Customer Reviews

Thai Elephant Orchestra

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Take it for what it is: elephants playing musical instruments. The overall impression could be described as the sounds of windchimes and the odd harmonica strain and drum roll, or a toddler gamelon orchestra. For the sheer novelty of it, this CD is fun to listen to. You can't dance to it, but you can enjoy it on a lazy day, or while working. It's not obtrusive, but it is just curious enough to periodically stop and contemplate this or that toot and jangle. It is hard to completely take the context out of the listening experience, which is not a bad thing, since these are out of work elephants who now have a new profession, and everyone benefits. The elephants can bang on their pipes and toot their harmonicas, their mahouts can feed their families, and the rest of us can listen with interest, awe or a sense of transport to an obscure musical moment.

Don't go by the name. In fact I got this link as a joke, I heard the music samples, liked what I heard and ended up buying the CD. It was definitely one of my most fruitful blind investments.

It sounds about like what you'd expect - a lot of chaotic, metallic banging. Of course, that's not necessarily a bad thing, at least not to the open-minded and/or art-damaged listener.

This is one of those CDs that you listen to a couple of times and then put on the shelf, until you want to amuse a friend. Which is to say that it's basically a novelty album, despite the avant-garde pretenses.

Track 15 ("Trio for Theremin & Electronic Keyboard") cracks me up; I can just imagine one elephant playing the theremin with its trunk while the others bang away on a giant sampler keyboard. I would LOVE to see this live. The animals' naïve enthusiasm really comes through; although the sounds are not structured in any conventionally musical sense, it is clear that they are made with intent, and that is what makes this recording delightful.

I wish I could get my cats to do something like this, but their musical proficiency is limited to walking across the piano keyboard while I'm trying to sleep.

Incidentally, these same elephants paint. And no, they weren't mistreated. By all accounts they thoroughly enjoy their performances.

This is surely the most unusual concept for an album that I have ever come across, but the real surprise is that elephant music is accessible and pleasant. Well, let me qualify that; if you like avant-garde music, there's a good chance this will appeal to you. It is easy to forget that 8,000lb pachyderms are making this music, even if they are performing more or less under the direction of a New York musician and academic.

No, these animals aren't abused or tortured; see the article in the 29 December 2001 issue of New Scientist for a disscussion of how it was accomplished. These really are elephants freely improvising, using instruments provided by neurochemist/avant garde composer David Soldier (aka Dr. David Sulzer).

So how does it sound? Well, it sounds Asian, owing to the instrumentation. And it sounds primative, as you'd expect. And yet it's muscial; one gets the feeling the elephants are enjoying exploring the sounds they're making.

If you enjoy avant-garde percussion music, you'll certainly enjoy this. If you like the kind of experimental music being done in the 1950s by people like Beaver and Krause, you'll like this. In fact, if you're a curious sort who just likes to hear different sounds and doesn't have a lot of preconceptions regarding what is, and is not, music, you'll like this.

The truly amazing thing about this CD is that the elephants play to please themselves, not we human listeners. They do produce music, but the harmony is not human. The music is eerily/strangely beatiful. Many have expressed disappointment that the elephannts do not play arangements of human music.They play solely for their own enjoyment. By listening to this CD we might also understand that the difference between us and other animals is less than we thought.

The music on this CD is quite a curiosity and I may not play it very much but it is an interesting disc to have. The sounds are perhaps best described as abstract and random. I had seen something about the Thai Elephants on Animal Planet, which included an interview with Robert Soldier, so I knew what to expect. It is appropriate that the proceeds of this recording go to helping the elephant of Thailand, who are in dire trouble from loss of habitat. We should not underestimate the ability of animals to create art, be it painting (which elephants in Thailand are also doing) or music.

So while this may not be a symphony, it is relaxing and can transport you to the sound world Thailand of these elephants with their music and trumpeting.

This is one of the most amazing things I have ever heard, and I have spent a good part of my life seeking out obscure and unusual music. The Thai Elephant Orchestra consists of six elephants trained to play instruments ranging from drums and harmonicas to the theremin and electronic keyboards.

I have always been fascinated with elephants, and recently purchased a delightful picture painted by an elephant; these songs demonstrate to me that elephants are capable of multiple varieties of artistic expression. Sadly, most elephants are extremely endangered; fortunately the Thai Elephant Conservation Center provides safe housing for many elephants, most of which excel in the arts.

These songs vary widely in their nature and demeanor. I actually expected a kind of unorganized cacophony, but was amazed at how well orchestrated most of the songs are. I find them to be largely very soothing, with the exception of the delightful "Trio for Theremin and Electric Keyboard," which is upbeat and just plain strange. I would pay top dollar to see an elephant play a theremin with his trunk.

I highly recommend this CD for anyone who loves elephants or music. The commentary in the liner notes is very interesting and topical, and can't help but bring further empathy for these wonderful animals.

Five stars for the sextet of Phrathida, Luuk Khang, Luuk Kob, Phumpuang, Phangkhawt, and Jojo!

Elephant music is a lot like elephant painting -- abstract, colorful, non-representational, and basically a silly idea with a very non-silly goal (funds raised going to help preserve the species).

Comparisons could be made to gamelan music, but is that because of the instruments they were given, the country in which these recordings were made, or some natural preference of the elephants for gamelan? Would they write string quartets given the proper tools? Rock & roll if they lived in Ashbury Park?

Inquiring minds want to know.

Elephants playing music. Not rock an roll or classical, but a hypnotic, nonmelodic jazz. They mostly play on large precuusion instruments especially built for them, but also blow some nice harmonica on a couple tracks. This is elephants doing their own thing! You can't dance to it, but you can relax into an elephant state of mind.