A unique musical instrument found in South-East Asian countries is the Angklung, or “bamboo shaker”. As the name suggests, the design and materials used are simple. Bamboo tubes of varying length are mounted on a bamboo frame. These are then shaken to produce different notes. Each bamboo rod is of different length and the top third is sliced in half. I have seen handheld versions of these that only have two bamboo tubes. As each one would only produce one note, you would need quite a few people to play a song. However, in these pictures you can see that each student is in charge of seven “bamboo swings” which they knock to produce the different notes. This version is called Angklung Lao. The resultant sound is quite unique.
Watch a video clip by clicking here.
These pictures were taken recently at the Ancient City in Samut Prakan.
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