Myoma Nyein (; born Kyaw Nyein, 25 January 1909 – 15 September 1955) was a renowned

Burmese Burmese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Myanmar, a country in Southeast Asia * Burmese people * Burmese language * Burmese alphabet * Burmese cuisine * Burmese culture Animals * Burmese cat * Burmese chicken * Burmese (hor ...

musician and composer. He was a founder of '' Myoma Band'', the longest surviving music band in the modern Burmese history. Between 1935 and 1939, he recorded over 40 albums and composed a couple of Myanmar New Year (''

Thingyan Thingyan (, ; Arakanese: ; from Sanskrit '' saṁkrānti,'' which means "transit f the Sun from Pisces to Aries) is the Burmese New Year Festival that usually occurs in middle of April. Thingyan is the first ever water festival celebrated in ...

'') songs that became iconic, performed on Myoma's Silver Swan parade floats, which became a trademark of Thingyan celebration in Mandalay.

Early life and education

Nyein was born on 25 January 1909 in

Mandalay Mandalay ( or ; ) is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. Located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631km (392 miles) (Road Distance) north of Yangon, the city has a population of 1,225,553 (2014 census). Mandalay was fo ...

British Burma British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

, son of U Nyi, a goldsmith, and mother

Daw Daw or DAW may refer to: People and language * Daw (given name) * Daw (surname) * Daw, an honorific used in Burmese name#Honorifics, Burmese names * Dâw people, an indigenous people of Brazil * Dâw language, a language of Brazil * Davaoeño lang ...

Chit Oo, a

lacquerware Lacquerware are objects decoratively covered with lacquer. Lacquerware includes small or large containers, tableware, a variety of small objects carried by people, and larger objects such as furniture and even coffins painted with lacquer. Befor ...

merchant. He was educated at Central National School, Mandalay. At the age of ten, he learnt a Burmese classic titled "Jambu Kyun Lone" (Universal) from ''Deva Einda'' Maung Maung Gyi in a single day much to the surprise of the famous harpist. In 1925, he co-founded the Myoma (meaning 'City Proper') music band or Myoma Amateur Music Association with his teacher artist and musician U

Ba Thet Ba Thet (1903–1972; my, ဘသက် ) was a Burmese painter who worked in Mandalay, Myanmar and who was known as an advocate of experimentation in the arts. He was an associate of Kin Maung, who is known commonly known in Burma as Kin Maung ...

and a city burgher ''Dahdan'' U Thant.

Repertoire

Myoma Nyein's greatest love song was " Chit Da Phadana" (Love is Fundamental), the gramophone recording made circa 1935-38. Old Myoma Thingyan

One of his earlier songs written in 1939 was "Eindawya Paya Zay" in support of Mandalay's central Zegyo Market shopkeepers' all out strike against Section 23(7) enacted by the British colonial government when they relocated to the

Eindawya Pagoda Eindawya Pagoda ( my, အိမ်တော်ရာဘုရား; ) is a Buddhist stupa located in Mandalay, Myanmar. It was built by King Pagan Min Pagan Min ( my, ပုဂံမင်း, ; 21 June 1811 – 14 March 1880), was the nin ...

precincts. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the music troupe along with the townspeople of Mandalay fled to

Sagaing Sagaing (, ) is the former capital of the Sagaing Region of Myanmar. It is located in the Irrawaddy River, to the south-west of Mandalay on the opposite bank of the river. Sagaing with numerous Buddhist monasteries is an important religious and ...

Hills across the

Ayeyarwady River The Irrawaddy River ( Ayeyarwady River; , , from Indic ''revatī'', meaning "abounding in riches") is a river that flows from north to south through Myanmar (Burma). It is the country's largest river and most important commercial waterway. Origi ...

, and Myoma Nyein came up with the song "Sagaing Taung" (Sagaing Hills) among others. After the war in 1945, when Mandalay held a major sporting event, Myoma Nyein wrote for the occasion songs titled "Olympics" and "Yin Dago Me" (Beauty Contest). His song for the 1947 Burmese New Year

" Shwe Man Taung Yeikkho" aka "Mya Nandar" (In the Shade of

Mandalay Hill Mandalay Hill ( ) is a hill that is located to the northeast of the city centre of Mandalay in Myanmar. The city took its name from the hill. Mandalay Hill is known for its abundance of pagodas and monasteries, and has been a major pilgrimage s ...

) has become a perennial classic during the festive season. In 1952 he wrote "Lu Chun Lu Gaung" (Good and Able) in honour of Prime Minister

U Nu Nu ( my, ဦးနု; ; 25 May 1907 – 14 February 1995), commonly known as U Nu also known by the honorific name Thakin Nu, was a leading Burmese statesman and nationalist politician. He was the first Prime Minister of Burma under the pr ...

's Pyidawtha (

Welfare state A welfare state is a form of government in which the state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal opportunity, equitabl ...

) Conference in

Rangoon Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...

. The following year he composed "Gaba Nyeinchan Yay" (World Peace). He started collaborating with Mandalay Motion Picture Company the next year.

Family

In 1928 Myoma Nyein married Than May, a school teacher from

Meiktila Meiktila (; ) is a city in central Burma on the banks of Meiktila Lake in the Mandalay Region at the junctions of the Bagan-Taunggyi, Yangon-Mandalay and Meiktila-Myingyan highways. Because of its strategic position, Meiktila is home to Myanmar Ai ...

. His oldest daughter Tin Kyi was married to the artist

Paw Oo Thet Paw Oo Thet ( my, ပေါ်ဦးသက်, ; 1936 – 13 April 1993) was a Burmese painter, prominent in the Mandalay art scene who became one of the initiators of a modernistic art movement in Burma in the early 1960s. Early training ...

. His oldest son Shoon Myaing has carried on with the band which celebrated its 80th anniversary in 2005.

Death

Nyein committed suicide in 1955, aged 46, by walking in front of a lorry driver.

Discography

* Thet Wai *

Natshinnaung Natshinnaung ( my, နတ်သျှင်နောင်, ; 1579–1613) was a Toungoo prince who was a noted poet and an accomplished musician, as well as an able military commander. He later became a rebellious ruler of Toungoo, and went ov ...

Sagaing Hill Sagaing (, ) is the former capital of the Sagaing Region of Myanmar. It is located in the Irrawaddy River, to the south-west of Mandalay on the opposite bank of the river. Sagaing with numerous Buddhist monasteries is an important religious and m ...

* Hna Yaut Tae Nay Shin Tae * Yae Cho Seik * Soe Naunt Byar Bwae * Ka Thit Pann * Tain Lwar Mohh Mo Lwin * Lu Chun Lu Kaung * Turiyar Luu Lin * Eain Taw Yar Pha Yar Zay * Myin Khin Taw * Nann Myo Taw * Mae Zar Shwe Li/ Lat We Thon Da Ya * Pyo Mhar Tann * Parami Taw * Sar So Khan La Lone * Hla Myint Zu * Man Dar Li * Mae Dar Wi * Thissa *Eain Thu Pe Pe * Binjo * A Hla Pyaing Pwe * Ko Duu Ko Chun

Notes

External links

Official website of The Myoma Amateur Music Association Myanmar

VOA Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is the state-owned news network and international radio broadcaster of the United States of America. It is the largest and oldest U.S.-funded international broadcaster. VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content ...

inc. audio, 2007-02-05
A portrait sketch of Myoma Nyein by Min Kyaw Khine, 2008
{{DEFAULTSORT:Myoma Nyein Burmese musicians People from Mandalay 1909 births 1955 suicides 1955 deaths Burmese composers 20th-century composers Recipients of the Alinkar Kyawswar Road incident deaths in Asia Pedestrian road incident deaths Suicides in Asia