The khene (also spelled "kaen") is a mouth-organ whose pipes are connected with a small, hollowed-out wooden reservoir into which air is blown. It is a polyphonic instrument and hence is important to the history of music. Today associated with the Lao of Laos and Northeast Thailand, it dates back to the bronze age of Southeast Asia. The Chinese adopted it at an early point in time and call it today sheng, a word which is the phonetic equivalent of the word khene.
The most interesting characteristic of the khene is its free reed, which is made of brass. The invention of the khene is attributed to the Lao, but it was after having studied a Chinese sheng, carried to St. Petersburg in the 18th century, that a technician devised the free-reed Western instruments from which the harmonium, concertina, accordion, harmonica and bandoneon were developed.
Khaen come in four types which are differentiated by the amount of tubes (notes); the six-tubed khaen hok, the fourteen-tubed khaen jet, the sixteen-tubed khaen baet, and the eighteen-tubed khaen gao.
Today there is a new style of khaenmusic which uses a drum set, electric bass, and singer.* Mawlum singing is still alive and the khaen is still being played as a solo instrument, but it seems that this new style of music appeals to the younger generation.
The khaen is also gaining popularity as a research instrument for ethnomusicologists, as evidenced by this paper and Dr. Miller: "Interest in ethnomusicology is on the increase in the United States and Europe and slowly penetrating Africa and Asia as well." He continues with a brief discussion of Asian nationalism.
The khene (also spelled "khaen", "kaen" and "khen"; Thai: à¹à¸à¸) is a mouth-organ whose pipes are connected with a small, hollowed-out wooden reservoir into which air is blown.
It is played as a solo instrument, as part of an ensemble, or as an accompaniment to mor lam.
Khaen Repertories: The Developments of Lao Traditional Music in Northeast Thailand Accessed 13 May 2005.
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