Myanmar · Musical Instrument Making
ဝကလပ်ကိရိယာ (Wa Kalat Kiiya)
The Wa people of northern Shan State (on the Myanmar-Yunnan border) maintain a bamboo musical instrument making tradition encompassing the bamboo flute set (khong — played in ensemble), the buffalo horn trumpet (used in headhunting ceremonies historically), and the bamboo xylophone (pa-ta). The bamboo flute set is the most technically demanding: a set of 6–9 flutes of different lengths is tuned to a pentatonic scale by adjusting the distance from the blowing hole to the open end — shortening the flute raises pitch; lengthening lowers it. The tuning is done entirely by ear, with the target pitches held in the maker's auditory memory as interval relationships rather than absolute pitches — 'the second flute should sound a fifth higher than the first.' The set is played in an interlocking hocket style where each player holds one flute and plays one note, building the melody from the interlocked notes of all players.
Risk level: Critically Endangered · Not inscribed
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