Бирманская арфа: история и традиции

Burmese traditional musical instrument

The saung (Burmese: စောင်း, MLCTS caung; also known as the saung gauk (စောင်းကောက်): , Burmese harp, Burma harp, or Myanmar harp), is an arched harp used in traditional Burmese music. The saung is regarded as a national musical instrument of Burma. The saung is unique in that it is a very ancient harp tradition and is said to be the only surviving harp in Asia.

Saung (စောင်း) is the Burmese word for "harp," and is etymologically derived from the Persian word chang, which is the Persian arched harp. The Burmese arched harp is more precisely called saung gauk (, ; ), while another indigenous lyre is called byat saung or saungbya (; ). The Burmese word saung has been borrowed into several regional languages, including , The standard dimensions of the saung are Musical researchers theorize that the arched harp came to Burma from Mesopotamia by way of India. The saung may have been introduced as early as 500 AD from southeastern India, based on archaeological evidence, namely in the form of Burmese temple reliefs that depict a long necked harp very similar to depictions found in Bengal. The earliest archaeological evidence of the harp is at the Bawbawgyi Pagoda of the Sri Ksetra kingdom of the Pyu people, near present day Pyay (Prome). At that site, there is a mid 600s sculptured relief depicting the arched harp with about five strings, appearing in a scene where musicians and a dancer are depicted. Contemporaneous Chinese chronicles from the same period cite Pyu musicians playing the arched harp. A Pyu embassy to China in 801 802 documents an orchestra containing an arched harp with 2 pegs.

Until the 1800s, the Burmese harp and its music were used exclusively for chamber music within the royal court, where it held status as the most prized of the court instruments. After World War II, the State School of Fine Arts received newly made harps by Burmese craftsmen. The harp is usually accompanied by a singer, or more accurately, the singer is accompanied by the harp, with the harp adapting to the singer, who controls the time with a bell and clapper to indicate the music tempo. The principal playing techniques in Mandalay include let kat (လက်ကပ်), kaw (ကော့), zon hswe gyin (စုံဆွဲခြင်း), and tat (တပ်). The Burmese classical music scale is tuned differently from the Western scale, and has been said to be derived from the descending cycle of fifths. The original tuning method extant from 1885 is called hnyin lon, while musicians also use the auk pyan, pale, and myin zaing tuning methods. This is only approximately true, and traditionally, the harp is tuned differently for the four major different modes of Burmese classical music. Recently, due to the overriding influence of Western music, many harpists tune to the Western diatonic scale, since fewer and fewer singers feel fully comfortable with the traditional tunings. Burmese music has not been written down with notation, only the text of the songs are recorded, and the rendition of the music has been passed down through the generations from teacher to student. The last and most well known harpist of the court was U Maung Maung Gyi (1855–1933), who was given a post at King Mindon's court at the young age of thirteen, and given the title "Dewa Einda" ('Heavenly Musician;' devaindā), which now identifies him. He trained many musicians who became accomplished musicians in their own right. The lineage of today's harpists can be traced directly back to the Dewa Einda and other musicians from the court of Mandalay. With the British annexation and the fall of court of Mandalay, the Burmese court culture and traditions were still carried on for a while at the court of Saophas of Hsipaw, the Shan state closest to Mandalay culturally and geographically. The well known harpists U Hpu Gyaung and Sao Mya Aye Kyi were from Hsipaw.

In 1956, the Japanese film director Kon Ichikawa made an Oscar nominated anti war film called The Burmese Harp (Biruma no tategoto), set in Burma during World War II. The main character was a Japanese soldier who becomes a Buddhist monk due to the horrors of war. He plays the saung. However, the sound of the saung is removed from the soundtrack and replaced with an overdub of a Western classical pedal harp. Ichikawa also directed a remake of the film in 1985, which was also a major commercial and critical success.