The Study of the Musical Culture of Ancient Chanting Dance Song in Khlung District, Chanthaburi Province

Abstract

        The study on musical culture of ancient chanting dancing song in Khlung District, Chanthaburi Province, was carried by the field study of an interview Wichai Rachan Ancient Chanting Dance Corp about the history of the group, and the collection of 10 ancient Chanting song which were analyzed with the focus on musical components. The objectives of the research were: 1) To study about the background and lyrics for ancient dancing and chanting 2) To study and analyze about the components of music for ancient dancing and chanting. Wichai Rachan is the most popular ancient chanting corp in the local area. It was formed by Wichai Vej-o-sot, this corp had been performing Ram Suat (dancing and chanting) in the continuous and consistent manner since 2006. The lyrics of the hymns are about the stories of Thai literatures with the melodies that have been passed on since the ancient time. From the analysis on the musical components of the 10 studied hymns, it was discovered that all the studied hymns have monophonic texture. Each hymn is sung by the main singer and choruses.  The hymns start with 5 forms anacrusis and most hymns consist of 5 notes in pentatonic scale. As for the melody, the widest range is the P11^st pair which has movement in a stable direction and the ascending direction before ending with the tonic note. The hymns are in the rondo form, and theme and variations form.