MUSIC 8

QUARTER 1 WEEK 1
LESSON 1 MUSIC OF CAMBODIA

Cambodia is one of the most beautiful countries in Southeast Asia. It is also known as Kâmpŭchéa. It was the center of
the Khmer (Cambodian) Kingdom of Angkor, a great empire that dominated Southeast Asia for 600 years.
Their music gained a world-wide reputation in the 1960s until the dramatic political problems in Cambodia. Art music is
highly influenced by ancient forms as well as Hindu forms. Cambodian court music is roughly similar to that of Java,
Indonesia.
They feature choruses with large orchestras based on struck keys and gongs.
Cambodian people also absorbed and adopted Indian, Chinese, European, and other cultures to suit their own traditions
and tastes that resulted in a distinct Cambodian culture.

The Pinpeat is a Cambodian musical ensemble or an orchestra that usually accompanies ceremonial music of the royal
courts and temples. Music is always part of their court dances, masked plays, shadow plays, and religious ceremonies.
This group is similar to the Piphat ensemble of Thailand and usually consists of nine or ten instruments.

Modified True or False.

Directions: Write the word TRUE if the statement is true; and encircle the
word that makes the statement false and write the correct
answer on the space provided on the answer sheet.
1. Cambodia’s art music is highly influenced by ancient forms as well as
Hindu forms. __________
2. Cambodian court music is roughly similar to that of Java, Indonesia.
__________
3. Cambodian court music features choruses with large orchestras of
purely wind instruments. __________
4. The Pinpeat ensemble that usually accompanies ceremonial music of
the royal courts and temples. __________
5. The Pinpeat ensemble usually consists of five instruments. __________

References
https://www.slideshare.net/lecressini13/grade-8-music-and-arts-module
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aerophone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tYa-N6cKG
 MUSIC 8
QUARTER 1 WEEK 1
LESSON 2 MUSIC OF THAILAND

Music is theoretically based on the five-tone or seven-tone scale system. It is not only confined to the royal courts but is
also used extensively in dance, theatre, and in ceremonies. Thai folk music consists of simple songs with simple
melodic lines. The main focus in singing is the articulation of the text rather than the style or technique of execution.
Songs of Thailand have inherently poetic lyrics which allow a singer or performer to easily define the melodic lines. It
provides the singer the opportunity to improvise song text to suit the given occasion. The interpretation of a singer gives
meaning to the sacred and spiritual essence of songs with free rhythm while melodies may either be interpreted or written
in the high or low register with long or short durations. Thailand has three primary instrumental ensembles that are
similar to the other ensembles in Southeast Asia.

PIPHAT ENSEMBLE

● It is a mid-sized orchestra that is performed in either outdoor

style with hard mallets or indoor style with padded mallets.

● This ensemble has different types but the highly ornate one is
traditionally associated with funerals and cremation ceremonies.

● Other versions of the Piphat ensemble are used to accompany

specific forms of traditional Thai drama such as the large shadow
puppet theatre (Nang yai) and the Khon dance drama

KHRUEANG SAI ENSEMBLE

● It is an orchestra that combines some of the
percussion and wind instruments of the Piphat with
an expanded string section.
● This group is primarily used for indoor
performances and for the accompaniment of stick
puppet theater

MAHORI ENSEMBLE
●This ensemble is traditionally played by women in the courts of
Central Thailand and Cambodia.
● Because of this, instruments for this ensemble are historically
smaller.
● However, regular-sized instruments are used today. A vocalist
performing with the Mahori is usually accompanied by the So sam sai

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT
POST TEST II
True or False Directions:
Write the word TRUE if the statement is true; and if not, write FALSE on the space provided on the answer sheet.
1. PIPHAT ensemble is traditionally played by women in the courts of Central Thailand and Cambodia.
2. MAHORI is a mid-sized orchestra that is performed in either outdoor style with hard mallets or indoor style with
padded mallets.
3. PIPHAT ensemble has different types but the highly ornate one is traditionally associated with funerals and cremation
ceremonies.
4. KHRUEANG SAI is an orchestra that combines some of the percussion and wind instruments of the Piphat with an
expanded string section.
5. MAHORI is primarily used for indoor performances and for the accompaniment of Stick Puppet Theater.

MUSIC 8
QUARTER 1 WEEK 1
LESSON 3 MUSIC OF INDONESIA

There are two basic kinds of Indonesian music scale:

 Slendro – five (5) equidistant tones in octave
 Pelog/Peloq – Heptatonic (7 tone) scale with semitone

Both vocal and instrumental music in Indonesia use slendro and pelog scales.
 Polyphonic stratification kind of melody is a result of hocket/Interlock.
 Interlocking is common technique used in gong ensembles
 Irama – is an Indonesian term for tempo.

Vocal music is used as ornamentation of the Gamelan. It is as important as gamelan.

1. Pesindhen is a female soloist singer who sings with a Gamelan.

2. Gerong refers to the unison male chorus that sings with the gamelan Gamelan
The Gamelan or Gamelan orchestra is the most popular form of music in Indonesia. There are many types of Gamelan but
the famous Javanese and Balinese Gamelan are the most famous. It contains a variety of instruments such as
metallophones, xylophones, kendang and gongs; bamboo flutes, bowed and plucked strings.

MUSIC 8
QUARTER 1 - WEEK 1
LESSON 4 MUSIC OF LAOS

The classical music and dance of Laos is highly influenced by India, Cambodia, and Thailand. Themes are drawn from
Hindu mythology, the Buddhist Jataka tales, and local legends. The royal entourage of Lao kings traditionally included
musicians, and a typical orchestra improvised songs with sets of tuned gongs, xylophones, a bamboo flute, and other wind
instruments.
The Lao orchestra can be divided into two categories:

1. Sep Nyai - This is similar to the Piphat of Thailand with instruments that are strictly percussive but also integrates the
use of an oboe.
2. Sep Noi – It is also known as the Mahori of Thailand however it incorporates the use of several Khene which is a
large bamboo mouth organ and is the most popular folk music instrument of Laos. Traditional music, called Mor lam, is
largely based around the khene.
 MUSIC 8
QUARTER 1 - WEEK 1
LESSON 5 MUSIC OF MALAYSIA

The music of Malaysia may be categorized into two types:

1. Classical and Folk music emerged during the pre-colonial period and
still exists in the form of vocal, dance, and theatrical music.
2. Syncretic or Acculturated music developed during the postPortuguese period (16th century). It contains elements
from both local music and foreign elements of Arabian, Persian, Indian, Chinese, and Western musical and theatrical
sources.

Musical ensembles and types of performances in Malaysia:

1. Agung and Kulintang

This is a gong-based musical ensemble commonly used in
funerals and weddings in East Malaysia. This type of ensemble is
similar to the Kulintang of the Philippines, Brunei, and Indonesia.
2. Kertok
This is a musical ensemble from the Malay Peninsula that consists of xylophones played swiftly and rhythmically in
traditional Malay functions.

3.Dikir Barat
This is a type of musical form that is important to Malaysia’s national culture. It is performed by singing in groups
and often in a competitive manner usually with percussion instrumental accompaniment or sometimes without instruments
at all.

4. Silat Melayu
This is a form of martial art that is similar to t’ai chi. It originated in the Malay Peninsula since the
Christian Era and is a mixture of martial arts, dance, and music usually accompanied by gongs, drums, and
Indian oboes.
 MUSIC 8
QUARTER 1 - WEEK 1
LESSON 6 MUSIC OF SINGAPORE

The Republic of Singapore is an independent republic in Southeast Asia, comprising 1 main island and about 50
small adjacent islands off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula.

About three fourths of the people of Singapore, known as Singaporeans, are Chinese, but there are significant Malay
and Indian minorities.

Singapore’s cultural life reflects its colonization by the British Empire and its diverse population. Being the melting pot
of different cultures in Asia, folk music of this country reflects the culture and traditions of specific groups.

The ethnic groups, which made a prominent place in the musical world of Singapore, have been Chinese, Indian Malays
and Tamils.
Other minority Asian ethnic groups that have also made a mark in the Folk Culture of Singapore are the Cantonese,
Hokkien and Malay Bangwasan.

Through the years, the music industry in Singapore grew, having Western influenced performances by the Singapore
Symphony Orchestra as well as ethnic music performances mainly by the Singapore Chinese Orchestra. Other
performing groups with Malay and Indian influence are still prevalent until today.

MUSIC 8
QUARTER 1 - WEEK 1
LESSON 7 MUSIC OF VIETNAM

● Vietnamese music (nhạc Việt Nam) refers to the ethnic music that originated from the "Kinh" people of Vietnam.
This term is also used to address the music of any of the numerous ethnic minorities including the Montagnard, Degar,
Tay, Cham, and others.

● Although Vietnam is geographically part of Southeast Asia, ten centuries of rule by the Chinese to the north have made
the culture much closer to the Far East than to its Southeast Asian neighbors.

● Thus, early music theory was either based upon or adapted to the prevailing Chinese theory, and most instruments
used in the royal court were of Chinese origin.

● On the other hand, other influences can be seen with the ethnic minorities, such as the Chàm or Montagnard peoples.
This is possibly due to interaction with the other countries of Southeast Asia.
● Vietnamese music shows signs of Indian influences, noticeable in improvisation preludes of chamber music (known
as rao in the South and dao in the north) as well as usage of onomatopoeia in drum playing.

● Traditional and Folk Music Vietnamese traditional music can be separated into a few major categories, divided
predominantly by the way in which it was used in the people's cultural lives.

1. Imperial court music

The most popular of this kind is the Nha nhac that was popularly performed during the Tran Dynasty to the
Nguyen Dynasty. This form of classical music is also performed in honour of the gods and scholars in
temples. Other classical music falling into this category include the Dai Nhac (“great music”) and the Tieu
Nhac (“small music”) which was performed as chamber music for the king

2. Folk music
This category is extremely diverse because it includes music performed both indoors and outdoors.
Performers of this category are also diverse. They may be professional musicians down to the blind artists
in the streets who perform to earn their living. Vietnamese folk music is performed on different occasions
depending on its sub-category. It may be performed in musical theaters, streets, courtship rituals, and
ceremonies for invoking spirits. They are sometimes also influenced by Western elements. Some Vietnamese
music only use female singers, and some have both male and female singers.

3. Religious and Ceremonial music

This music is performed in religious rituals or at funerals.
 MUSIC 8
QUARTER 1 - WEEK 1
LESSON 8 MUSIC OF MYANMAR

The music of Myanmar (or Burma) has similarities with many other musical traditions in the region, including
Chinese music and Thai music, probably because its longest land border is shared with China.

The Hsaing Waing is Myanmar’s traditional folk music ensemble. It is made up mainly of different gongs and
drums as well as other instruments depending on the nature of the performance.

Myanmar’s musical instruments are categorized into 2 types, the loud sounding and soft sounding. The loud
sounding instruments are performed in open-air ensembles at ceremonies and festivals. Most of the Hsaing Waing
instruments belong to the loud sounding category.
For more formal and classical performances that are performed indoors, the ensemble may be accompanied by the
Saung gauk the national instrument of (13-string angular harp with soft sound) Myanmar, the Pattala (Burmese
xylophone), or the piano and violin, both introduced during colonial rule

The body of the Saung gauk is made of Padauk, the famous Myanmar mahogany, the flat bar is made of
cutch wood, it is covered with the leather of a female deer and the strings are made of silk.

Myanmar not only has musical ensembles but also an extensive collection of classical songs called the Mahagita.
These songs are divided into different types like the oldest repertoires, royal court music, songs of longing,
horses’ dance songs, worship songs for Burmese spirits, and songs of sorrow and music adapted from Ayutthaya
and the Mon people. The Saung gauk usually accompanies these songs.