The Japan Foundation Asia Center Asia Fellowship Report Maria Christine Muyco Song as Precedence to Dance: Understanding The Pedagogy of Learning Kinnari in Ventiane, Laos By Maria Christine Muyco and Nouth Phouthavongsa (This research is funded by the Japan Foundation Asia Center) INTRODUCTION Noi or Nok is the Lao term for bird. In the Children Cultural Center of Sailom Village in Vientiane, Laos, you can hear children singing the repeated word “noi, noi, noi…”. The introduction of a song about “A lady who is a bird,” (referring to Kinnari), is one of the first things that is known in the Center. This is precedence to the actual dance of kinnari. Kinnari, side by side its lover, the kinnara, are protector gods in Buddhist and Hindu mythology. They are said to look after human beings from their home, the Himalayas. As celestial musicians, they are represented in musical instruments such as the Indian veena (lute) made after Kinnari, known as Kinnari Veena. In Southeast Asia, particularly, she is portrayed having a human head, torso, and arms; and a swan’s tail, wings, and feet. Inhabiting the Himavanta forest, she sings magical melodies with heartfelt poetry and dances gracefully. With her deep love and loyalty for her mate, she is admired and looked up to as a feminine symbol. This article focuses on what kinnari’ism means in Laos. In particular, it looks at the pedagogy used in the Center (which I refer to in short for Ventiane’s Children Cultural Center), the foundation venue for learning of the youth. The Center was established in 1994 with the initiative of the Ministry of Information, Culture, and Tourism whose objective is to promote national culture through children. The Center also provides library and educational services, publication of materials, and organizing of activities for children’s development. LANDLOCKED LAOS In Vientiane, there is an interesting mixture of Thai culture, Chinese, Burmese, and Vietnam that circumvent the landlocked Laos from various sides of its northern geography. On southern Laos, there are Khmer culture and further down, Malaysian and Indonesian Islamic influences. However, as their history is traced to the old Indian empire, their use of Pali language is traced to India and its Hindu practices. This explains their use of Ramayana in their theatre embodying themes from its stories and particular characters that represent certain ideals and values, which are reflected in their music and dance. Laos | history - g eog rap hy | Britannica.com 7/17/16 8:41 PM sometimes hospitable— with the neighbouring See All Stories Khmer (Cambodian), Siamese (Thai), and Myanmar (Burmese) kingdoms between BRITANNICA QUIZZES the 5th and the mid-19th century indirectly imbued Laos with elements of Indian culture, including Buddhism , the religion now practiced by most of the population. W hat’s Bugging You? STORIES QUIZZESBoth Buddhist andGALLERIES Hindu lores have shapedLISTS the visual, Sperforming,earch Britan andnic literarya... arts of the country. Many of the indigenous and minority peoples of the remote TABLE OF CONTENTS Before They Were World highland slopes and mountainous regions, however, have maintained their own Leaders: Africa Edition Introduction idiosyncratic ritual and artistic traditions. Land W hich John Adams? Relief Colonization by the French from the late 19th to the mid-20th century infused Laos Drainage with a European cultural element, which intensified throughout the country’s Soils See More Quizzes embroilment in World War II and the Indochina wars, as well as a civil war of its Clim ate own in the second half of the 20th century. Guided by Marxist-Leninist ideology, Plant and anim al life Laos emerged from the turmoil in 1975 as a communist country. Economic reforms People Ethnic groups and of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, including the development of tourism, languages have strengthened Laos’s economy, gradually shrinking the country’s debt and Religion diminishing its dependence on international aid. Settlem ent patterns Dem ographic trends Economy Agriculture, forestry, and fishing Land Resources and power Laos is bounded to the north by China, to the northeast and east by Vietnam , to the M anufacturing agoda.com/Hotel_Discounts Finance south by Cambodia, to the west by Thailand, and to the northwest by Myanmar Trade (Burma). Services Labour and taxation Transportation Relief Government and society Dominating the landscape of Laos are its Constitutional fram ework inhospitable forest-covered mountains, which in the Local governm ent north rise to a maximum elevation of 9,245 feet Justice (2,818 metres) above sea level at Mount Bia and Political process everywhere constitute an impediment to travel. The Security principal range lies along a northwest-southeast axis Health and welfare and forms part of the Annamese Cordillera (Chaîne Education Annamitique), but secondary ranges abound. On the Cultural life Figure 1: Map of Laos (https://www.britannica.com/place/Laos/images) Cultural m ilieu Xiangkhoang Plateau in north-central Laos, the Plain of Jars (Thông Haihin; the Past scholars have written about Laos’ music. Terry Miller (1980, 1985, 1991) archives a Daily life and sociabroadl spectrum of Laosname Music recorded derived on-site from, with particular large focus prehistoric on the Khene, orstone jars discovered there) consists of custom s bamboo mouth organ; and the mawlum, a song genre. On the same year and thereafter, Therese Mahoney (1991extensive-1992), writes rollingabout Lao Classical grasslands Music. As to rather poetry found than in a true plain and provides a hub of The arts Lao songs, Carol Compton analyses text as related to the Lao life and culture. communications. The karst landscapes of the central provinces of Bolikhamxay and Cultural institutionLaoss music and dance bear a narrative that is shaped by myths and legends, folk stories, and literature combiningKhammouan natural environment contain with supernatural caverns and spiritual and elements. severely eroded limestone pinnacles. In the south Sports and recreati on the Bolovens Plateau, at an elevation of about 3,600 feet (1,100 metres), is covered M edia and broadcasting by open woodland and has generally fertile soil. The only extensive lowlands lie History along the eastern bank of the Mekong River. Lan Xang Under foreign rule Laos after the Geneva Conference, 1954–75 Drainage The Lao People’s Figure 2: One of the roof designs in Sisaket Temple shows kinnari on the left side of the photo, with Dem ocratic Repubkinnara,lic or the male half-birdThe on its general right. Buddha is slope seen on top of of them. the land in Laos is downhill from east to west, and all the major rivers— the Tha, Beng, Ou, Ngum, Kading, Bangfai, Banghiang, and Kong— are tributaries of the Mekong (Mènam Khong). The Mekong flows generally southeast and south along and through western Laos and forms its boundary with Myanmar and most of the border with Thailand. The course of the river itself is severely constricted by gorges in northern Laos, but, by the time it reaches Vientiane, its valley broadens and exposes wide areas to flooding when the river breaches its https://www.britannica.com /p lace/Laos# ref5 0 9 2 9 2 Pa g e 2 of 6 SONG TEXT and MOVEMENTS Figure 3: Children learning from Nouth Phouthavongsa at The Children Culture Center of Ventiane, Laos. In the song, the story tells about Kinnari flying and eventually finding a river for bathing. Upon her descent to the flowing waters, she began her bath. She brushes her right hand back and forth her left arms length, and vice-versa, she does it on the other arm. She does this while singing. Aside from the narration about her, she herself is believed to sing and hum (noi, noi, noi, etc.) while bathing: Lyrics in Lao English translation Cha kao theung, eya sai samone. Once upon a time, there’s a lady. (hums)… Heu... Ki eya none noi, ki eya none noi She is a bird, she is a bird Theo bin loy. Eu eu eya… Long fa. Eu…Vey ha heun. Flying up. (hums flying sound)… In the sky (hums) Very far. Phothala eung eya binma…heu The bird is flying to find a river…(hums) Tha eya pheut pheun long sou neune. Eye ya tin tha Then it saw the river and came down with a happy ey… face. (Hums) Song walee…heu Then it took a bath. (Hums)… Leo wax waieu. Eya… Khongkha. Heu.. Swimming in the river. (Hums). This human bird. (Hums) Tha eya laxay, bantheungchai… Swimming. (Hums). And bathing. (Hums)… Khatsee. Ey…Sawee vanh… Brushing water from arms. (Hums)… Feeling fresh Noi, noi, noi… (Hums about the bird)… Figure 4: Song lyrics of the Kinnari with translation provided by Nouth Phouthavongsa. To see how these lyrics are used in the song, the next illustration will show the transcribed score from the recording made on the children who sung at the Children’s Cultural Center. __________ Figure 5: Melody of the Kinnari Song What makes the Kinnari song singable is its comfortable and narrow range of pitches. It basically revolves around an octave, or sometimes an octave and a fifth in some few instances of the piece. Also, notes come smoothly in stepwise motion. The melody has an easy recall. It uses a pentatonic scale, in particular, the anhemitones ranging from D, E, F#, A, to B. The scale of course can occur in a transposed version, depending on singers’ capability or preference. There is also an easy recall on lyrics as verses in the songs are interspersed with the repeated syllables of “ey” or “noi”. These repeated syllables serve as a melodic bridge to the next verse. Although musical instruments basically accompany this song, the collaboration for this research primarily focused on the melody and lyrics.