A Trip To Mongolian Music
My first introduction to Mongolian music was The Hu, a Mongolian folk metal band. Their song, 'Wolf Totem' is my favorite song to listen to before hard workouts and competitions! However, this is not the true glory that is the traditional music of Mongolia. If you haven't had the pleasure of hearing about the history of Mongolia, it is deeply intertwined with horses. An entire empire was created from the back of a horse. Even the most popular instrument is a two-stringed instrument topped by a horse head! Sounds cool right? This instrument is called a Morin Khuur and though it resembles a cello in the way it is played, it is firmly and completely rooted in Mongolia. Legend has it that the first of this magnificent instrument was made from one of the fastest horses. It could travel great distances in an instant but one day the man who rode it found the horse dead and in his grief made an instrument out of its tendons, bones, hair, and head. He ...