Khogzhumchu Tuvan Throat singers at Goucher

Have you ever heard of Xoomei, also known as throat singing or overtone singing? Imagine that one person is playing a didgeridoo while one or two others are singing melodic tones. Now imagine that all of these sounds are being sung by one person at the same time! This unique musical tradition originates from and reflects the vast Central Asian steppes of Tuva, where the sounds of xoomei could travel over many miles.

Goucher College will be graced with a performance by Khogzhumchu, a new and flourishing quartet of throat singers on their first tour of America. Formed in 2007 and led by the accomplished Andrey Mongush, this post-Soviet generation of Tuvan musicians has already appeared before the Dalai Lama in India at the first Annual Festival of Buddhist Culture of Russia and Mongolia as well as performed at the Ocean of Compassion ethno-rock festival in Moscow.

Come listen and learn about Khogzhumchu and Tuva in the Hyman Auditorium of the Athenaeum on Monday, October 5th at 8:00 pm. Also free and open to the public, at 4:00 pm October 5th, Khogzhumchu will be sharing their tradition in a workshop format in Goucher College’s Heubeck Multipurpose Room.

This visit to Goucher is sponsored by the Goucher College Live Music House; the Departments of Music, Peace Studies, and Sociology/Anthropology; and the Cultural Sustainability Program.

Khogzhumchu’s tour would not have been possible without the support of the Open World Cultural Leaders Program and National Council for the Traditional Arts (NCTA).