Stay-Home World Tour Stop #4: Tuva
By Alexander Hough in Arts & Entertainment on Feb 24, 2010 8:40PM
Photo of Huun Huur Tu from Old Town School of Folk Music's website
Huun Huur Tu performs tradition Tuvan music, the best-known feature of which is khoomei, or throat-singing. The technique is accomplished by - well, it's extremely complicated, and if we were sure about how it's done, we'd be off throat-singing rather than writing about it. The end result is the sounding of two notes from a single vocalist: the fundamental pitch acts as a sort of drone, grainy and relatively low (and very often quite low) pitched, while a high overtone is simultaneously sung. The upper part moves independently, creating a contrapuntal line. Beyond being just technically mystifying, the sound is hauntingly beautiful. Check it out.
This music has been made for countless years by Tuvan inhabitants while living their rural, primarily-herding-based lives on the expansive steppe, and it shows. The music as a whole ranges from almost rhythmless meditations to galloping, up-tempo songs, all with simple, usually pentatonic-based melodies. For a peak into Tuvan music and culture, we strongly recommend "Genghis Blues," the 1999 documentary about a blind American blues musician who taught himself how to throat-sing and makes a trip to Tuva.
But you can rent that movie whenever you'd like; Friday night you can see the real thing in person. Huun Huur Tu is maybe the best known Tuvan group and has expanded both the reach and the content of their music by collaborating with a range of artists from other genres, such as Frank Zappa and the Kronos Quartet. The quartet's latest album, "Eternal," features producer and electronic music Carmen Rizzo and takes a dip into electronica. The concerts at Old Town School will have something for everyone, with a first set devoted to traditional Tuvan music followed by a second with Rizzo.
Friday at 7:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., Old Town School of Folk Music, 4544 N. Lincoln Ave., $18-$22
Check out the origin locales of all our Stay-Home World Tour thus far after the jump...
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