Raithane Bhakha Raithane Bhakha
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- Música
Raithane Bhakha is a podcast about Nepal's music. There are more than a hundred ethnic communities in Nepal, each one with one or more musical traditions. The podcast is mostly focused on the folk music of these communities, especially on indigenous and ritual music which is rarely played, heard, recorded or commercialized beyond its immediate community.
The podcast will also discuss other aspects of Nepal's music.
The podcast is produced by Sewa Bhattarai, focusing on songs she collected from the field.
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Dafa Khalahs - Women enter all-male Newa tradition
Dafa Khalahs are traditional Newa music groups in the
Kathmandu Valley. Maharjan and Manandhar families have Dafa Khalahs in every tole (locality), which sing traditional, devotional songs, either every day or during certain months. Hitherto, the tradition had been completely male. But that is changing as a small number of women have started entering Dafa Khalahs. Women overcome many challenges to learn and perform this ancient genre, which
is helping to revive a rich, centuries-old heritage on the decline. -
Mangalini - auspicious women singers
Mangalinis are women who sing auspicious songs for religious rituals. The tradition of women singing auspicious songs for rituals was once widespread among Nepal's Hindu communities, but is declining today. This episode is concerned with the royal Mangalinis employed by Nepal's erstwhile royal family. After the end of monarchy, the women continue to sing for Dashain rituals at Hanumandhoka. Their songs contain elements of folk traditions but were crafted to meet changing priorities of the court. The women's status as 'auspicious' stems from the Hindu reverence of women's powers of creation.
The podcast discusses the royal Mangalinis, their songs, and includes an interview with ethnomusicologist Carol Tingey who researched the Mangalinis. -
Tales tell of travails - Uranw folklore
The Uranws are a unique indigenous community living in
South-east Nepal. The small community of just over 40 thousand Uranws is highly marginalized but their culture and language continue to flourish in their dense settlements.
The Uranw language (also called Kurux or Kudukh) is Nepal's only Dravidian language, they worship nature and build no temples to worship their deities. In this podcast we discuss their songs, folklore, and mythology, which tell stories of their tenacious
survival in face of dominance. Uranw mythology traces their journey though the subcontinent in the past few millennia, expressing their sense of loss of land, status, and privilege which characterizes their present life. -
Love for the Himalayas in Sherpa songs
The Sherpas are famous all over the world for their close relationship with the highest mountains of the world - the Himalayas. This relationship is also reflected in their songs. Many Sherpa songs sing about the Himalayas, praise their beauty, and revere them as sacred places. Also, the songs sing about the relationship between nature and life, and the need to conserve and love the mountains.
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Phapare to Selo - Tamang music with Tamang Dajang
Tamangs live mostly in the Central hills and mountains of Nepal, and their music is rich in rhythm and lore. In this episode, we touch upon various aspects of Tamang music. Phapare songs that are unaccompanied by any musical instruments, and may be sung to the rhytm of the quern stone - indicating that since the dawn of humanity, music has been used by humans to make work bearable. Searching for the roots of Tamang music leads one first to this purely vocal music, followed by the beat of the dhyangro - a drum used by religious leaders. How tracing the dhyangro leads one to the Tamang's religious history, you can find out in the episode. And finally, we end by enjoying the famous Tamang Selo, sung and danced to the beat of the Damfu, which has long been a staple of mainstream Nepali music.
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Soul consolation - Tharu songs from Dang with Basanti Chaudhary
Music not just entertains, but also has the capacity to plumb the depths of human emotions and portray the full spectrum of human experiences. An example of one such song is a bhajhan that is sung to console people after the death of a beloved ones. Singer Basanti Chaudhary brings us this and a few other Tharu songs from Dang. The Tharus are an ethnic community who live in South Nepal, spread from East to West of Terai. Tharus of each region have different and large heritage of music and arts.