Music of Southeast Asia: Lao, Hmong, Vietnamese

Sounds of the World - Music of Southeast Asia: Lao, Hmong, Vietnamese

set of 3 cassettes released in 1986

About Sounds of the World

Publications in the Sounds of the World series consist of two elements: high-quality stereo cassettes containing narration, interviews, and music examples, and an accompanying illustrated teacher's guide with background information and suggestions for using these materials with students from elementary to college levels.
Ethnomusicologist Karl Signell has provided MENC [Music Educators National Conference] with episodes from his "Music in a New World" series, originally produced for National Public Radio. For this series Signell traveled across America to record the music, songs, and stories of recent immigrants to this country, immigrants keeping alive their musical traditions in their new home.

THE INDOCHINESE REFUGEE

The Old World

Directly south of China and to the east of India is the region of Southeast Asia, comprising mainland countries and island nations. "Mainland" Southeast Asia refers to Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Burma, and Malaysia. Of diverse origins, the variety of peoples, lifestyles, and cultural traditions is striking within the region. Influences from China, India, and the Middle East shaped their philosophical beliefs, which are uniquely and originally expressed through their music and arts.
Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia are countries once referred to as Indochina. Despite their physical separation from neighboring China and India by mountains and often-flooded river valleys, a significant exchange of cultural practices was evident for many centuries. Many Indian artists and scholars enjoyed enjoyed a high status in the courts of Southeast Asia while they introduced aspects of Hindu and Buddhist traditions. Indochinese youths were often sent to India for training in literary, artistic, and cultural practices. Trade routes between the two regions remained firmly established until at least the tenth century.
A diversity of ethnic groups entered Southeast Asia from South China, moving down the Mekong River valley. The Mon, Lao, Shan, Siamese, and Khmer settled in Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand, while the Hmong migrated from China less than two hundred years ago. The Vietnamese became thoroughly Sinicized in the first century B.C. when China annexed the region. After an attempt to pursue an India-style civilization, around 1400 they reverted to traditional Confucianist ethics, an elite mandarin system of government, and a Chinese style of Buddhism.
The Western impact on the area was felt as early as the sixteenth century with the advent of missionaries, culminating in the colonization of the Indochinese peninsula by the French three centuries later. Despite the continued French rule until World War II, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia each maintained their unique cultural identities that had been developing for at least a millenium.
"Indochinese" is a generic term referring to the many Southeast Asian peoples who came under French colonial rule in the late nineteenth century. There is a diversity of ethnic and linguistic peoples in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. While there is a homogenous majority in each country - for example, 85 percent of those in Vietnam are Vietnamese - minority groups include Chinese in Cambodia, Hmong in Laos, and Chinese and Montagnards in Vietnam.

The New World

The disintegration of the South Vietnamese government in 1975 and similar political upheavals in Cambodia and Laos led to an unprecedented influx of refugees to the United States. They came as their governments were collapsing around them, journeying from camps in Thailand, Hong Kong, and Guam to reception centers in California, Arkansas, Florida, and Pennsylvania. Educational programs were established to facilitate the assimilation of the refugees into American life, and language, vocational, and recreational programs were initiated for adults and children. The transition was difficult as basic American values of independence clashed with the traditions of extended families and submission to one's elders. Sponsorship from church-affiliated agencies and state welfare funds provided food, clothing, and shelter for refugee families until they became self-supporting outside the centers.
There are over half a million people from Indochina now settled in the United States, living mainly in such cities as Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and Dallas; many continue to move from rural areas to increasingly viable and cohesive communities in the urban centers. Life in the New World holds promise for the refugees, although coping with language and cultural differences, isolation, and the separation of families has been difficult. For some, unemployment - or underemployment - and radical changes in social status have resulted in depression and loss of self-esteem. The position of the Indochinese in American society is still emerging, and the children of the refugees may know more success and security in the years to come. (from the liner notes)

Tracklisting:

cassette 1

1. Lao {28:16}

cassette 2

1. Hmong {28:03}

cassette 3

1. Vietnamese {28:21}

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