Materials
classical
ICH Materials 105
Publications(Article)
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KOMUZ TEACHING METHODS IN FORMAL AND INFORMAL SYSTEMS IN KYRGYZSTANThe Kyrgyz komuz is a national musical instrument. Traditionally, komuz was made from a single piece of wood. The instrument has three strings, which were traditionally made from dried ram innards, but in modern times, fishing lines are often used instead.Year2017NationSouth Korea
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4. The Story of Kamaicha - Identity of a CommunityA treasure trove of both natural and cultural diversity, India is home to innumerable rural and indigenous communities dotting its varied geographical landscape. One such community—the Manganiyars—is a clan of hereditary professional musicians residing in the villages of the Thar desert in western Rajasthan. Their oral legends say that these communities settled in different villages of Barmer and Jaisalmer around a thousand years ago. \n\nThe Manganiyars hold a vast repertoire of folk songs integral to their ways of life and significant to their social systems. For centuries, their music has been supported by their traditional patrons, called Jajmans, who usually live in the same or nearby villages and engage the Manganiyars to sing at various life events and celebrations of their families in exchange for money, land, and gifts. A distinctive feature of this patron-server relationship is the Manganiyars’ exclusive and vital role as genealogists of their patrons’ families that can go back to fourteen or eighteen generations, such record keeping being entirely oral. The Manganiyars belong to the Mirasi (entertainers) community. They are Muslims but sing for both Hindu and Muslim patrons, performing songs of Hindu gods and goddesses as well as Muslim Pirs and \nFakirs (Sufi saints or spiritual guides). The melodic structure of their music resembles classical traditions, but in reality, is very different in terms of the raagas (combination of notes) and associated time theory. The Manganiyars believe that their children are born with an inherent sense of music that is naturally transmitted to subsequent generations through some magical non-formal framework that is undefined and innate. Unlike many other indigenous communities, they themselves have kept their tradition alive, believing that music is fundamental to their ‘being.’Year2021NationIndia
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Traditional Performing Arts in Times of a PandemicThe novel coronavirus fears have affected various sectors of the economy, politics, society, and culture. Notably, the cultural sector has been directly and substantially affected by the coronavirus crisis. Most of the public cultural facilities, including museums and art galleries, were temporarily shut down, and many cultural events and performances have been canceled or postponed due to the outbreak. The crisis has wreaked havoc on the performing arts industry. With measures taken to curb the spread of the coronavirus by preventing mass gatherings, concert halls, and theaters have been closed to help people avoid close contact with others.\n\nThe pandemic is also tough on traditional performing arts. It should be noted, however, how the performing arts community is trying to overcome this difficult time and use the crisis as an opportunity. They are looking for various ways to get through the health crisis. The National Gugak Center (https://www.youtube.com/user/gugak1951) and the Seoul Donhwamun Traditional Theater (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCr2aWbG8Hz-EAl7cznvGO5Q), for example, are streaming live performances without audiences via Naver TV and YouTube. And several classical music companies around the world, including the Paris National Opera and the Bolshoi Ballet, are trying to bond with fans, using advanced technologies, by, for example, sharing videos of dancers practicing within the confines of a studio.\n\nLivestream performances provide audiences with virtual content they can partake in from home. Artists can have a live chat with viewers and be inspired to perform free improvisations, making audiences feel as if they were sitting in the front row. By using video technologies, online concerts offer audiences various views, unlike in-person theaters, where spectators can watch the stage from specific angles and distances. Livestream performances also enhance audience convenience. Viewers can enjoy great art while enjoying snacks and drinks from the comfort of their own homes. They can also talk to the people beside them and share their feelings with other audiences in real time while watching shows.\n\nHowever, there are some downsides. Audiences might find it difficult to concentrate on a performance when they experience it via screens and speakers. And although the latest technologies are used to deliver high-quality images and sounds, there are still limitations in bringing the full force of actual performances. This situation raises doubts about whether live streams can appeal to audiences with the same intensity that they might have in physical theaters.\n\nThe coronavirus pandemic has changed many aspects of life. It has also led to noticeable changes in the performing arts. Although there are still varying opinions about the audience’s absence, which is one of the most fundamental elements of performances, the recent proliferation of live streams can be considered a significant leap forward and have shown the possibility of further development.\n\nLivestreaming of traditional performances via online platforms is expected to play a significant role in lowering physical and emotional barriers and increasing accessibility to traditional culture, especially among young people who are more exposed to pop culture. Traditional performing arts will hopefully survive this crisis and come out of it stronger.\n\nPhoto : ‘Ogomu’ Traditional Performing Arts of Korea ⓒ Shutterstock/Jack Q.Year2020NationSouth Korea
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A COMMUNITY SAFEGUARDING ITS LIVING HERITAGE, LKHON KHOLOn the east bank of the Mekong River about fifteen kilometers from Phnom Penh is Wat Svay Andet, a Buddhist monastic community mainly supported by two villages, Ta Skor and Peam Ek of Lvea-em District, Kandal Province. Wat Svay Andet is home to lkhon khol, a kind of theatre with recitation in which actors are all males, wear lacquer masks, and perform only scenes from Reamker, a Cambodian version of the Sanskrit Ramayana epic. This dance drama is accompanied by pinpeat, a traditional orchestra of percussion instruments. Although the dance is performed by villagers, the costumes and ornaments are as magnificent as those of classical court dance.Year2016NationSouth Korea
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11. For a Shared Safeguard of Mozambique Chopi TimbilaThe Chopi timbila was proclaimed as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2005. This international recognition is a source of great pride in Mozambique, for the state and the timbileiros (timbila practitioners). In the application produced by the Mozambican government and sent to UNESCO, the cultural expression was described as follows: Timbila means not only the ensemble of instruments but also the music played by those instruments and the accompanying dance. The timbila orchestras, together with the dance associated with them, are known as migodo (plural of n'godo) and represent the ‘classical’ music of the Chopi. The orchestras consist of five up to thirty timbila of varying sizes and ranges of pitch, but the usual size of an orchestra consists of around twelve timbila, carefully constructed in five sizes and tuned to cover a range of four octaves (República de Moçambique 2004, 5).Year2021NationMozambique
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9. Safeguarding Musical Traditions — Experiences from LatviaAs it happens, Skaņumāja, a small non-governmental organization, has emerged as the current leader in submissions to the Latvian National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Despite the extensive work that has been invested in writing these submissions, this was never the organization’s goal. It was rather our members’ interest in the practice of folklore and traditional music that gradually led to the evolution of deeper interest in Latvia’s waning instrumental musical traditions. This has now become our organization’s most important goal—what was once a hobby has become our principal mission. These non-classical instrumental traditions offer a wealth of material capable of diversifying the cultural landscape while also serving as resources for a range of cultural, extra-curricular, special, and lifelong educational, social work, and leisure and tourism-related production, all the while averting the loss of unique musical instruments, repertoires, and techniques.Year2021NationLatvia
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12. Mizhavu — The Sacred Percussion Instrument of KutiyattamMizhavu, the main percussion instrument of Kutiyattam has a history of more than 2000 years. Kutiyattam is a Sanskrit theatre embracing classical as well as folk traditions of Kerala. Kutiyattam was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This ancient artform is an exquisite combination of acting, percussion, and gestures. The performers are Chakyars and Nangyars and its percussionists are Nambiars. Kutiyattam is based on four acting principles: angika, vachika, sathvika and aharya. \n\nBharathamuni music instruments are classified into four categories:\n1) Avanaddhavadya\n2) Tatvadhya\n3) Ghanvadhya\n4) SushiravadhyaYear2021NationIndonesia
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COLORED FACES IN VIETNAMESE OPERAThe hallowed musical art form known as Tuong or Boi—Vietnamese traditional opera—is one of Vietnam’s major classical performance genres. According to an important document from our early royal archive collection, while in battle with Mongol invasion forces in the thirteenth century, one of Vietnam’s greatest military heroes, Commander Tran Quoc Tuan of the Tran emperor’s army, captured a noted Chinese musical luminary named Ly Nguyen Cat. This artist was handed over General Tran Nhat Duat, and it is thanks to the general that the art of Tuong was introduced to Vietnam as a source of entertainment for the nation’s soldiers and officials.Year2012NationSouth Korea
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Section 3 Alternative RealitiesTuong (Hat Boi), introduced in this section, is a traditional Vietnamese classical drama that causes Vietnamese people to consider their past and present lives. Tuong, a kind of mask drama that combines music and dance, features distinctive makeup and costumes. It dramatizes Vietnamese folk tales or fables, and can also be based on scripts created with historical, political, social, and cultural settings. It portrays figures from various walks of life including kings, queens, generals, maids, ladies, and students, and aesthetically depicts lessons on human deeds, such as sacrifice for the greater cause, and heroic characters.Year2023NationViet Nam
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HEALING RITUALS OF BURYAT “SHAMANISM”In the Buryat tradition (and in the Mongolian as well), “shamans” were not pure shamans in the classical sense of the word. Those involved with medical affairs were considered mediums between the lower sphere of the Eternal Blue Sky (Khukhe Monke Tengeri) and land inhabitants. Eternal Blue Sky worship was a traditional religious belief of Mongolians. Cross-cultural influences with the neighboring Tunguso-Manchurian people, whose religious traditions may be identified as classical forms of shamanism, introduced the ideas of ‘shaman’ and ‘shamanism’ to the Mongols.Year2015NationSouth Korea
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SRI LANKAN TRADITION OF MASK DANCINGSri Lanka has a diverse dancing culture where three main styles represent the classical dance tradition. These styles are known as Kandyan dances of the hill country (Uda Raṭa Nätum), the low country dances (Pahata Raṭa Nätum), and the mid-country (Sabaragamuva Näṭum). These three classical dancing styles are transmitted across generations with their ritualistic identities that are unique to movements, motions, costumes, and instruments. In the context of mask dancing, it is more relevant to the low country style, which is highly ceremonial and performed for ritualistic offerings to various devils. The dancers wear masks portraying many characters in different forms of spirits according to their characteristic features.Year2020NationSouth Korea
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THE OLD SUMMER PALACE AND THE SPIRITUAL WORLD IN THE IMPERIAL GARDENSThe Chinese classical garden is a material and spiritual complex that not only embodies material elements—superb skills of architecture, nature, and plant landscape—but also contains the intangible elements of gardening design, gardening techniques, art, and others. It can be said that it is the mutual promotion and infiltration between the two kinds of elements that make the brilliant artistic achievements of Chinese classical garden.Year2017NationSouth Korea