Music of Southeast Asia

MUSIC OF SOUTHEAST
ASIA
Southeast Asia
▪ Myanmar ▪ Singapore
▪ Thailand ▪ Indonesia
▪ Laos ▪ Brunei
▪ Cambodia ▪ East Timor
▪ Vietnam ▪ Philippines
▪ Malaysia
2 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

“
The music in Southeast Asia is dominated by a well-
integrated, highly cultured style which is a characteristic
of the region. Its wide array of musical instruments,
such as gongs and drums, is very unique and it
distinctively shows the culture and tradition of the
country it belongs to.

1
MUSIC OF INDONESIA

INDONESIA
▪ JAKARTA – capital of Indonesia

▪ Considered as the largest archipelago and the
4th largest country in the world.
▪ Its 17,507 islands shelter over 300 ethnic
groups
▪ One of the founding members of the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASIAN).
▪ The motto that the country was able to tie a
bond together is “Bhinneka Tunggal Ika”
(Unity in Diversity)

Vocal Music
TYPES OF INDONESIAN SCALE

▪ SLENDRO
The five-tone scale pattern or pentatonic scale.
▪ PELOG
The seven-tone scale pattern or heptatonic scale.

VOCAL MUSIC
Slendro Tones Pelog Tones

1. Barang 1. Penunggul
2. Gulu 2. Gulu
3. Dhada 3. Dhada
4. Lima 4. Pelog
5. Nem 5. Lima
6. Nem
7. Barang

Vocal Music
▪ Tembang sunda or cianjuran – is a form of sung poetry.

▪ By tradition, the lines in the poetry are sung in free flow while the
modern ones follow a meter. It is accompanied by a kacapi indung,
kacapi rincik, and suling or bamboo flute

Vocal Music
▪ The vocal music of Indonesian is also used for ornamentation to Gamelan

Music.
▪ The voice produced by the Pesindhen (female soloist) is compared to the
instrument called suling (bamboo flute).
▪ The voice produced by gerong (male chorus)
▪ Gerong Bandayan (mixed chorus) is somewhat compared to that of a rabab
(two-stringed instrument).

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
▪ Gamelan ensemble is the most popular Indonesian music.

▪ It is a group of percussion instrument which has different tones
including:
▫ metallophones
▫ drums
▫ gongs
▫ fiddles
▫ bamboo flues

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
▪ Gamelan ensembles serve as an accompaniment to dances,

songs and to Wayang Kulit as well.
▪ The Indonesians believe that the Gamelan has supernatural
powers because they believe that the instruments came from
their gods and goddesses.

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
▪ Indonesians have deep respect to their instruments. Before and

after playing them:
▫ They burn incense and prepare offerings.

▫ They bow down before playing their instruments to show
respect.
▫ Stepping on their instruments is a sign of disrespect.

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
▪ Percussion instruments
▫ made of metals called as metallophones play the main melody of

the ensembles.
▫ The sound of each vary from one another depending on size of
the instrument and the thickness of the metal.

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
TWO MAIN TYPES OF GAMELAN ENSEMBLE
1. Balinese Gamelan
▫ mainly used for sacred music and consists of idiophones and
mostly metallophones
▫ characteristics of the Balinese ensembles is the sudden
change in dynamics and tempo, they use very bright and
brilliant sounds and fast rattling sounds from cymbals

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
TWO MAIN TYPES OF GAMELAN ENSEMBLE
2. Javanese Gamelan
▫ used for court music and is mainly percussive in nature

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN JAVANESE AND BALINESE
Balinese music is also based on a

Javanese gamelan is more traditional
colotonic structure, but it is not
and suited to palaces and temples.
always as evident.

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
SOME INSTRUMENTS IN THE GAMELAN INSEMBLE
1. Gong Ageng
- the largest knobbed gong in the ensemble. It has a deep, rich sound and is
often played to signal the start and end of the music.
2. Kempul
-a set of pitched, hanging, knobbed gongs, ranging from seven to ten inches in
diameter, and is played with a soft end mallet

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
3. Bonang
- a set of a small gongs, sometimes called kettles or pots, placed horizontally
onto strings in a wooden frame in either one or two rows
4. Saron
-a set of seven bronze bars placed on top of a resonating frame

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
5. Gender
- a set of seven of 10 to 14 tuned metal suspended over a resonating frame and
tapped with a padded wooden disk
6. Kendang
-a double- headed drum popular in Southeast Asia

2
MUSIC OF CAMBODIA

CAMBODIA
▪ KAMBUJA - sanskrit name

▪ Its land area is about 181,000 square miles
▪ Music of Cambodia is derived from a mesh of
cultural traditions dating back to the ancient
Khmer Empire, India, China and the original
indigenous tribes living in the area before the
arrival of Indian and Chinese travellers.

ELEMENTS OF MUSIC
Sculptures like:
▪ Aspara - celestial dancer
Instruments like:
▪ Pinn- angular harp
▪ Korng vung-circular frame gongs
These are carved at the walls of the Kingdom of Angkor Wat that shows how music
played an important role during their time.

VOCAL MUSIC
Yai
▪ form of lyrical poetry
▪ performed either solo or duet by a man and a woman.
▪ can be ad-lib or completely impromptu which is usually comedic in
character

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
Pinpeat orchestra
▪ this orchestra was also used in court music, accompanying masked
plays and shadow plays.
▪ consists of xylophone-type instruments accompanied by gong circles.

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
The Pinpeat Orchestra Instruments

1. Khloy - vertical duct flute made of bamboo, hardwood, or plastic
a. Khloyek - smaller flute
b. Khlotthom - larger flute
2. Tro Sau Toch - two-stringed vertical fiddle with a hardwood body
3. Oneat - 21 thick rectangular bamboo in a curved boat suspended over
two string

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
The Pinpeat Orchestra Instruments

4. Samphor - small barrel two-headed drums
5. Kong Vong Toch - is a set of knobbed gongs attached to a circle-
shaped rack played with a mallet
6. Ching - finger cymbal which adds a coloring effect to the music
7. Skorthom - two big drums
8. Cneat - xylophones

3
MUSIC OF THAILAND

THAILAND
▪ Sometimes called as Muang Thai – which

means “Land of the Free”.
▪ Located at mainland Southeast Asia with
diverse ecosystems, fertile fields, and rugged
coast.
▪ Is well known for its picturesque beaches,
ancient ruins, and temples.
▪ It is only nation that has never been colonized
by western power.

THAILAND
▪ Its first name was Siam until 1939 and was

under the rule of absolute monarchy until a
revolution in 1932 changed its government to
constitutional monarchy.
▪ Its culture is a mixed of influences from China,
Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Indonesia and
India.
▪ Buddhism’s belief in ancestral and natural
spirits.

THAI MUSIC
▪ Its musical principles and elements are mostly derived from Chinese
music, while the instruments are inspired from Indian and Indonesian
music.
▪ They use the five-tone and seven-tone scale system
▪ Thai music is considered as a living art because musicians prefer to
learn aurally.

VOCAL MUSIC
SOME FORMS OF VOCAL MUSIC IN THAILAND
1. Ritual songs - either chanted or recited
a. Suod – recitation of religious verses that are beautifully rhymed and

written by philosophers as a higher form of poetry and is transmitted
orally. It is used to worship spiritual and super natural beings and deities.

VOCAL MUSIC
1. Ritual songs - either chanted or recited
b. Thes – a mixture of poetry reading, recitation, and speech delivery. Its

verses not only intended for rituals but also in preaching the congregation
The melody is played with improvisations as some parts

are sang in the traditional way.

VOCAL MUSIC

2. Entertainment songs – secular type of music that tells stories
about customs and traditions
a. Phleng Klomdek – nursery rhymes that are transmitted orally which has
one common subject, spirits
b. Phleng Bork – are stories and news sung to the community in a jolly
manner by male singers
It is performed in leader-answer style using a rhythmic instruments called

ching which is finger cymbal.

VOCAL MUSIC

c. Sebha – starts with storytelling and then moves to its

musical form.
d. He Ruea – is a boat song where the verse follow the

rhythm of the oarsmen.

VOCAL MUSIC

e. Sang khara – is a beggar’s music adapted for the play “Hun Krabork”. It
is composed by a blind beggar named Sankhard during the period of
Rama V.

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
THE THREE FAMOUS MUSICAL ENSEMBLES IN THAILAND
1. Piphat
2. Khrueang Sai
3. Mahori

1. Piphat
▫ a mid-sized orchestra consisting of idiophones, membranophones, and

aerophones.
▫ It is used to accompany court ceremonies, funeral cremation ceremonies,
and thai dramas.

EXAMPLES OF INSTRUMENTS IN THE PIPHAT ENSEMBLES
1. Pi Nai – double reed pipe

2. Ranat – xylophones, the bars could be made from bamboo, metal or sometimes
glass
3. Klong – barrel drum
4. Ching – small finger cymbals
5. Khong Wong Lek and Khong Wong Yai - circular sets of tuned horizontal gong-
chimes

2. Khrueang Sai
▫ an orchestra that combines wind instruments of piphat to a string section

▫ It is primarily played indoors to accompany stick puppet theater locally
known as hoong grabok.
▫ It is considered as a softest of the three ensembles.

INSTRUMENTS IN THE KHRUEANG SAI ENSEMBLE
1. Saw duang – a high-pitched two stringed bowed lute

2. Saw U - a lower pitched bowed lute
3. Jakhe - Fretted floor zither with three strings

3. Mahori
▫ traditionally played by a women.

▫ the instrument is a combination of Piphat and Khrueang Sai’s instrument but
without the oboe

3
MUSIC OF MYANMAR

MYANMAR
▪ Otherwise known as Burma until 1989.

▪ Is a sovereign state in Southeast Asia that is
reach in mineral resources like oil, stones,
natural gas, and the likes.
▪ It is the largest in mainland Southeast Asia
consisting 14 states and regions.
▪ The countries surrounding the country are
Bangladesh and India in Southwest

MYANMAR
▪ China in the north

▪ Laos and Thailand in the Southeast.
▪ Their traditional music is generally
characterized as melodious but has no definite
harmony.

VOCAL MUSIC
1. Burmese classical songs, known as Thachin Gyi – are included

in an extensive collection known as Maha Gita – which
literally means “great or royal music”

VOCAL MUSIC
THE COLLECTION IS DIVIDED

INTO DIFFERENT TYPES OF SONGS SUCH AS
1. oldest repertoire (kyo, bwe, tachin ukan)
2. royal court music (pat pyou)
3. songs of longing (loung chin)
4. songs that make horse dance (lei dei than kat, myin gin)
5. songs for the Burmese spirits (nat chin)
6. song of sorrow (bole)

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC
▪ The classic music of Myanmar is categorized either indoor or

outdoor
▪ Hsaing Waing is one of their famous traditional folk musical
ensembles.

VOCAL MUSIC
EXAMPLE INSTRUMENTS OF HSAING WAING

1. Hne – wind instruments with sextuple reeds called hnegan. It has
seven finger holes.
2. Chauk Lon Pat – a set of 8 tuned drums
3. Maung Hsaing – are larger bronze gongs in a rectangular frame
4. Pat Waing – set of 21-tuned drums in a circle
5. Kyi Waing - small bronze gongs in circular
6. Siand Wa – bell and clapper

VOCAL MUSIC
EXAMPLE INSTRUMENTS OF HSAING WAING

7. Myanmar Arched Harp
- considered as Myanmar’s national instrument
- It was played in the 10th century with five strings, which later increased to
seven until the 13th strings are used during the reign of King Bodaw Pharar

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MUSIC OF SOUTHEAST

2 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

3 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

4 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

▪ JAKARTA – capital of Indonesia

5 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

TYPES OF INDONESIAN SCALE

6 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

Slendro Tones Pelog Tones

7 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

▪ Tembang sunda or cianjuran – is a form of sung poetry.

8 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

▪ The vocal music of Indonesian is also used for ornamentation to Gamelan

9 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

▪ Gamelan ensemble is the most popular Indonesian music.

10 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

▪ Gamelan ensembles serve as an accompaniment to dances,

11 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

▪ Indonesians have deep respect to their instruments. Before and

▫ They burn incense and prepare offerings.

12 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

▫ made of metals called as metallophones play the main melody of

13 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

TWO MAIN TYPES OF GAMELAN ENSEMBLE

14 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

TWO MAIN TYPES OF GAMELAN ENSEMBLE

15 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN JAVANESE AND BALINESE

Balinese music is also based on a

16 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

SOME INSTRUMENTS IN THE GAMELAN INSEMBLE

17 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

SOME INSTRUMENTS IN THE GAMELAN INSEMBLE

18 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

SOME INSTRUMENTS IN THE GAMELAN INSEMBLE

19 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

20 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

▪ KAMBUJA - sanskrit name

21 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

22 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

23 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

24 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

The Pinpeat Orchestra Instruments

25 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

The Pinpeat Orchestra Instruments

26 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

27 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

▪ Sometimes called as Muang Thai – which

28 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

▪ Its first name was Siam until 1939 and was

29 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

30 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

SOME FORMS OF VOCAL MUSIC IN THAILAND

1. Ritual songs - either chanted or recited

a. Suod – recitation of religious verses that are beautifully rhymed and

31 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

SOME FORMS OF VOCAL MUSIC IN THAILAND

1. Ritual songs - either chanted or recited

b. Thes – a mixture of poetry reading, recitation, and speech delivery. Its

The melody is played with improvisations as some parts

32 by Glyza Krisjanna Lañada

SOME FORMS OF VOCAL MUSIC IN THAILAND

It is performed in leader-answer style using a rhythmic instruments called