Thailand
’s
musician King
This
lesson gives you help with some of the most interesting
sections of the Bangkok Post feature entitled "Jazzy King"
which was originally published some months ago and which is still
available on the main Bangkok Post website. Some of the sections below
contain sound files. All contain help with vocabulary.
Most of you
already know a lot about His Majesty
the King as a musician, but I think some of the details in
“The Jazzy King”
will be new to you and may even surprise you. Let’s get
started.
Below is the introduction to the section. Notice how cleverly the
writer
catches our attention by describing a Saturday night scene at
well-seasoned – old and very experienced
rejuvenated – given new energy and made to feel or look young again
spell a situation which seems like it is controlled by a magical power, in the case, the power of music
exuberance – behaviour which is energetic, excited and cheerful
adroitly – skillfully
wee hours – the early hours of the morning after midnight
sultry – hot and damp
interlude – a short period of time when an activity or situation stops and something else happens
awed – created a feeling of respect and amazement
novel – new and different than anything done, experienced or made before
esteemed – greatly admired and respected
coveted – of something that many people would like to have
prolific – producing a large number of works like songs, books, films, etc.
reverberate – to have a powerful effect which lasts a long time (reverberate can also refer to a loud sound which echoes through an area)
prestigious – respected and admired
You
can hear this section of the feature by clicking here.
Remember that you can
download this sound file to your computer for repeated listening by
right-clicking and following the instructions. This is a big file, so
it may
take some time to load.
On Saturday nights, a group
of some 10 professional and amateur
musicians, most in their 60s and 70s, gather together at
These well-seasoned musicians take their time to find their seats, with instruments in
hand, lips
to the mouthpiece, fingers to the keys, until the band leader looks up,
“Ready?
…”
Suddenly, as if rejuvenated by
the spell of the music, the gray-haired band members come alive with youthful exuberance, adroitly creating sounds as fresh as musicians in
their prime.
On the saxophone is none other than
78-year-old HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
Until the wee hours of Sunday
morning, the King and his Au Sau Wan Suk Band members fill the sultry air of Hua Hin with smooth jazz from a wide selection of styles
— Dixieland,
New Orleans, Big Band chart-toppers — sometimes with an interlude of one
of the King’s own compositions.
Until his retirement from public
performance some two decades ago, the King had awed Thai audiences with
cool jazz, then novel to Thai society, in a weekly
radio broadcast of
concerts from university and public stages that ran from the early
1950s
through to the 1970s.
As if a king blowing his sax for the joy of
his subjects isn’t remarkable enough, His Majesty also made
Marking the 60th anniversary this year of
his first musical composition, the prolific King
has produced 48
outstanding pieces ranging from romance to march to ballet suites, in
classic,
blues, jazz, pop and alma maters. Many of them have become all-time
classics
including Saeng Tien (Candlelight Blues) Sai Fon (Falling Rain) and
Porn Phi
Mai (New Year’s Greeting), to name a few. And not only in
Thailand, some fine
selections of his compositions have reverberated across the globe in prestigious concert halls and informal settings alike as his songs have been
included in
the albums of some leading jazz musicians and prestigious international
orchestras.
From Boon
Boonprayoon
Boon
Boonprayoon is a
knowledgeable jazz lover, so she has very good qualifications to
continue with
our coverage of “The Jazzy King”.
Improvising
with Idols
What
is Jazz? Louis Armstrong,
one of the greatest jazz musicians, once said, “If you gotta
ask, you’ll never
know”. Actually, jazz music originated among the African
slaves in the
Most of the best jazz musicians are surely African-Americans and
Americans. If
you are really familiar with jazz music, you can tell about the musical
accent.
It is like when you hear the native speakers speak, you can tell
which has
the American, British or Australian accent. Musical tone is the same.
I, as a
jazz lover, have recently been able to tell whether the musician is an
American
or European. It would be amazing, however, if anyone could tell the
difference
between HM’s jazz music from the American's. It has the
original accent of
jazz, unlike the Europeans. That is one reason why HM has long been
recognised
as the Musician King or the Jazz King.
As you read this section,
notice and remember the many words and phrases that are used to
describe music.
Try to find out the answers tothe following questions:
2. What are
occasions that
best illustrate why the King is called the Jazz King and is praised by
the
great world musicians?
improvise – to do something without prepare or planning in advance
impromptu – done without preparation or planning
session – an occasion when people meet to play music, especially Irish music, in a pub / bar
jam session – an occasion when musicians perform in an informal way without practicing first
house band – the band that usually plays music at a particular place like a bar, restaurant or coffee shop or, in this case, the palace in Hua Hin
amateur – a person who takes part in a sport or other activity for enjoyment, not as a job
master –to control
supremacy – a position in which you have more skill, power, authority or status than anyone else
encounter – meeting or experience
state visit – a visit connected with the leader of a country attending an official ceremony
estate – a large area of land in the country
foot-stomping, starch-melting – enthusiastic, energetic and causing people to move their feet to the music with heavy steps
tote – to carry something especially something heavy
eardrumming – very loud
savour – to enjoy a feeling or an experience thoroughly
audience – a formal meeting with an important person
finest piece – of high quality work of music
accolade – praise or an award for an achievement that people admire
ovation – enthusiastic clapping by an audience as a sign of their approval
confer– to give an honour to someone
You can hear
this section of
the feature by clicking here and here.
Improvising
with idols
Over several decades, the
King’s Au Sau Wan Suk Band has
received such international jazz idols as Benny
Goodman, Lionel Hampton,
Jack Teagarden, James Moody, Benny Carter, Les Brown, Maynard Ferguson,
The
Preservative Hall Jazz Band, and many more as guest musicians for impromptu sessions.
It is here with these idols
that one can observe the King at his very best. Unlike when he plays
with his house
band, whose members are mostly amateurs,
His Majesty would master his jazz supremacy with all the techniques he has
acquired to match with
these visitors.
His Majesty’s first encounter with an international jazz idol occurred in 1960 during his state
visit to the
“His Majesty went to dinner
with the King of Swing, Benny Goodman, (and 94 others) at the suburban estate of
In the article “The King of
Jazz,” by Harry Rolnick, published in Sawasdee magazine in
1987, American
singer Patti Page described her audience with the King: “It
was like a dream
come true. I had heard about his compositions, but only when I had them
in my
hands did I see how fine they were....”
“For two hours,”
Rolnick
reported, “she sang the works of His Majesty, with her
personal accompanist,
while the King made changes when necessary.
The late jazz icon Lionel
Hampton was also quoted in the same article as saying: “He is
simply the
coolest king in the land.”
Recently, the world of jazz has
literally recognized the King by putting his name in one of the recent
editions
of the Encyclopedia of Jazz that came out some four years ago, his
close aide
says: “If you flip to the B index, you will find his name and
a short
description of his works. He is the only Thai musician to earn such an
honour.”
Back in 1964, he recalls, when
HM the King visited Vienna, Austria, for a state visit, he attended a
concert
where five of his finest pieces, Kinari Suite, Sai Fon, Yam Yen, the
Royal
Marines March and the Royal Guards March, were performed. Not only was
the
audience in the concert hall appreciative of HM the King’s
compositions but
also music lovers across Austria, as the concert was broadcast live on
radio.
After the concert, His Majesty
received overwhelming accolades with a long
standing ovation as
the composer. Two days after the concert, he was conferred with the
23rd
honourary membership of the world-renowned Die Akademic fur Musik und
Darstellende Kunst (The Institute of Music and Arts of the city of
From
Classics to Jazz
Once
you start taking music lessons, you generally
must study classical music. It is like when you start learning English,
you
have to start with the alphabet, pronunciation and basic word
formation.
As you will find out from this section of the story, the King started
his music
training in classical music while he was in
accommodate – to make changes in order to allow something to happen
inspire - to make somebody have a particular feeling or emotion of something
rousing - full of energy and enthusiasm
gramophone – an old record player
icon - a famous person or thing that people admire and see as a symbol of a particular idea, way of life
strain - the sound of music being played or sung
recording - sound that have been recorded on tape
soprano - with the highest range of notes in its group
(alto, bass and tenor have lower ranges of notes)
From classics to
jazz
Eventually, King Ananda joined
the class with his clarinet. The one-hour, twice-weekly classes with
Despite their classical music
training, both King Ananda and Prince Bhumibol were more inspired by the
exciting beats of blues and jazz, containing rousing rhythms and freedom
of expression. The teenage royals started collecting gramophone recordings of jazz icons with King Ananda preferring Louis Armstrong and Sidney
Bechet,
while Prince Bhumibol opted for Duke Ellington and Count Basie. King
Bhumibol
practiced his instruments to the strains of blues and jazz from these
recordings. He played along with recordings of Sidney
Bechet’s soprano saxophone, Johny Hodges’ alto saxophone and Duke
Ellington’s piano.
His Majesty’s favourite
instruments are the saxophone, clarinet and trumpet. He also plays
guitar and
piano.
The Maestro
All these
years, there have
been numerous albums both locally and internationally of HM’s
compositions. A
committee has also been set up to screen requests for public
performance and
recording of HM’s compositions.
Through his
music, the King has expressed his
the love of music and his love of the many millions of his subjects.
septuagenarian - a person between 70 and 79 years old
subject - a person who has the right to belong to a particular country, especially one with a king or queen
laud – to praise somebody
splendid - excellent; very good
legacy - a situation that exists now because of events, actions, etc. that took place in the past
inadvertently - by accident; without intending to
indomitable - not willing to accept defeat, even in a difficult situation; very brave and determined
serenade - to sing or play music to somebody
linger - to stay in a place for a longer time than necessary because you are enjoying yourself
eternity – forever
The maestro
“Jack
Teagarden asked royal permission
to include a royal composition on his album. So did the Les Brown Big
Band,
which asked for six compositions, as well as the Claude Bolling Big
Band from
France and Ted Peace,” says his close aide.
Already, a committee
has been set up
to screen requests for public performance and recordings of the
King’s
compositions. “In the past, there were those who inadvertently adapted
or changed the King’s compositions, which is
inappropriate,” says the musician.
“They should respect that anyone who composes does not wish
to have their
pieces rewritten. The committee, therefore, is set to screen and
approve
requests.”
Although the
King’s latest
composition, his 48th, called Menu Kai (Egg Menu) came out in 1995, he
believes
that it would not be the last. “I think the King is still
working on his
compositions. And more will be coming out to the public.”
By Hua Hin beach on
Saturday nights,
the indomitable music maestro still serenades his modest
audience. The strains of his sax have “echoed”
throughout the country,
entertaining millions of his subjects, from the past to the present,
who have
heard and appreciated their King’s compassion through his
music.
As one of his
English-language
compositions, Echo, goes:
“…Of
it is nothing left
But the echo
Though time is unforgiving
I know
Our love will
Linger on
For eternity…”
