Recorded in 1971 by John Levy, and originally released by the seminal ethnomusicology record label Lyrichord, the folks at Sub Rosa have re-released the recordings in pristine digital sound and an elegant package and what a delight they are!
The mostly solo songs feature a variety of 6- and 7-string lutes, 2-string fiddles, flute, percussion and vocals. There are some resemblances to midddle eastern and asian music but there's an extremely florid and mournful melisma at work in the voices that bears an uncanny resemblance to the most haunting of early delta blues and spiritual.
And delta blues is not the only other culture with a resemblance to Tibetan folk music apparently; one song, "Berm", sung unaccompanied by the female voice of Trin Lerm of Tongsa sounds a bit like the sadder folk ballads of the British Isles, and Track 12, the 2-stringed fiddle as played by Amanul will remind listeners of the Scottish bagpipes.
So curious that this isolated music shares similarities with such disparate cultures. I suppose they share one thing in common: the hardship, that informs the mournful quality of all of these musics.
This collection is extremely listenable, and will come as a joyous surprise for those unfamiliar with secular music of Tibet and Bhutan. Strange as it may sound, I think it would also be of great interest to fans of American primitive music. Very highly recommended.
