Performance Art
Individual Documents
Description:
Abstract: "The
genre
copy
thachin
or
?copy
song”
pervades
the
popular
mu
sic
scene
in
Myanmar.
These
songs
are
akin
to
cover
versions
of
existing
international
hits,
but
with
new
lyrics
in
the
Burmese
language,
and
performed
by
Burmese
musicians.
These
songs
can
have
incredible
genre-‐crossing
capabilities,
from
blues
to
rap,
heavy
metal
to
salsa.
The
current
situation
for
popular
music
production
in
Myanmar,
as
elsewhere,
is
connected
with
the
country?s
history
of
military
rule
and
years
of
censorship
and
economic
difficulties.
Advocates
for
the
genre
of
copy
thachin
argue
that
borrowing
international
songs
allowed
local
artists
to
learn
about
global
popular
music,
and
the
numerous
popular
musicians
and
songwriters
in
Myanmar
are
testament
to
this.
On
the
other
hand,
with
the
removal
of
the
stringent
censorship
regime
and
the
increasing
contact
with
international
consumer
culture,
groups
of
Myanmar
music
fans
are
increasingly
critical
of
copy
thachin,
seeing
the
practice
as
derivative
and
an
embarrassment.
This
article
will
explore
the
history
of
the
genre,
notions
of
authenticity,
and
dis
cuss
Myanmar?s
changing
relationship
with
the
symbolic
capital
of
its
own
culture
industry
and
its
relationship
with
international
popular
culture.".....Paper delivered at the International Conference on Burma/Myanmar Studies: Burma/Myanmar in Transition: Connectivity, Changes and Challenges: University Academic Service Centre (UNISERV), Chiang Mai University, Thailand, 24-26 July 2015.
Jane M Ferguson
Source/publisher:
International Conference on Burma/Myanmar Studies: Burma/Myanmar in Transition: Connectivity, Changes and Challenges: University Academic Service Centre (UNISERV), Chiang Mai University, Thailand, 24-26 July 2015
Date of publication:
2015-07-26
Date of entry/update:
2015-08-10
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Music and musical instuments, Performance Art, Arts - general, The Art of Burma -- General studies, Multimedia, Freedom of opinion and expression: - the situation in Burma/Myanmar - reports, analyses, recommendations, International Conference on Burma/Myanmar Studies (ICBMS) 23-26 July, 2015
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
788.13 KB
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Description:
Abstract: "In
every
society,
concerning
the
history
of
arts,
musical
instruments
are
almost
universal
components
of
human
culture.
The
Myanmar
Drum
Ensemble
(saing
wain
in
Myanmar
language)
is
one
of
Myanmar?s
traditional
musical
instruments.
In
Myanmar
society,
the
drum
ensemble
is
used
as
part
of
the
annual-‐cycle
rituals,
life-‐cycle
rituals
and
crisis
rituals.
This
research
describes
the
dynamics
of
the
Myanmar
Drum
Ensemble,
saing wain.
Field
ethnography,
focus
group
discussions
(FGD),
key
informant
interviews
(KII),
in-‐depth
interviews
(IDI),
informal
conversations
(IC)
and
direct
observation
(DO)
were
used
for
data
collection.
Study
sites
are
Bo
Tun
Zan
ward
in
Daw
Pon
Township,
No.2
ward
in
North
Okkalapa
Township,
No.5
ward
in
Mayangone
Township,
Ye
Mon
village,
Kyungalay
village,
Kyauk
Ain
village
in
Hlegu
Township.
The
Myanmar
drum
ensemble
emerged
from
a
merger
of
the
Royal
Music
and
the
Folk
Music
from
the
Kone-‐baung
period
(AD 1752-‐1856).
It
has
three
special
characteristics:
its
Melodic
Character,
its
Harmonic
Character
and
its
Rhythmic
Character.
Furthermore,
the
members
of
the
drum
ensembles
are
known
to
have
had
close
relationships
with
the
public
throughout
the
colonial
and
the
post-‐independence
periods.
Today
drum
ensembles
have
closer
contact
with
people
from
the
rural
areas,
whereas
city
dwellers
rely
more
on
modern
musical
instruments
for
entertainment.".....Paper delivered at the International Conference on Burma/Myanmar Studies: Burma/Myanmar in Transition: Connectivity, Changes and Challenges: University Academic Service Centre (UNISERV), Chiang Mai University, Thailand, 24-26 July 2015.
Cathy Tun
Source/publisher:
International Conference on Burma/Myanmar Studies: Burma/Myanmar in Transition: Connectivity, Changes and Challenges: University Academic Service Centre (UNISERV), Chiang Mai University, Thailand, 24-26 July 2015
Date of publication:
2015-07-28
Date of entry/update:
2015-08-10
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
The Art of Burma -- General studies, Arts - general, Performance Art, International Conference on Burma/Myanmar Studies (ICBMS) 23-26 July, 2015
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
3.11 MB
more
Description:
Introduction:
"Burma is at a crossroads. The period of transition since 2010 has opened up the space for freedom
of expression to an extent unpredicted by even the most optimistic in the country. Yet this space
is highly contingent on a number of volatile factors: the goodwill of the current President and his
associates in Parliament, the ability of Aung San Suu Kyi to assure the military that her potential
ascendency is not a threat to their economic interests and the on-going civil conflicts not flaring into
civil war. The restrictive apparatus of the former military state is still available for the government to
use to curtail freedom of expression – the most draconian laws are still on the statute book affecting
the media, the digital sphere and the arts; police and local authorities have significant discretion
when it comes to approving speech and performance, and the judiciary has a limited institutional
understanding of freedom of expression. In effect, the old state remains in the shadows – or as one
journalist told Index: ?the generals have only changed their suits?.
Yet Burma has changed. The country is freer than it was during Index?s mission in 2009, when
meetings were held in secret.
1
In March this year, Index co-produced a symposium on artistic
freedom of expression with local partners, the first public conversation of its kind in recent history
.
The abolition of pre-censorship of newspapers and literature, the return of daily newspapers, the
release of political prisoners and the open space given to political debate all signal real change.
The question for the government and the opposition is: will the transition be sustained with legal
and political reform to reinforce the space for freedom of expression and to dismantle the old state
apparatus that continues to pose a threat to freedom of expression?
This paper is divided into the following chapters: Burmese politics and society; media freedom;
artistic freedom of expression and digital freedom of expression. The report is based on research
conducted in the UK and 20 interviews (with individuals and groups) in March 2013 conducted in
Mandalay and Yangon. Due to the ongoing possibility of future prosecutions, the interviewees have
been kept anonymous.
Politics and society looks at the role of the President, United Solidarity and Development Party
(USDP), Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy (NLD) and the student
movement and freedom of expression, ethnic conflict and the constitution and the need for reform,
freedom of association and freedom of assembly.
The media freedom chapter looks at the press council, existing impediments to media freedom,
the state of media plurality and self-censorship in the press. The artistic freedom of expression
chapter covers theatre and performance art, literature, music and film. Finally
, the digital freedom
of expression chapter looks at access issues, the impact of new technologies and state censorship
on the digital sphere. The report is based on a series of interviews conducted in Rangoon and
Mandalay in March 2013, with additional interviews conducted in April 2013 in the same cities."
Mike Harris
Source/publisher:
Index on Censorship
Date of publication:
2013-07-00
Date of entry/update:
2013-08-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Freedom of opinion and expression: - the situation in Burma/Myanmar - reports, analyses, recommendations, Multimedia, Performance Art
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
1.12 MB
more
Description:
How prison life honed Htein Lin?s skills as a performance artist...
"Silence enveloped the room as about 30 people watched a man in a white robe meditating before them. Beside him, tubes of oil paint lay o?n a mat. The man looked around and raised his hands as if he were a captive touching an invisible wall. He then began to pour red paint o?n the mat, his movements becoming faster and more forceful. Green paint followed the red, and his movements became calmer. Using his hands and feet, he painted the mat, finally taking off his outer robe and laying himself o?n it, o?n the colored surface. The painted mat, the robe and the artist himself were fused into o?ne—in a creation called ?Love and Anger? by Htein Lin, a pioneer of performance art in Burma..."
Ampika Jirat
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" Vol. 15, No. 3
Date of publication:
2007-03-00
Date of entry/update:
2008-05-04
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Performance Art
Language:
English
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