wara worawet: khrueng sai thai banleng, vol. 2

 

 

artist: วราห์ วรเวช / วงเครื่องสาย คณะ วัชรบรรเลง (wara worawet & wong khrueang sai khana watcharabanleng)
album: เครื่องสายไทย บรรเลง ชุดที่ ๒ (khrueng sai thai banleng, vol. 2)
tracklist:
01. ลาวดวงดอกไม้ ; แม่แล้ลำปาง (lao duang dok mai ; mae lae lampang)
02 . ตับ วิวาห์พระสมุทร (คลื่นกระทบฝั่ง ; บังใบ ; แขกสาหร่าย) (tap wiwa phra samut (klueng krathop fang ; bang bai ; khaek sarai))
03. ตับ ขอมดำดิน (เขมรพระประทุม ; เขมรเขาเขียว ; เขมรเป่าใบไม้ ; เขมรเอวบาง) (tap khom dam din (khmer phra prathum ; khmer khao khiao ; khmer pao pai mai ; khmer aeo bang))
04. เพลงประจำคณะวัชรบรรเลง (phleng pracham khana watcharabanleng)
05. น้ำลอดใต้ทราย เถา (nam lot tai sai, thao)
06. ลาวสวยรวย เถา (lao suai ruai, thao)
07. เพลงประจำคณะวัชรบรรเลง (phleng pracham khana watcharabanleng)

5, 6 sung by ยุพา วัชรนาค (yupha watcharanak)

this week, we'll hear our third entry from wara worawet! a physician by profession (graduating from the university of pennsylvania in 1961), mr. wara was also a prolific songwriter (having a number of luk krung and thai sakon-style hits to his name), as well as a leader of the musical association of thailand under patronage of his majesty the king. on this cassette, he tries his hand at the prayuk movement, a trend of "modernizing" thai classical music to appeal to an increasingly globally-minded local audience. in particular, this recording features a khrueang sai phasom or "combined string" ensemble, conducted by suwit bowonwatthana, which i believe features so u and so duang (fiddles), khlui (flute), and percussion plus the cosmopolitan additions of harmonium, khim (chinese-style dulcimer), and violins. the repertoire is mostly popular classical pieces, with a few original compositions. the first side features a pair of interesting medley-style suites on the themes of the ocean (2) and cambodia (3), respectively. the second side includes 2 vocal pieces in thao form featuring singer yupha watcharanak. enjoy!

wara worawet: phleng banleng khrueangsai phasom, vol. 7

artist: วราห์ วรเวช / วงเครื่องสายผสม คณะ วัชรบรรเลง (wara worawet & wong khrueang sai phasom khana watcharabanleng)
album: เพลงบรรเลงเครื่องสายผสม ชุดที่ 7 แสนคำนึง (phleng banleng khrueang sai phasom, vol. 7: saen kham nueng)
tracklist:
01. แสนคำนึง (saen kham nueng)
02. ครวญหา (khruan ha)
03. แสนสุดสวาท (saen sut sawat)
04. สุดสงวน (sut sanguan)
05. สารถี (sarathi)
06. สาวสอดแหวน (sao sot waen)

this week's cassette is part of a generous bequest gifted to us by educator cliff sloane, a former professor of ethnomusicology and founder of asianclassicalmp3.org, a major influence behind this blog.

this week, we'll hear our second entry from wara worawet! a physician by profession (graduating from the university of pennsylvania in 1961) mr. wara was also a prolific songwriter (having a number of luk krung & thai sakon-style hits to his name) as well as a leader of the musical association of thailand under patronage of his majesty the king. on this cassette, he tries his hand at the prayuk movement, a trend of "modernizing" thai classical music to appeal to an increasingly cosmopolitan local audience. in particular, this recording features a khrueang sai phasom or "combined string" ensemble, conducted by suwit bowonwatthana, and based on the traditional thai string ensemble (which typical featured so u and so duang fiddles, chakhe plucked zithers, khlui flute and percussion). to my ear, the phasom aspect regards the addition of accordion, chinese-style dulcimer, and perhaps some other elements that a more astute listener than i could divine? the repertoire features work from a number of prominent thai composers including luang pradit phairo (son sinlapabanleng), luang sano duriyang (thongdi thongphirun), luang sano duriyang (thongdi thongphirun), montri tramot, and phra pradit phairo (mi duriyangkun), several of which are based on more ancient melodies and which in turn feature further arrangement by mr. wara.. enjoy!

preview: