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Video: Birdsong | The dying whistled language of the Hmong people in northern Laos

Exploring the whistling traditions of the Hmong people of northern Laos, whose language straddles the boundary between music and speech, this film witnesses a collision of ancient tradition with modern urban life. With urbanisation and the advent of modern technology rapidly replacing this culture, Hmong whistling is dying out. The video tells the stories of three individuals from Long Lan village as they reflect on their experience as practitioners of a vanishing musical language.

Director: Omi Zola Gupta

Running time: 18 minutes

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Stillshot from video

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5 comments on “Video: Birdsong | The dying whistled language of the Hmong people in northern Laos

  1. rosemaryboehm
    December 9, 2023
    rosemaryboehm's avatar

    Fascinating. Beautiful. Stirrs a longing…

    Like

  2. Loranneke
    December 9, 2023
    Laure-Anne's avatar

    I loved this — and how the man lives by the different times for birdsong — how he believes people in the cities are “no longer romantic because they can’t hear birds sing”… How whistling with a leaf allows the men of that province to tell their love stories to the birds, forest and skies (and the absent, far away or deceased loves)

    Like

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