THE ViRiDiAN TRiO – In The Land Of The Tuvan Throat Singers
Or, What We Did On Our Summer Vacation…
The Viridian Trio played the Xoomei in the Centre of Asia Music Festival – dedicated to the most famous of the throat singers, Konga-ol Ondar, in Kyzyl, Tuva, August 14th-17th, 2017. Many thanks to our friends in Tuva and especially the ALASH ENSEMBLE!! It was an incredible experience for all of us.
Throat singing is a method of singing that allows the vocalist to produce up to 3 notes at a time with their voice! I’ve been told this music predates the Tuvan spoken language. It is sometimes called overtone singing because it employs the overtone series as the basis for how it is accomplished. Here is a great explanation of the process.
For those of you not familiar with Tuva, it is to the northwest of Mongolia, is part of the Russian Republic, and it’s in SIBERIA! The Tuvans are world renowned for their particular style of throat singing and for their beautiful nomadic culture.
(Tuva is in red)
The upcoming Viridian Trio CD features some amazing Tuvan throat singers, Alash Ensemble, on the opening track, “FLOWERS FOR ONDAR”, which will be available on Ear Up Records in 2018.
(Alash Ensemble)
TUVAN FESTIVAL & CULTURAL LINKS:
Tuvan Cultural Center Facebook Page (2017 Festival info)
Tuvan Arts Center Page
Tuva Wikipedia Page
Tuva Lonely Planet Page
Here is a YouTube link to various Tuvan throat singing videos.
TUVA or BUST!
Even the Nobel Prize winning Physicist Richard Feynman wanted to go to Tuva!
Check out this movie if you want to see and hear something incredible!
