The khaen may appear to be a simple raft-shaped instrument made of bamboo, but looks can be deceiving! This incredible mouth organ is capable of creating music that is both hypnotic and harmonically rich, as well as rhythmic and dramatic!
HISTORY & CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE
The khaen is believed to have existed for over four thousand years and is associated with the people of Laos and the Isaan region of Northeastern Thailand. Its mesmerizing sound makes it the perfect instrument for accompanying poetry and songs. Because of the key role the khaen plays in folk traditions and ceremonies, it has become an important symbol of Lao identity, and in 2017 was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
You can find the khaen performed solo, as part of a larger ensemble, or as accompaniment for a Lao or Isaan master singer and poet, a Mor Lam (as described here). This instrument plays a central role in village festivals, healing rites, courtship, weddings, Buddhist celebrations and rites of passage, as well as in storytelling and entertainment. Historically, only men would play the khaen, and this is still largely true in the villages (according to this source), but you see more and more women learning to play the instrument every day!
Because of its versatility as a lead and accompanying instrument with such a unique voice, the khaen has become an integral part of the musical traditions of Laos and Northeastern Thailand. There is a wealth of information to be found online about this incredible instrument. Strongly rooted in tradition, the khaen has more recently been brought into contemporary genres such as fusion, world music, jazz, rock (chord progression example), and electronic music. As the instrument becomes more popular, it finds its way into other traditions – as with this Irish jig!
CONSTRUCTION & FREE REEDS
Each bamboo pipe on the khaen is cut to a specific length and fitted with a metal reed, then inserted into a windchest (gourd) before being sealed in place with a black insect wax (khisut). The reeds are often made from old coins that have been hammered down, but professional models generally use copper-silver alloy for the free reeds. Inhaling or exhaling through an attached blowpipe makes it possible to play the instrument continuously for long periods of time, with certain notes left open for a drone.
This Lao mouth organ has a powerful sound, much like other instruments in the free reed family. The Chinese sheng (as discussed in our previous article) gave rise to the invention of many other Western free reed instruments (such as the harmonica, concertina, harmonium, and accordion). If you listen to these and compare them to the sound the khaen, you'll hear the family resemblance!
The khaen has many names and comes in a variety of forms... In English, you'll see alternate spellings such as: kaen, khene, kehn, ken, khèn, and kheng. Generally, each instrument will have between 6 and 18 pipes – with the most common variety being the "khaen paet/8" (two rows of 8, for 16 pipes total). The scale of the khaen is usually a diatonic 2-octave A minor scale (A2 to A4), with at least 5 pentatonic modes, or lai (more on this here). While a khaen can be made in a particular key, it cannot be easily re-tuned once the reed is set and the pipes are cut.
PLAYING THE KHAEN
To play the khaen, cradle the windchest between both hands with the bamboo pipes held vertically in front of the face. The finger holes positioned on each pipe may be covered in order to allow the respective reed to sound (more on this here). This means you can play as many simultaneous notes as you can cover! The pipes are not arranged in a scalar order, but rather to facilitate more common fingering patterns. Certain pipes are generally used as drones (stopped with beeswax to allow continuous sound) for the octave, a fifth, or a fourth, depending on the mode of a given piece.
PERFORMANCES:
- Khaen master Daeng Toy, solo
- Khaen master Nouthong Phimvilayphone, solo
- Lum Lao song, khaen accompaniment
- Modern Techniques with Ajarn Sombat Simla, solo
- Lao Khaen Documentary
... Looks like a lot of fun doesn't it? If you're keen to try a Khaen, click HERE to view our online selection!