Bhutan
ICH Exhibition 3
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NEWS
The 1st ichLinks Executive Committee Meeting
The 1st ichLinks Executive Committee Meeting was held on June 29, 2021, online. Representatives of the current partner organizations from five countries (Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam) and future partners from four countries (Bhutan, Cambodia, Fiji, and Singapore) were present.
During this 1st meeting, the Committee discussed draft Project Guidelines and the Operational Rules of ichLinks Executive Committee, elected the first Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson, and shared the progress reports on the status of the first ichLinks supported projects of Mongolia, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, and Vietnam. The Committee also discussed the provisional agenda for the 2nd Committee meeting as well as the working-level meeting.
Mr. Rustam Muzafarov (Deputy Chairman, National Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Kazakhstan) and Mr. Bui Hoai Son (Director, Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts Studies) were elected as the first Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson respectively. Their term of office is one year, which is until June 28, 2022.
ICHCAP will additionally collect opinions from partner organizations on the Project Guidelines and Operational Rules of the Executive Committee and will discuss them at the 2nd Committee meeting at the end of this year. In addition, by holding a working-level meeting in August, ICHCAP plans to conduct technical training and provide manuals to partner organizations so they can directly upload their ICH data to the ichLinks platform.
The current ICH data of partner organizations uploaded to date can be found in the archives of the ichLinks.
06/30/2021
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NEWS
Held the 2nd ichLinks Executive Committee
The Committee meeting screen © ICHACP
The 2nd ichLinks Executive Committee was held online on December 9, 2021 (Thursday), from 2 pm to 5 pm (KST). Twelve Partner Organizations (Malaysia, Mongolia, Vietnam, Bhutan, Singapore, Uzbekistan, India, Kazakhstan, Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Fiji) participated and had a fruitful discussion.
The Committee was chaired by Dr. Rustam Muzafarov, Deputy Chairman of Kazakhstan National Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, who was elected at the first Committee meeting in June. The agenda discussed were as follows.
[Agenda 1] Share ichLinks Project Guidelines
[Agenda 2] Reports on 2020-2021 ichLinks support projects’ results and suggestions to improve ichLinks
[Agenda 3] Reports on 2021-2022 ichLinks support projects’ plans and suggestions to improve ichLinks
[Agenda 4] ichLinks’ mission, vision, roadmap and suggestions for future programmes (ICHCAP)
[Agenda 5] Adopt Operational Rules on ichLinks Executive Committee
Dr. Rustam Muzafarov, Chairperson of the ichLinks Executive Committee © ICHCAP
ICHCAP, the Secretariat of the ichLinks platform, shared ichLinks’ mission, vision and the 1st phase roadmap (2020-2025), and also explained each stage’s goals and activities. In addition, cooperative projects that all Partner Organizations can participate in was proposed. In particular, the programme for artisans’ networking to share good practices of sustainable development through modernization and commercialization of traditional crafts was supported by many Partner Organizations.
Proposed programme for exchange of traditional artisans © ICHCAP
Partner Organizations also proposed several cooperative projects such as joint research on shared ICH elements, multilingual translation of ichLinks content, and establishment of a common archive on the theme of traditional music and musical instruments. Furthermore, the Partner Organizations expressed great interest in the archive management package that is being developed by ICHCAP this year.
The Chairperson, Dr. Muzafarov expressed his special thanks to ICHCAP for initiating the ichLinks project. He mentioned that ichLinks opened a new chapter in the safeguarding of ICH. He also pointed out that the general public in Kazakhstan is starting to take an interest in ICH and understand the need to safeguard ICH through ichLinks.
ICHCAP plans to share the results of the 2nd Executive Committee with all Partner Organizations and hold a working-level meeting early next year as soon as the archive package development is completed. Also, the cooperative projects proposed during the meeting will be further elaborated and be implemented in collaboration with Partner Organizations next year.
12/14/2021
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NEWS
Drangyen, Bhutanese Instrument and Lessons
Two drangyens of Bhutan at Linden Museum (public domain image)
The Bhutanese lute, the drangyen, is the oldest and most well-known instrument of Bhutan. The word drangyen itself roughly translates to “hear the melody,” where dra means “melody,” and ngyen means “listen.” The drangyen is often used in religious festivals accompanied by folk dances and stories. Some date back to the eighth century CE when Buddhism was introduced to Bhutan.
The instrument is made from wood (preferably from cypress trees), leather, and yak bone and is about one meter long. Structurally, the top or head is intricately shaped like a sea monster to scare away evil spirits that may be attracted to the beautiful music that the instrument makes. The head stands upon a long fretless neck that attaches to a rounded body that pictures the goddess of music. The seven strings, which are made from the bark fiber of the jute tree, are played with a triangular plectrum made of wood or bone.
Kheng Sonam Dorji is a master folk musician of Bhutan. He has assembled a series of videos that show how the drangyen is made and how to play it. They are available in several lessons on YouTube. Visit the following links to find out more about the drangyen.
Drangyen Lesson -1: Brief Introduction ( with Eng Sub) – YouTube
Drangyen Lesson – 2(A) : Note Introduction & Tunning – YouTube
Drangyen Lesson – 2 (B) : Note Introduction & Tunning – YouTube
Drangyen Lesson – 3: Octave/Yangduen/ Saptak – YouTube
Drangyen Lesson – 4: Fingering & Note familiarization. – YouTube
03/12/2021
