Music of Tuva
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Tuva is a part of Russia, inhabited by a people related to the nearby Mongolians. Tuvans are known abroad for khoomei (xöömej), a kind of throat singing, in which the throat is constricted and the mouth cavity is shaped to select overtones of the fundamental produced by the vocal folds, resulting in the simultaneous singing of multiple pitches.
There is debate as to the exact number of styles or techniques the Tuvans use in their throat singing. The three principal styles are xöömej, kargyraa, and sygyt. Additional recognized styles include borbangnadyr, chylandyk, dumchuktaar, ezengileer, and kanzyp. Some consider these additional styles to be variations or modifications of the three principal styles.
Richard Feynman, the physicist, became fascinated with Tuva throat singing and a trip was being planned to the remote province of the Soviet Union when he died in 1988. This is written about in the book Tuva or Bust! by Ralph Leighton.
The group Huun-Huur-Tu have helped to popularize xöömej abroad. Other Tuvan artists such as Kongar-ool Ondar, Alash, Chirgilchin, and Yat-Kha also tour internationally. A list of current artists is on the Overtone singing page. The music and its origins are described in the book Where Rivers and Mountains Sing by Dartmouth musicologist Theodore [Ted] Levin, published in 2006.
[edit] Traditional instruments
- Byzaanchy (4-string spike fiddle)
- Chadagan (hammered dulcimer)
- Chanzy (2-string plucked lute)
- Bichii chanzy (small chanzy tuned one octave higher)
- Doshpuluur (3-string plucked lute)
- Igil (2-string bowed horsehead fiddle with skin-covered soundbox)
- Khomus (Jew's harp)
- Yat-kha (long zither similar to Korean gayageum)
