Khene

Not to be confused with pan flute.

A khene player in Isan

The khene (/ˈkɛn/; also spelled "khaen", "kaen" and "khen"; Lao: ແຄນ; Thai: แคน, rtgs: khaen, pronounced [kʰɛ̄ːn]; Vietnamese: khèn; Khmer: គែន) is a mouth organ of Lao origin whose pipes, which are usually made of bamboo, are connected with a small, hollowed-out hardwood reservoir into which air is blown, creating a sound similar to that of the violin. Today associated with the Lao people of Laos and Isan, other similar instruments date back to the Bronze Age. In Cambodia, it is used among the ethnic Lao population of the province of Stung Treng and is used in lakhon ken, a Cambodian dance drama genre that features the khene as the premiere instrument.

The most interesting characteristic of the khene is its free reed, which is made of brass or silver. It is related to Western free-reed instruments such as the harmonium, concertina, accordion, harmonica, and bandoneon, which were developed beginning in the 18th century from the Chinese sheng, a related instrument, a specimen of which had been carried to St. Petersburg, Russia.

The khene uses a pentatonic scale in one of two modes (thang sun and thang yao), each mode having three possible keys. The khaen has five different lai, or modes: Lai Yai (A C D E G), Lai Noi (D F G A C), Lai Soutsanaen (G A C D E), Lai Po Sai (C D F G A), and Lai Soi (D E G A B). Lai Po Sai is considered to be the oldest of the Lai Khaen and Lai Soutsanaen the "Father of the Lai Khaen." Khaen can be played as a solo instrument (Dio Khaen), as part of an ensemble (Ponglang), or as an accompaniment to a Lao or Isan Folk Opera Singer mor lam.

Annea Lockwood composed music for this instrument.

Players

In Thailand, one of the top virtuoso khaen soloists is the blind musician Sombat Simla. The instrument has also attracted a few non-Asian performers, including University of San Diego professor Christopher Adler, who also composes for the instrument; English musician Clive Bell (UK); Vancouver-based composer/performer Randy Raine-Reusch (Canada), who played khaen on Aerosmith's Pump (1989), Cranberries' To the Faithful Departed (1996), and Yes's The Ladder (1999); and Jaron Lanier (United States). Since the early 21st century, the California-born khaen player Jonny Olsen has achieved familiarity in Laos and Thailand by appearing on numerous Thai and Lao TV Shows and performing live concerts in Thailand and the U.S. Olsen is the first foreigner to win a khaen championship in Khon Kaen, Thailand in 2005. American artist Stephen Molyneux has played the khaen on his releases The Arbitrary State (2010), The Stars Are the Light Show (2012), Horsehair Everywhere When Eyes Walk (2013), and in select live performances. Molyneux bought a khaen in Bangkok in 2010 after developing an interest in the instrument while traveling in Laos and Thailand.

Tuning

It has seven tones per octave, with intervals similar to that of the Western diatonic natural A-minor scale: A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. A khaen can be made in a particular key but cannot be tuned after the reed is set and the pipes are cut. If the khaen is played along with other instruments the others have to tune to the khaen.

See also

• Sompoton

Bibliography

• Miller, Terry E. Traditional Music of the Lao: Kaen Playing and Mawlum Singing in Northeast Thailand (1985). Contributions in Intercultural and Comparative Studies, no. 13. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press.
• Miller, Terry E. An Introduction to Playing the Kaen (1980). Kent, Ohio: Terry E. Miller.
• Lilly, Joseph An Introduction to the Khaen of Laos:The Free-Reed Journal Articles and Essays Featuring Classical Free-Reed Instruments and Performers

External links

• Educational Video about Khaen What is the khaen and how it is played
• Khaen Baet and Khaen Hok
• Khaen Repertories: The Developments of Lao Traditional Music in Northeast Thailand Accessed 13 May 2005.
• Audio samples
• Traditional Music and Songs in Laos: The Voice of the Lao Khen
• Art of the States: khaen Three contemporary American works featuring the instrument
• Jaron Lanier using his invented style of playing, extraordinary.