Music

Like other regions of the country, southern Thailand has it own traditional musical instruments and folk songs.

The 'tapon', used in the Thai orchestra ('mahori'), is a southern percussion instrument. The 'tapon' is important in controlling the tempo of the music being played.

'Krue toh' is an unusual instrument made from hollowed-out coconuts, over which a piece of split bamboo is placed. This is beaten with a thick stick wrapped in rubber to create the instrument's unusual sound. 'Krue toh' is very popular at Narathiwat in the far south of the country.

Southern folk songs are very often related to the agrarian way of life of the people. The singers, very often paired male and female performers, must be quick witted and able to improvise in songs such as 'pleng na', and 'pleng bok'.

'Pleng na' is a local song of Chumphon originating from the days when it was played in rice fields during the harvest season as a courtship ritual. Today it is performed on occasions such as the Thai New Year, ordinations, house-warmings, weddings and even funerals.

'Phleng bok', literally 'herald song', is indigenous to Southern Thailand, particularly around Chumphon, Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Trang and Songkhla. It is usually performed at Songkran to tell the people that a new year is here, or to relate a story. Groups of singers, each usually consisting of a main singer and four to six others, do the rounds at dusk to bring news to the people using the local dialect.

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