Chapei dang veng

The Chapei Dang Veng (Khmer: ចាប៉ីដងវែង) or chapey (ចាប៉ី) is a Cambodian two-stringed, long-necked guitar that is usually plucked. It has two double courses of nylon strings.[1][2] The top and bottom strings are typically tuned to G and C respectively, with the 12 frets having notes 1 D, 2 E, 3 F, 4 G, 5 A, 6 B, 7 C, 8 D, 9 E, 10 F, 11 G, 12 A.

Portrait of a girl with a chapey, 1880. She was a musician at the Cambodian Royal Palace, where the picture was taken.
Chapei Dang Veng
Kong Nay playing the chapei dong veng, Phnom Penh, 2007
CountryCambodia
DomainsInstrumental music and Performing arts
Reference1165
RegionAsia and the Pacific
Inscription history
Inscription30 November 2016 (11th session)
ListInscribed in 2016 (11.COM) on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding

Chapei Dang Veng is a Cambodian musical tradition closely associated with the life, customs and beliefs of the Cambodian people. It features the chapei (a type of lute often played at cultural festivals) accompanied by singing. Song lyrics range from the educational and a type of social commentary, to satire while incorporating traditional poems, folk tales or Buddhist stories. The tradition is considered to have multiple functions within Cambodian communities, such as safeguarding traditional rituals; transmitting social, cultural and religious knowledge and values; providing exposure to the Old Khmer language; creating a space for social and political commentary; entertaining; connecting generations; and building social cohesion. Apart from musical talent, skills required to be a chapei player include wit, the ability to improvise and be a good storyteller. While performers are generally male, there are no gender restrictions on who can play the chapei. Transmitted orally within families and informal master-apprentice relationships, today the art form is practised by few performers and even fewer masters exist. The Khmer Rouge regime severely affected the bearer population and disrupted transmission of the practice with long-term implications as communities now face the prospect of a tradition that could potentially disappear.[3]

Chapei Dang Veng has been inscribed as World Intangible Heritage in 2016.

See also

References
  1. "South East Asia". ATLAS of Plucked Instruments. Retrieved 2010-07-26.
  2. "The Stringed Instrument Database". Archived from the original on 2011-12-18. Retrieved 2016-05-13.
  3. "Chapei Dang Veng - intangible heritage - Culture Sector - UNESCO". Archived from the original on 2019-06-12. Retrieved 2021-04-02.


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