Andrea Clearfield in Nepal

Follow the amazing journey of Project Encore Composer Andrea Clearfield, who is trekking through the Himalayas on a musicological  mission to record the folk music of Royal Court Singer Tashi Tsering:

 

I departed on May 23 for the Kingdom of Nepal...

After sending several days in Kathmandu, the capital city, Anthropologist Katey Blumenthal and I embarked on a trek  to the northern region of Lo Monthang in Upper Mustang, located in the Himalayas near the border of Tibet. We trekked on foot from Jomsom (a small town located northwest of Kathmandu) to Lo Monthang, arriving last week. We are presently recording the traditional music of the region. This photo is the area en route along the Kali Gandaki river.

In this remote region...

one of the last remaining enclaves of pure Tibetan culture (closed to foreigners until recently), Kathy and I plan to record the folk music of Royal Court Singer Tashi Tsering. His repertoire of 150 songs that tell stories of the people, the land and the culture has not yet been documented. Tashi Tsering is in poor health and so our project is timely.

About Lo Monthang

Documentaries on the area to which I am traveling--Lo Monthang (also known as the Forbidden Kingdom, or Shangri-La)--are available on the PBS website:

The next phase of the project...

will involve transcribing the songs into a songbook that will be published in Tibetan, Nepali and English. We are grateful for the funding provided by the Rubin Foundation (dedicated to the study and preservation of Himalayan culture) and to The University of the Arts (Faculty Enrichment grant) for making this project possible. Network for New Music has commissioned me to write a chamber work based on the Tibetan folk music for premiere on 11/21/10 in Philadelphia, along with “Lung-Ta (The Windhorse)”, a collaborative work based on a previous trek to Lo Monthang. 

After 6 weeks in Nepal...

I will depart for Bavaria where I have been invited to speak about the field research at the Oberpfalzer Kunstlerhaus in Schwandorf, Germany, where I will also be composer in residence.  Later summer destinations include improvisational dance in Arcosanti, Arizona with Group Motion and Aspen, Colorado. 

I am also most grateful...

to the American Composers Forum for awarding me a Fellowship at the American Academy in Rome, where I will be living and composing next fall, departing after the September 26th Anniversary Salon.

If you are interested in seeing photos...

from my last trek to Lo Monthang, click here to go to the Gallery page on my website. Click on the small icon at bottom left – choose the Nepal/Lung-Ta Trek slideshow. An excerpt of the music of Lung-Ta that I composed plays in the background.

Wishing you all a wonderful summer!

I will try to post updates on my travels on Facebook and look forward to seeing you upon my return.