Boua Xou Mua – Music Of The Hmong People Of Laos / Arhoolie CD-446

Description

CD 446

Boua Xou Mua is a spiritual leader and former village chief of the Hmong, a hill tribes people from the mountains of Southeast Asia. Boua arrived in the United States in 1978 at the age of sixty-three and currently lives in Portland, Oregon. In telling the history of his people Boua Xou Mua recalls the migration of the Hmong from unknown points north to the borders of Vietnam and Laos, and their resistance to the repressive cultural and political authority of the Chinese. Boua plays the gaeng multiple free-reed mouth organ which is unique to Hmong culture. It is made from six curved bamboo pipes which are inserted into a wooden windchest serving as a reservoir for the player’s breath. In 1984 Boua was nominated for a National Heritage Fellowship, which he received the following year. Since that time Boua has continued to serve as a teacher and leader in the Hmong community in Portland. This recording is the result of a performance given by Boua at the Meyerson Symphony Center as part of the 1991 Dallas Folk Festival.

1. Qeej Kawm Ntawv – Gaeng School Song
2. Lug Txaj Sib Dleev – Courtship Song By Lee Mua – Love Song
3. Lug Txaj Ua Nyaab – Courtship Song By Boua Xou Mua – The Way Of Becoming A Wife
4. Tsaaj Ntsaws – Dja Njer – Love Song (Fipple Flute)
5. Tsaaj Nplaim – Dja Mblai (Free Reed Flute)
6. Tsnuab Nplooj – Dzua Blaung (Leaf)
7. Ncaas Nja (Jew’s Harp)
8. Zaaj Tshoob – Ceeb Toom Nam Txiv – Announcement To The Parents Of The Groom
9. Zaaj Tshoob – Qeb Tsoog Tuam Ntsaa – Announcement To The Parents Of The Bride
10. Qeej Nqug Rooj – Gaeng Evening Song: Pull The Table
11. Qeej Taag Mo – Gaeng Midnight Song
12. Tsaaj Ntsaws – Tsi Teb Tsaws Chaw – Refugee Song

REVIEW

“…(a) careful study of the Hmong music as played by a master. On this album (Boua Xou Mua) sings traditional songs and plays several instruments. He sings New Year’s songs with special rhyming patterns that are used for courting. He also plays courtship melodies on several types of flutes, the jaw harp and even a banana leaf. The music Boua Xou Mua performs is gently rhythmic and based on a limited scale. The recording is well-documented with translations of the song texts and wonderful photographs of Boua dancing with his gaeng. This disc does a terrific job of capturing his artistry and respectfully presenting the music of this often misunderstood culture.”

-Sing Out!