Music of Central Asia Vol. 1: Tengir-Too Mountain Music of Kyrgyzstan

Tengir-Too (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 14, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Smithsonian Folkways
• ASIN: B000EBFWP8
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #125,358 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

From the mountainous Kyrgyzstan, Jew's harps, fiddles, plucked stringed instruments, and powerful voices transmit the vibrant rhythms of nomadism and the serene atmosphere of the Kyrgyz mountains in a musical language as contemporary as it is ancient. This deluxe package launches Music of Central Asia, a multi-volume series that brings to life the diverse and remarkable musical culture of a region long inaccessible to outsiders. A bonus DVD explores the vibrant rhythms and serene atmosphere in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan. 18 tracks. 66 minutes. 48-page color booklet, photos, and bilingual lyrics; DVD contains series introduction, 24-minute film, interactive glossary, and map. Music of Central Asia is a co-production of the Aga Khan Music Initiative in Central Asia, a program of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, and the Smithsonian Institution Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. The aim of the series is to present leading exponents of Central Asia's rich and diverse musical heritage to listeners outside the region.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Will Leave you Breathless!!!, March 15, 2006

By 

Soto (Tokyo) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Music of Central Asia Vol. 1: Tengir-Too Mountain Music of Kyrgyzstan (Audio CD)

Part 1 of a new trilogy that will lead you through some of the highlights (though not nearly all) of Central Asian music.
This series really must be heard and thought of as one work.
Highly recommended! The CDs themselves are top level productions, but the additional DVD and booklet in each is something that makes this particular series like "gold" for serious music lovers.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful presentation of Kyrgyz music with no gimmickry crossover involved, July 19, 2008

By 

Christopher Culver - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Music of Central Asia Vol. 1: Tengir-Too Mountain Music of Kyrgyzstan (Audio CD)

This may be the most important series of world music CDs ever. The Music of Central Asia initiative was set up by the Aga Khan and the Smithsonian Insitution to document the surviving folk music traditions of that rich part of the world, and to present it to the global community with enough background to get the most out of it. Each volume in the series comes with a substantial booklet with an explanation of each track and a presentation of the instruments, as well as a DVD with a short documentary film.

Volume 1 of the series features music by Tengir-Too, a Bishkek-based ensemble which explores the whole range of Kyrgyz traditional music. The main folk instrument of the Kyrgyz is the komuz, a three-stringed lute. They also have the kyl kiyak, a fiddle; the choor, an end-blown flute; the chopo choor, a clay ocarina; the sybyzgy, a side-blown flute; and both metal and wooden jew's harps. In terms of musical material, we have shepherd's ditties, dedicatory improvisations for patrons, popular song, and virtuoso instrumental tunes. But most impressive for me was a recital from the "Manas", the long Kyrgyz national epic, expertly delivered by the bard Rysbek Jumabaev.

I really admire how this CD encompasses the whole range of music on traditional instrument. Beyond representing folk music, it acknowledges Soviet-era compositions as a part of the culture. Generally, these sort of productions either offer only the schmaltzy socialist realist songs (think of Le Mystere des Voix Bulgares), or only ethnographic recordings of the indigenous tradition. Tengir-Too even goes further, writing a work for three jew's harps, a something new and fresh but a on very old instrument (it's is usually a solo thing).

The 20-minute documentary on the DVD is excellent. It features each of the musicians recorded here performing on their instruments, shows a komuz player teaching children how to play (an encouraging sign), and has plenty of shots of Bishkek and the wide Kyrgyz wilderness where this music hails from. The DVD is even vital for getting the most of the Manas recital on the CD, because only on the DVD can one see the traditional hand gestures of the bard as he recounts his tale, a vital part of the storytelling.

If you are interested in indigenous musical traditions, Turkic languages, Central Asia culture or are just a simple music fan on the lookout for something cool, I cannot recommend the Music of Central Asia series enough.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Lyricism of the Mountains, June 20, 2009

By 

Dr. Debra Jan Bibel "World Music Explorer" (Oakland, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Music of Central Asia Vol. 1: Tengir-Too Mountain Music of Kyrgyzstan (Audio CD)

Sandwiched between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan on the west, Kazakstan to the north, and China at the southeast, small Kyrgystan has been called the Switzerland of Central Asia. Even the warm ornate traditional costumes of its peoples suggest those of its European alpine sister nation. Of all the Central Asian musics, I find that of Kyrgyzstan to be the loveliest, the gentlest, the most lyrical. The komuz, a lute, with its synthethic strings is soft in tone, and the songs by women vocalists are sweet. This album presents traditional yet twentieth-century compositions and examples of the wide variety of instruments (choor and sybzgy flutes; chopo choor ocarina; wooden and metal jew's harps; kyl kiyak upright fiddle; and the komuz] and musical styles. Having heard the group Tengir-Too in person, I can attest to the excellent performance and quality of these recordings. Their acrobatic playing of the komuz, like Western rock guitarists, is probably unique on the Silk Road.

The separate 24-minute interactive DVD provides a good background to the teaching and preservation of this music and the creation of its instruments. The booklet has lyrics and fine photographs. The Smithsonian and the Aga Khan Trust have done a superb job in developing this series of recordings and videos. If you think that you know Central Asian music, with its Persian, Turkic, and Mongolian influences, listen to this album and be surprised and delighted.