Folk Music and Dance
Nyalang Pengaling Monastery, Swayambu. Tibetan Lamas performing Yamantaka masked dance.
Photo Alison Wright
Tibetan folk music and dance have been kept alive in the homes of Tibetans living in Tibet, India, and the West. At parties individuals are often asked to sing, and groups may dance. The songs offer greetings and good wishes or tell stories of drinking chang (Tibetan beer) or of lost love. Themes and styles vary greatly depending on the region in Tibet the songs are from. Folk songs are usually sung a capella or to the accompaniment of the pi wang (fiddle) or the dran yen (long-necked lute). Most folk dances are performed in a circle.
In India folk songs have been taught to new generations at the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA). The Dalai Lama established TIPA within six months of his escape from Tibet in 1959. TIPA continues to train hundreds of performers in folk dance and music as well as lhamo opera. In the United States, Chaksampa, a group of talented Tibetan musicians who are at this Festival, was organized to perform Tibetan music and dance throughout North America. Some Tibetan artists in Europe, Australia, and the United States, as well as in refugee communities, are recording folk music, adding new instruments, and introducing contemporary themes to their repertoire.
