The right connections

There must be something magic in the opening notes of mor lam tune “O La Nor…” because as soon as they hear the music, Thais in the northeast are up on their feet and dancing. 

“That’s because the rhythms go straight to their heart and the lyrics are easy to understand,” says veteran mor lam singer Ratri Sittiporn, adding that the genre, which has its roots in Isaan, is one of the cultural products that Thailand can share with its neighbours as the Asean nations move closer to regional integration. 

“People in the Asean region or Southeast Asia share the same cultural roots,” she says. 

So convinced is Ratri that she has just written a song that features the terms for “good day” and “thank you” terms used in all 10 Asean nations.

At a recent academic seminar hosted by the Foundation for the Promotion of Social Sciences and Humanities Textbook Project in Ubon Ratchathani, discussions focused on mor lam and other cultural shows likely to play an important role in weaving the fabric of Southeast Asian unity 

Aside from mor lam, which demonstrates the musical bonds between the Thai and Lao people, Cambodia’s kantrum has also started to gain in popularity in the Kingdom.

Pathom Hongsuwan, who heads the MSU Research Institute of Isaan Arts and Culture, notes that from a cultural viewpoint arts like mor lam and kantrum, a type of folk music, do not belong to any specific race.

“Cultures know no border,” he says, pointing out that Thai kantrum singer Nampheung Muangsurin regularly stages shows in Cambodia. 

Nampheung, whose real name is Samruai Deesom, is fluent in the Cambodian language.

“My Cambodian audiences always have a lot of fun,” she says.

“Cultures have a subtle role to play in easing political tension. It nurtures ties between people,” Pathom notes, adding that cultural products do however need to be adjusted to meet the demands of s changing society. 

Nampheung, a graduate of Surindra Rajabhat University, says she has put great effort into modernising kantrum, replacing the traditional backing of pipes, drums and fiddles with modern instruments like guitars. This, she adds, is being done in order to attract youngsters to kantrum. “Very few kids speak Khmer these days and schools are reluctant to include it in extracurricular activities for fear of hurting students’ academic performance

She’s convinced that the art has survived till today because the genre has evolved to suit the times.

“Kantrum is still going because we’ve worked hard to present it in two forms”. Those forms are the traditional version, with its beautiful if esoteric lyrics about proverbs and teachings sung to a soundtrack of traditional melodies played on traditional instruments, and the contemporary version, which has easy-to-understand lyrics, often in the local language and a kamtrum melody played on drums, guitar, bass and saxophone.

Nampheung, 43, says she has loved the stage, particularly kantrum, since she was a child. Learning by observation as well by imitation, she received training from her father in the traditional sound and at the age of nine was proficient enough to join local shows. 

After completing primary school, she trained more formally in kantrum singing and began to compose her own songs. She sang briefly as a soloist with the Wong Samornchai band before returning to her studies in 1988. Following her graduation in 1995, she married Ban Dong Man school teacher Kosit Deesom and had two children.

After years of struggle, her singing career took off when she joined Ban Dong Man’s kantrum band, with whom she performed more than 1,000 shows in less than four years. Her first record “Moradok Kantrum” (“Kantrum Heritage”) came out in 1992 and was recorded with Pairoj Sound Co in Prasart district. A fully fledged kantrum star since 1995, Nampheung and her band Dong Man Rak Kantrum have won many contests in Surin, Buri Ram and Si Sa Ket. Devoted to the conservation of kantrum, she is regularly invited to speak and seminars and is a visiting lecturer at Maha Sarakham University.

Ratri too is attached to the academic life.

“I've been pursuing a PhD and of course my thesis will be related to mor lam,” she says. “My aim is to be the first person to hold a doctorate degree in mor lam.”

Her hope is that mor lam will survive in a world where western culture continues to gain a foothold. 

Mor lam also has gone through a lot of changes in the last 20 years, going from traditional meaningful songs accompanied by the khaen or reed mouth organ to a genre known as mor lam sing, which has become synonymous with sexy dresses and provocative dance moves. 

Surrounded by the sounds of mor lam since birth – both her parents are traditional performers –Ratri started her career at the age of 13. Like her four siblings, she became a singer in the family troupe. 

“There are seven kids in the family and even though two of them work in the government service, they still sing mor lam in their leisure time. The art is in our blood,” she says

But she also knows that adjustments are necessary if the genre is to survive, though she’s quick to tell her students at Maha Sarakham University that these need not include provocative costumes or suggestive levels.

Ratri, whose stage name is Ratri Sriwilai, introduced mor lam sing in 1986 after noticing how disco halls and decibel-defying sound systems were attracting the rural young. 

“I was worried that mor lam might fade into extinction. So, I started adding modern musical instruments to the genre,” she explains. “I often feel that mor lam sing should more appropriately be called ‘applied mor lam’.”

While making fewer stage appearances than in the past, she hasn't completely abandoned the traditional mor lam. 

“When we stage a performance, we always include the traditional sounds too,” she says, adding that it serves to slow down the tempo and thus reduce the risks of brawls, which often go hand-in-hand with loud, up-tempo music. 

Now she’s aiming to reach out to music fans in Asean with the type of performances that have never failed to spice up her life. 

She believes with the right approach, mor lam singers who rely purely on sex appeal can be inspired to take the traditional art more seriously and ensure it’s preserved for future generations.

“We may offer scholarships and create job opportunities for those who work to conserve mor lam,” she says.