My Note Cards 5

27/10/08
What is the difference between Thai and Japanese traditional music?
What is music?

· An arrangement of sounds made by instruments or voices in a way that is peasant or exciting. It explored in Europe and after that it expanded to India. From India, Thai or China could get the music.

· By having the traditional music which is people’s own music, they can distinguish difference between their country or culture and other’s. Traditional music is the same as folk music which include all kinds of music such as dance music and voice music.

· There are at least 21 traditional music culture in the all region.

My Note Cards 4

27/10/08

What is the difference between Thai and Japanese traditional music?
Difference between Thai and Japanese music

· Thai has more different types of music than Japan has

· Japanese music always played with dance, but in Thailand, they have some music which is only playing by people who play the instrument. (no dance)

· In Japan, there is no traditional music which performed before the game or some activities. Thailand, they have. (Before watch something, people stand etc…)

· Thailand got influenced by Indian Buddhism, but Japan got influenced by Chinese Buddhism and they got different types of instruments, even though it is in same Asia.

· Japanese traditional music doesn’t have lyrics, just a music, but some Thai’s traditional music has some lyrics that represent the land.

My Note Cards 3

27/10/08
What is the difference between Thai and Japanese traditional music?
Similarities between Japan and Thai music
· Both Japanese and Thai music are slow and they use some strings, flutes, and drums to play music.

· Both Japanese and Thai change the way to play the music by knowing other countries’ culture. (Japan – Korea, China Thai – India, Cambodia)

· Both Japan and Thailand has some different types of music in different city.

My Note Cards 2

27/10/08
What is the difference between Thai and Japanese traditional music?

About Japanese music

- Gagaku – One of the oldest Japanese traditional classsic music which has been performed at the Imperial court since the Nara and Heian period. Gagaku is divided in to Kagen (instrumental muscic) and Bugaku (dance accompined by gagaku). This came from China and Korea

- Taiko – is a Japanese drum. Its origins are uncertain, but it is around the 6th and 7th centuries. Korean influences followed, but the instrument and its music remained uniquely Japanese. Taiko continue to be used in the religious music of Buddhism and Shinto.

- Shakuhachi - Originally played as a part of a Zen service or practice and it was the favorite instrument among wandering Buddhist priests. It looks like recorder, but it is much bigger and hard to play.

- Characteristic - Traditional Japanese music is based on a five-note scale and has primarily two- and four-beat rhythms as opposed to a three-beat time. Most traditional music consists of songs with instrumental accompaniment, and there are very few purely instrumental compositions.
The Japanese music always played with the dance.

- after the Meiji periods, the Western Culture came in and expand more Japanese music's life.

My Note Cards

Today’s date: 13/10/08

Topic

What is the difference between Thai and Japanese traditional music?
Subject of notes
About Thai traditional music?
Notes (important information—paraphrase, avoid copying and pasting huge blocks of text)
- Muay Thai is the Thai traditional sports and it has the music while they are playing. If the fighting becomes harder, the music goes faster.
- Indian culture makes Thai’s music more influence and they got some instruments which looks like flute. In present, it develops more and it became Thai’s own music.
- There are many kinds of music in the different part in Thailand, such as Luuk Thung and Mor lam. Those are the rural music in Thailand that has some kinds of meaning in the song.
- During the Ayutthaya periods, the music expands and developed a lot and it was played by four to eight musicians.
- After the Bangkok periods starts, the music improved more especially the drum and it played by 12 musicians. People make some lyrics or song and make the music by themselves.

Ideas (record here your ideas and reactions to the information, ways to use it in your paper, your opinions, or further research you need to do on the information)
- Muay Thai Fight Music: In Thailand, they have a music call “Muay Thai fight music”. Muay Thai is Thai traditional sport which is similar to boxing. This is music symbol of deference and respect. This rhythmic music accompanies the Ram Muay ritual dance that precedes every Muay Thai fight. This tempo is very slow and it matches with the boxing. Also, if the fighting became harder, the tempo will increase. This music tempo will motivate the fighters more expression of their fighting.
- Since ancient time, Thai people have known how to make their traditional instruments. Before the Indian culture came into Thailand, the Thais made and invented many kinds of musical instruments. After Thai got some new different types of instruments from India, they got more than 50 kinds of instruments in total, such as various types of flute, string, and cong. The first Thai ensemble was played by woodwind percussion, and their original instruments. The time goes by, the Thai traditional instruments developed more, and it became unique and slow music. The only way people can learn is to learn from the masters, and people who made its instrument.
- Some traditional music is made in other area in Thailand. For example, the music call Luuk Thung which means children of the fields came from Suphanburi area. It developed in the 1960’s with singers reflecting on the hardships of living, loving and working in rural Thailand. In modern, most of people know this song. Other song is from Isaan, in the north east of Thailand. This music call Mor lam which means song Doctor. This song is fast and rhythmic. Many songs feature betrayal of loyalties when a lover goes off to the capital, Bangkok, and finds a new partner with more money. Isaan people always kept this music in their mind and gradually, it became a part of common and famous music in Thailand.
- During the Ayutthaya period the instrumental ensemble was composed of four to eight musicians. Songs became much longer and singing technique was improved. Many Ayutthaya songs were composed in a form of musical suite called Phleng Rua, which was a series of songs. Poets contributed lyrics in the form of short stories, mostly from the Ramakian. Many　Ayutthaya songs are still employed in Thai plays today.
- In the beginning of the Bangkok period, after a long period of war, there was a remarkable revival of Thai arts, especially music and drama. The size of the instrumental ensemble was enlarged to 12 musicians. Beautiful lyrics written by contemporary poets were fitted into melodies of the Ayutthaya period.

What I know

People express their feeling through music. Sometimes I hear very slow traditional music in Thailand and also in Japan, but the instrument that they use is different.
The first time that I heard Thai music was in Emporium with my family. We thought that Thai music is very slow and makes us sleepy. I wonder why they use different types of instrument even though, it is in same Asia. In Japan, people play their traditional music when we have cultural events as well as Thailand. In my mind, I think Thailand play their traditional music more often than Japan, because they celebrate traditional thing more than Japan. Actually I don’t know anything about Thai music but I can guess that Thailand has several kinds of music in different places and use different instruments. What I know for now is both Japan and Thailand use string instrument. But I want to know more differences and similarities between this two countries because as I told you before I curious that why we have different kinds of music even we are in Asia. This motivates me to come up with this topic of this project.