The kèn () is an instrument used in traditional Vietnamese music. It has a

double reed A double reed is a type of reed used to produce sound in various wind instruments. In contrast with a single reed instrument, where the instrument is played by channeling air against one piece of cane which vibrates against the mouthpiece and ...

and a conical wooden body. It produces a powerful and penetrating high-pitched sound, similar to the Chinese ''

suona The ''suona,'' also called ''dida,'' laba or ''haidi'', is a traditional double-reeded Chinese musical instrument. The ''suona's'' basic design originated in ancient Iran, then called " Sorna". It appeared in China around the 3rd century and ...

'', the Korean ''

taepyeongso The ''taepyeongso'' (), also called ''hojok'', ''hojeok'' 호적 號笛/wikt:胡, 胡wikt:笛, 笛, ''nallari'', or ''saenap'', wikt:嗩, 嗩wikt:吶, 吶, is a Korean double reed wind instrument in the shawm or oboe family. It is possibly desce ...

'', the Thai ''Pi'', and the Persian/Indian ''

shehnai The ''shehnai'' is a type of oboe from the Indian subcontinent. It is made of wood, with a double reed at one end and a metal or wooden flared bell at the other end. It was one of the nine instruments found in the royal court. The shehnai is sim ...

''. Its musical context resembles that of the oboes played by the

Tai peoples Tai peoples are the populations who speak (or formerly spoke) the Tai languages. There are a total of about 93 million people of Tai ancestry worldwide, with the largest ethnic groups being Dai people, Dai, Thai people, Thai, Isan people, Isan, ...

, who call it the "Pí Lè", and the

Muong people The Mường (Muong language, Mường Bi dialect: ''mõl Mường''; ) are an ethnic group native to northern Vietnam. The Mường is the country's third largest of 53 minority groups, with an estimated population of 1.45 million (according ...

, who call it the "Bi". The name "Kèn" is also used to informally refer to Gourd mouth organs. The best-known player of the ''kèn'' is the award-winning musician Nguyễn Ngọc Khánh (b. 1956), who is acknowledged as a "national treasure" in Vietnam, where he is known as "Khánh of the kèn."

Varieties

* Kèn bầu - with a wooden bell carved in a gourd shape; comes in several sizes * Kèn đám ma - with a metal bell; used for funerals in northern Vietnam

References

External links

lotusandlightning.com
(A page with streaming audio samples of Nguyễn Ngọc Khánh playing the kèn) Double-reed instruments Vietnamese musical instruments {{DoubleReed-instrument-stub