into two basic types according to the placing of secondary pitches and the intervals between primary notes. These two types are given inTable 5 with the secondary pitches indicated by an S.

Both hsaìng-waìng and chamber musicians create new modal structures by shifting the tonal emphasis from one pitch to another within the same tuning. In this way two new modes, chauk-pauk and hnapauk, are created from the than-yò tuning. Hsaìng-waìng musicians use another modal practice when they accompany a singer whose voice cannot comfortably reach all the pitches of a composition: the pat-waìng player retunes the drums to produce the desired mode at a different pitch level. For example, than-yò can be transposed up either one degree to hkun-nathan-gyi (D) or down one degree to hnapauk (B). But the musicians prefer not to use this solution since it is impossible to retune the gongs; a different combination of gongs has to be used, and the resulting pitch structure does not produce an accurate transposition of the mode as conceptualized by Burmese musicians. In rare cases, compositions in one mode are performed in another mode; this transposition, called than-dì, is not prevalent in the traditional repertory and is more suitable for some compositions than others.

The pat-talà (xylophone), like the kyì-waìng and other gong-chimes, includes all seven pitches. When the pat-talà is used to accompany the voice, its tuning terminology follows the system used for the saùng-gauk. The saùng-gauk may be used to accompany the voice or may be performed as a solo instrument. Like the pat-waìng it can be freely retuned to any modal system; unlike the pat-waìng it is not restricted by other accompanying instruments in its ensemble. Although this would permit the ideal Burmese tuning system, in contemporary practice Burmese harpists tend to be more influenced by modern European tuning than hsaìng-waìng musicians. In theory the modes used for the saùng-gauk are thought of as being arranged with their fundamentals forming a circle of 5ths, with seven 5ths completing the octave. Most saùng-gauk musicians now use only the first four modes, and most traditional classical compositions are played in these. Several harpists, however, do play in all seven athan.

The pat-talà is taught as a beginner's instrument by hsaìng-waìng musicians as well as being used in chamber music. When it is used by the hsaìng-waìng musicians, its fundamental pitch, than-hman, is tuned to C or C. Chamber musicians tune the pat-talà to the higher pitch. For purposes of comparison, hnyìn-lòn and than-hman are given in Table 6 as beginning on the pitch C. Although the fundamental pitches of all seven modes are theoretically available on the pat-talà, in practice most pat-talà players prefer to use only the pitches than-hman, leì-bauk and ngà-bauk as fundamentals. The interval structures produced by starting on other fundamental pitches are too far from the contemporary modal ideal to be considered usable. Although the human voice is considered the ideal medium for performance of Burmese music, instrumental accompaniment is an integral part of the song tradition. The basic structure of the accompaniment pattern is fixed and rigidly transmitted by oral tradition but can easily be amplified and ornamented by skilful musicians.

‘Natural consonances’, which the Burmese regard as their form of harmony, are essential to the accompaniment patterns of traditional Burmese songs. The natural consonance for any pitch is the pitch a 5th below. These consonances are used as simultaneously sounding concordances, and frequently in cadential phrases (atàw) the supporting pitch alternates with the main pitch in a variety of melodic patterns emphasizing the main pitch. Generally the upper range of the instrumental part carries the melody while the lower range sounds the concordant notes and octaves, weaving them into a complex, secondary melodic line. The texture of this traditional two-part instrumental pattern is best thought of as an amplified single melodic line, rather than as truly polyphonic. The texture uses suspensions and appoggiaturas, octaves and 5ths as concordances, and frequently both parts combine in a single melodic line for rapid and complex melodic passages. This two-part instrumental style is the basis of the playing technique for the saùng-gauk, pat-talà and pat-waìng, as well as the gong-chime instruments. A subtle aspect of the Burmese modal system is the effect of microtonal intervals produced at times by slight modification of the secondary pitches in the hnè, palwei or vocal line.

Myanmar

III. 20th-century practice.

Burmese musicians have not felt obliged (unlike the musicians of other South-east Asian countries, e.g. Thailand and Indonesia) to develop a notation for their traditional music. While some Burmese musicians have attempted to reduce Burmese music to Western staff notation, the results are neither widely known nor considered authoritative. Innovation within the tradition is occurring, however, as exemplified by a series of recordings, issued by the government, of modern compositions with alternating sections played by the hsaìng-waìng ensemble and the saùng-gauk (arched harp), a non-traditional combination of a percussion ensemble with a chamber instrument. Some musicians have been attempting to devise a digital system for recording Burmese music by taking advantage of the possibilities offered by MIDI technology.

In the 1940s schools of the fine arts were established in Yangon (Rangoon) and Mandalay, where musicians from all parts of the country are supported while learning the traditional repertory and improving their instrumental skills. These schools send teachers of the classical tradition to other parts of Myanmar and often contribute members to the touring hsaìng-waìng theatre troupes. Western popular music is performed, recorded and emitted from radios and loudspeakers throughout Myanmar, but indigenous traditions appear much more viable. Western forms popular among the young have the same meanings and associations as traditional forms, with close connections to the history of Myanmar, rites of passage, dramatic forms and religious rituals. However, the mass media dissemination of newer popular forms continues, sometimes at the cost of the older forms.

Myanmar

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