#4875, Central Asian Throat Singing
Hear music from the Steppes of Central Asia (Tuva and Mongolia) - with the growling, rumbling vocal technique kargyraa to the high pitch whistle, called sygyt - in music by the Tuvan throat-singers Huun-Huur-Tu and Sainkho Namtchylak; Mongolian folk-metal band The Hu, and the late bluesman Paul Pena.
There’s lots of music from the traditional band Huun Huur Tu, who are masters of Tuvan throat singing, along with music by the extraordinary vocalist Sainkho Namtchylak, who is also from Tuva. She was schooled by her grandmother in the Tuvan overtone singing style, which was something generally reserved for men. Now based in Europe, her work combines Tuvan throat singing, experimental jazz, the blues, Siberian folklore, classical, electronica and Buddhism.
Then, hear throat singing, in the kargyraa style from the late blind bluesman, Paul Pena, former sideman to blues greats such as B.B. King and John Lee Hooker, who became one of the few Western masters of the throat-song of Tuva. (He even won an audience favorite award at a throat-singing competition in the Tuvan capital Kyzyl, as documented in the film, “Genghis Blues.”)
There’s also music by Russian composer Vladimir Martynov - an epic project called “Children of the Otter” which blends the ancient Tuvan sounds of the throat-singing ensemble Huun Huur Tu with a chamber orchestra and a choir, after the poetry of the Russian avant-garde poet Velimir Khlebnikov (1885-1922.) Then, listen to the Mongolian group The Hu, who play the Morin Khuur (horsehead fiddle), Tovshuur (Mongolian guitar), Tumur Khuur (jaw harp) and use throat singing techniques, as part of a metal-inflected repertoire.
Hear the late Tuvan throat-singing master Kongar-ol Ondar (1962–2013), in a medley of throat-singing styles with accompaniment on the Tuvan banjo, the doshpuluur. Then, listen to Tuvan guitarist and throat singer, Albert Kuvezin, together with Yat-Kha covering Led Zeppelin. Kuvezin was a founding member of the traditional Tuvan group Huun Huur Tu, but left to form Yat-Kha, and pursue links to other styles of music, like American rock music, which he collected growing up. Also, hear collaborative music by Huun Huur Tu with Brooklyn’s Hazmat Modine, and more. - Caryn Havlik
Program #4875, Central Asian Throat Singing (First aired 4/25/2024)
ARTIST: The HU
WORK: Wolf Totem [1:10]
RECORDING: The Gereg
SOURCE: Endurance Music Group
INFO: https://thehu.ffm.to/thegereg
ARTIST: Kongar-Ool Ondar
WORK: Medley Of Throat-Singing Styles [1:00]
RECORDING: Deep In The Heart of Tuva - Cowboy Music From The Wild East
SOURCE: Ellipsis Arts 4080
INFO: Available at Amazon.com
ARTIST: Huun-Huur-Tu, Rizzo & Dhani Harrison
WORK: Dreamers in the Field [5:46]
RECORDING: Dreamers in the Field
SOURCE: Dark Horse Records
INFO: https://dhaniharrison.lnk.to/DreamersInTheField
ARTIST: Vladimir Martynov, with Huun Huur Tu
WORK: Children of the Otter, excerpt [4:59]
RECORDING: Children of the Otter
SOURCE: Greenwave Music / Jaro
INFO: Available at AppleMusic, YouTube, Spotify
ARTIST: Kongar-ol Ondar & Paul Pena
WORK: Kargyraa Moan [4:00]
RECORDING: Genghis Blues (soundtrack)
SOURCE: Six Degrees #657036 1038
INFO: genghisblues.bandcamp.com or available at Amazon.com
ARTIST: Albert Kuvezin And Yat-Kha
WORK: When the Levee Breaks [6:01]
RECORDING: Re-Covers
SOURCE: World Village #468061
INFO: worldvillagemusic.com
ARTIST: The HU
WORK: Wolf Totem [5:20]
RECORDING: The Gereg
SOURCE: Endurance Music Group
INFO: https://thehu.ffm.to/thegereg
ARTIST: Sainkho Namtchylak
WORK: Dance of Eagle [4:36]
RECORDING: Stepmother City
SOURCE: Ponderosa 3
INFO: ponderosa.it
ARTIST: The Bulgarian Voices-Angelite, Huun-Huur-Tu
WORK: Legend [7:41]
RECORDING: Fly, Fly My Sadness
SOURCE: Jaro
INFO: Available at AppleMusic, YouTube, Spotify, Amazon.com
ARTIST: Hazmat Modine with Huun-Huur-Tu
WORK: It Calls Me [3:10]
RECORDING: Bahamut
SOURCE: Geckophonic #CPZ009
INFO: hazmatmodine.com
