CHIRGILCHIN - Tuvan Throat Singers

4-piece throat singing group from Tuva!

The word Chirgilchin has two translations:"dance of the air in the heat of the day" and "miracle". Established in 1996, Chirgilchin is a group of musicians from Tuva, a small Russian province north of Western Mongolia. Their music tells stories of their homeland, its horses and its people. The monotone sustained notes that branch out into overtone singing with slight shifts in pitch give Tuvan music its characteristic bouyant yet meditative drone quality. The songs are sung in minor pentatonic scale, similar to American blues. Throat-singing is an extraordinary vocal form in which one singer produces two or more voices simultaneously, the low sounds in the throat harmonizing with middle and high flute-like overtones, to create richly layered melodies that evoke Central Asian steppes and nomadic life. Atmospheric and mesmeric, this music is almost too difficult to describe in words and must be heard to be believed. The most advanced forms of throat-singing come from Tuva, and the members of Chirgilchin are among the best and most accomplished throat-singers in all of Tuva.

“It is a known fact that some of the best throat singers in the world hail from Tuva and a few of them are members of Chirgilchin. Take Igor Koshkendey. He has twice won the Tuvan International Throat Singing competition, winning in all of the six styles of throat singing.” –Pittsburgh PostGazette

“Hearing a throat singing concert is an astonishing experience that leads to a primitive dimension,
where the self is drowned to become reunited with the fundamental nature around it.” - Pepperdine
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“Dressed in richly embroidered blue silk robes with gold linings and thick black riding boots,
Chirgilchin played to eager crowds last Sunday, blowing away music categories with their clear,
brilliant, and unassuming mastery of throat singing. Their youthful friendly demeanor, and
somewhat shy countenances belied an incredible vocal range. Though worlds apart from
Americans, their earthy groove provided a bridge for mutual understanding.” - AsianWeek.com

“Chirgilchin is renowned for their mesmerizing vocal and instrumental performances, which are
almost beyond description. Both atmospheric and rollicking at the same time, it is the
indescribable multi-phonic vocal style of Khoomei that takes center stage in a Chirgilchin
performance.” –Redwood Times

 

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