The Thai Elephant Orchestra is a musical ensemble consisting of as many as fourteen Thai elephants near

Lampang Lampang, also called Nakhon Lampang ( th, นครลำปาง, ) to differentiate from Lampang province, is the third largest city in northern Thailand and capital of Lampang province and the Mueang Lampang district. Traditional names for L ...

in Northern

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

. The elephants play music, essentially as conducted improvisations, on specially designed heavy-duty musical instruments. The orchestra was co-created by elephant conservationist Richard Lair of the National Elephant Institute and the American musical artist and

neuroscientist A neuroscientist (or neurobiologist) is a scientist who has specialised knowledge in neuroscience, a branch of biology that deals with the physiology, biochemistry, psychology, anatomy and molecular biology of neurons, neural circuits, and glial ...

Dave Soldier David Sulzer (born November 6, 1956) is an American neuroscientist and musician. He is a professor at Columbia University Medical Center in the departments of psychiatry, neurology, and pharmacology. Sulzer's laboratory investigates the interact ...

. They have released three CDs on the Mulatta Records label with an orchestra ranging in size from six to fourteen elephants. The orchestra currently performs for visitors at the center.

Background

It has been noted since ancient times that elephants seem to have an affinity for music. Performing circus elephants commonly follow musical cues, and early American circuses such as

Adam Forepaugh Adam John Forepaugh (born Adam John Forbach; February 28, 1831 – January 22, 1890) was an American horse trader and circus owner. From 1865 through 1890 his circus operated under various names including Forepaugh's Circus, Forepaugh's Gigantic ...

and Barnum & Bailey even featured "elephant bands." In the 1950s, German evolutionary biologist Bernard Rensch found that elephants can distinguish 12 tones on the musical scale and remember simple melodies, even when played on different instruments at various pitches, timbres, and meters. Three albums of music created by elephant musicians was conceived by New York-based musical artist Dave Soldier (a.k.a. David Sulzer, PhD) and elephant expert Richard Lair, who works at the Thai Elephant Conservation Center in Lampang.

Traditional Thai music The music of Thailand reflects its geographic position at the intersection of China and India, and reflects trade routes that have historically included Africa, Greece and Rome. Traditional Thai musical instruments are varied and reflect ancien ...

is a genre familiar to the elephants, so they chose Thai music scales with a few blues notes. According to Lair, many of the elephants took to their assignment "with gusto".

Music

The Thai Elephant Orchestra primarily uses the ''Lanna'' Thai five-note scale, and most instruments are heavy-duty versions of

traditional Thai musical instruments Traditional Thai musical instruments ( th, เครื่องดนตรีไทย, ) are the musical instruments used in the traditional and classical music of Thailand. They comprise a wide range of wind, string, and percussion instruments ...

; additional instruments include drums and harmonica. Their musical works are of two general types. The first type, which are on the recordings, features the elephants individually improvising on the instruments with the only human interaction being cues as to when to start and stop. The other type is compositional and requires

mahout A mahout is an elephant rider, trainer, or keeper. Mahouts were used since antiquity for both civilian and military use. Traditionally, mahouts came from ethnic groups with generations of elephant keeping experience, with a mahout retaining h ...

s to teach or train the elephants to perform human tunes as a

hocket In music, hocket is the rhythmic linear technique using the alternation of notes, pitches, or chords. In medieval practice of hocket, a single melody is shared between two (or occasionally more) voices such that alternately one voice sounds wh ...

, with each elephant playing an individual note on angalungs: there is only one such piece, "Chang, Chang, Chang". ;Discography * (2002) – ''The Thai Elephant Orchestra'' * (2005) – ''Elephonic Rhapsodies'' * (2011) – ''Water Music''

References

External links

* — Story, photos and 4-part documentary
Kinship with Animals : Thai Elephant Orchestra
article by Dave Soldier
2013 Interview with Dave Soldier on Thai Elephant Orchestra on BBC

2013 Interview about ''The Thai Elephant Orchestra''
NPR: ''

All Things Considered ''All Things Considered'' (''ATC'') is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio (NPR). It was the first news program on NPR, premiering on May 3, 1971. It is broadcast live on NPR affiliated stations in the United ...

'' by Jacki Lyden
Interview on WNYC Radio
by

John Schaefer John Schaefer is an American radio host and author. A longtime host at WNYC, Schaefer began hosting the influential radio shows ''New Sounds'' in 1982 and ''Soundcheck'' in 2002, and has produced many different programs for other New York Public ...

The Thai Elephant Orchestra
in ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...

'' {{Authority control Zoomusicology Individual elephants Thai musical groups Animals in entertainment Elephants in Thailand