B’roh is a plucked cordophonic instrument made of six parts: the resonator, body, frets, strings, tuning pegs, and gauge. The resonator is made of a dry gourd that is cut on its two ends. The big end usually has the diameter of over ten centimeters, and the other has a diameter of five centimeters. Its body is made of a bamboo section with the length of one meter and a diameter of about eifht centimeters. Small wooden pieces are fixed to one end of the body as the gauge and to the other end as tuning pegs. The body has four or fie frets. B’roh includes two strings, which are tuned to the fifth interval. One of them is used to play drone part, and the other is used to play melodic part. The b’roh is for only the male. The instrumentalist puts this instrument in front of him and plays it while sitting. He wears a bamboo nail on his right forefinger to pluck strings while his left fingers press the frets. At the same time, the instrumentalist covers or opens the big end of the resonator with his stomach to enrich sounds. The ambitus of the b’roh is wide, about two octaves at mediant register.

Phú nói in hát văn is influenced by hát nói (recitative) of ca trù, a popular traditional musical type of Việt people. Phú nói has to be performed with a mature and slow style, in which each word is sung clearly and slowly. Performers have to gather air in their necks and release it slowly with singing expletives and without opening their mouths widely. The ư hư expletive, which is typical in hát nói of ca trù, is applied to the Phú nói melody of hát văn. Nevertheless, instead of using the ư hư expletive all the time, performers can sing the i i expletive, which is a typical characteristic of hát văn. The nguyệt (moon-shaped lute) also simulates the sounds of the đáy lute, which is a typical instrument of the ca trù art. The lyrics of Phú nói are a poem with a seven-seven-six-eight metre. Each musical phrase is corresponding to one verse sentence. This style can express the lyrics coherently; thus, it is preferred by the cung văn. Phú nói is performed in triple time at a slow tempo, and strings tuned to dây bằng. In hát văn thờ, Phú nói usually appears after Phú bình and Phú chênh.

Barsāti means “rain song.” This genre is associated with the monsoon and often expresses longing for an absent husband. It was sung to ease the labor of transplanting rice. Bent over in cold muddy water, women passed the time chorusing such songs. Here, the woman confides in her husband’s sister of a pain in her side, and a Vaid healer is brought from Mandi. However, her yearning is so intense that she feels she will die without her Ranjha(“true love”), referring to the tragic Punjabi folk epic of Heer Ranjha. The lead singer here is Urmila Rana. This song was recorded in the field. The sound of splashing water and other sounds from the field provide an authentic context. Recorded and collected by Kirin Narayan

The main jaatraa of Bishnu Devi Temple in Tinthana, Kathmandu, is the Sat Gaunle jaatraa, an annual celebratory jaatraa that takes place in December. The festival lasts three days and three nights. On the third day before dawn, the chariots of the seven children of Goddess Bishnu Devi are brought together to visit their mother in her temple in Tinthana. They rest with her until the afternoon and then are returned to their respective village temples. The chariots are carried on the shoulders of devotees from the seven surrounding villages. Their arrival at Vishnu Devi Temple is heralded by the sounds of many kaa, drums, and cymbals.

The main jaatraa of Bishnu Devi Temple in Tinthana, Kathmandu, is the Sat Gaunle jaatraa, an annual celebratory jaatraa that takes place in December. The festival lasts three days and three nights. On the third day before dawn, the chariots of the seven children of Goddess Bishnu Devi are brought together to visit their mother in her temple in Tinthana. They rest with her until the afternoon and then are returned to their respective village temples. The chariots are carried on the shoulders of devotees from the seven surrounding villages. Their arrival at Vishnu Devi Temple is heralded by the sounds of many kaa, drums, and cymbals.

Ng’ngốc is the name of the Mnông ethnic minority, referring to the Jew’s harp. Ng’ngốc is a thin bamboo piece with two crossing lines cut in the middle to create two sides of an isosceles triangle. The bottom side is located at the instrument body. This triangle is the reed of this instrument. T he performer puts this instrument between his two lips without touching his teeth. His left hand keeps this instrument steady, and the right one shakes the instrument very slightly to create sounds inside his mouth. Changing the shape of his mouth will create some overtones, different from the sound created by the reed. The sound from this instrument is soft and slightly cracked.

The huur is an instrument played by flicking a metallic piece with the mouth half-open. This recording was played by a male of the Tsaatan tribe that raises reindeer by Khuvsgul Lake in the high mountains. One can hear the intentional inclusion of wind-like sounds in the playing.

Humans have to coax their animals when the mother refuses to nurse her young. As numerous animals are raised together, sometimes mothers do not recognize their young. Interestingly, they can be coaxed by humans making these sounds. The first is the sound to coax a sheep, the second is the sound to coax a goat, and the last is the sound to coax a cow.

This is a recording of the Mongolian flute tsuur. The player holds what looks like a simple tube in the mouth, half covering the hole, and blows into it while also producing sounds from the throat. This piece was played by a fifteen-year-old boy who learned how to play the tsuur from his late grandfather.

The sounds of the letters in the Shiva mantra, when chanted each day, improve spiritual life, cleanse from all wrong deeds and thoughts, and bring one closer to God.