Today’s A Journey
through Aesthetic Realms
will be presented
in Khmer and English,
with subtitles in Arabic,
Aulacese (Vietnamese),
Chinese, English,
French, German,
Hungarian, Indonesian,
Italian, Japanese,
Khmer, Korean,
Malay, Mongolian,
Persian, Portuguese,
Russian and Spanish.
Greetings,
cherished viewers,
and welcome to
A Journey through
Aesthetic Realms
on Supreme Master
Television.
On today’s episode,
we have the honor of
visiting the magnificent
Kingdom of Cambodia,
and exploring
the performing arts,
which have had
a particularly important
position in the rich and
glorious cultural tradition
of the nation.
We have three kinds of
(art) forms in Cambodia:
classical,
or traditional form,
and we have a folk form,
and we have
a popular form.
Classical traditional form
is a kind of art form to
represent religious legends.
For example,
like the Apsara dance.
It is a kind of classical form.
But the folk,
form usually tells about
the daily activities
of Cambodia.
For example,
like, coconut dance.
That’s a kind of dance
(where) they use
coconuts shells,
and they have pairs
between boy and girl,
usually they perform it
after harvesting.
So, this is (to) tell about
the happiness that they
got from their rice crops.
And about the popular form,
it is a kind of form that
every Cambodian knows
how to do.
Yes, for example like,
we call “ram vong,”
it is a kind of dance
that everyone knows
how to dance.
Today, Mr. Song Seng,
Project Coordinator of
Cambodian Living Arts,
will share with us about
the dedicated efforts of
this charitable organization
in revitalizing
the traditional performing
arts of Cambodia.
Thank you very much
for coming and wanting
to know more about
Cambodian Living Arts.
Cambodian Living Arts
is an organization
that is working its best
in Cambodia to support
the Cambodian
traditional performing arts.
Our mission is to support
the revival of Cambodian
traditional performing arts
and to inspire
contemporary
artistic expressions.
The organization
was established at a time
when conservational efforts
were urgently needed
to ensure the continuation
of time-honored art forms.
The young generation
can forget
their culture and arts.
That’s why
we have to immediately
help promote our arts.
So I hope
after we educate them
about the arts,
in the future
if they’ve not become
professional artists, but
when they do something
they will remember the arts
that they have learned.
We have been working
to support the arts
for 10 years.
We still have a project
to look for any art forms
that can disappear any time.
The Cambodian Living Arts
was founded by a
Cambodian-born musician,
Mr. Arn Chorn-Pond,
whose visit
to his birth country
more than 10 years ago
introduced a new meaning
into his life.
This organization
was established in 1998
by Arn Chorn-Pond.
At that time he came back
from the US
to meet his music teacher
and he could survive
because (of) the music that
he learnt from that master.
That’s why he just
wanted to come back and
find out about that master,
and just would like to say
thank you (to) that master.
But the year
that he was in Cambodia
and met that master,
that master stopped
doing his profession
as a musician.
So that’s why
Arn Chorn-Pond
worried very much about
the Khmer arts culture,
that (it) could disappear.
So this is the reason
why Arn and his friends
in the US and in Cambodia
tried to make up
this organization.
Mr. Chorn-Pond’s
life-changing Cambodian
trip was the main theme
of the Emmy-nominated
movie,
“The Flute Player.”
Since its establishment,
Cambodian Living Arts
has provided financial and
administrative support to
traditional Khmer artists
like Mr. Chorn-Pond’s
own music teacher
to enable them to pass
their priceless knowledge
to the young generation.
Some children look at our
project, our dance class,
and then they just come in,
and do something
with the master.
But later on, they're very
interested in doing that
by themselves.
I think the kids really
like to see something
beautiful on the stage,
when they saw our
performers on the stage
with beautiful costumes.
After the show,
the kids around there
just always come to me
and come to the master,
and ask, “Where could I
learn this dance or music?
It's beautiful!
I want to be on the stage,
like you,”
or something like that.
So this is one thing that
we can attract the children
to come to learn with us.
I just want to show you
about the Cambodian
Youth Arts Festival
that we are planning
to do in August.
This is one thing
that we want
all the young generations
to come together
from different places,
different art organizations
and share
what they have learned
during the year,
and show also
what they have learned
doing their performance
during the festival.
We’re going to
bring them together
and perform together
and work in
the workshop together
about the arts.
So this is important
about the art.
The art is like
to bring them together
to be friends,
and to help them
think of new strategies
for their lives
in the future as well.
The music instruments
also can generate income
to support their lives
as well.
But we have to find a way
to offer
a very professional, very
valuable performance
to the people.
That’s why the people
will also value the arts.
Cambodian Living Arts
currently supports
16 master artisans and
nearly 300 art students
from all over Cambodia.
Four core programs
are being conducted
to coach young
art-loving Cambodians,
with the goal
of each student
developing a career
by which to earn
her or his livelihood
and at the same time,
become a leader
in preserving
the national heritage.
The teaching program
is a program to invite
the elder masters
to come back and
teach the next generation
what they have learned.
And then we have
a performing program
to encourage our students
who have learned
for a while with the masters
to have a chance to show
what they’ve learned
on the stage to the public.
And also the time that
they can make some profits
from their performance.
This is the thing that,
“Oh, I have never
made any money before,
and now I made it.
So it is a very good skill,
that I could learn.
And I know more about
my culture and also
I have a chance
to make money.”
Something like that.
And then we have
a recording program.
We created a studio to
record all the ancient songs
from the elder masters,
as most of them
are very old now.
And we take
immediate actions
to record those songs
from the masters,
some masters
already passed away,
and all the songs,
all their knowledge
just went with them.
That's why we created this,
and we recorded
all the traditional songs,
music from
all those masters, and
we keep that as an archive
for our future use.
And then,
we have new commission,
a program that we support
even contemporary,
which has grown out of
the traditional art forms.
The top priority of
Cambodian Living Arts
is its teaching program.
Mr. Seng kindly explains
in more details.
Among four programs
that we are having:
teaching, performing,
recording and
new commission,
the teaching program
is the major program
that we have to work,
as we believe that
only the teaching program
can bring back all
the traditional art forms
that have been embedded
for a long time in the past
or that almost disappeared
from this world.
We have masters
that we found so far since
we started this program.
We have 16 masters and
we try to encourage them
to come back to teach,
to pass on
what they have learned
to the next generation.
And we have
about 250 students
with around 10 staff
to work in reviving
the Cambodian
traditional performing arts.
And
in the teaching program,
we have 16 classes
of arts education.
We opened the class
at the place
where the master is living
because we try to
give honor and respect
to the masters,
to revive and to support
the traditional arts.
And another thing,
in the teaching program,
we give some stipend
to the master,
but not only the master,
even the students,
we help them
(with) some small stipend
as an encouragement
for them to come
to learn with us.
And then, now we just
have a new program
to integrate
the arts education
in public schools.
And we support
all the teachers' fee
and we just offer for free
the arts lessons
to public schools.
So, this is what we're doing.
In addition to music,
timeless traditional virtues
and respected customs
are also imparted
to the students.
Every performance
in Cambodia,
before they perform,
usually they do
the blessing ceremony
or we call it
“Pithy Sampeah Krou,”
it means the “praying
to the teacher” ceremony.
It's a kind of
blessing ceremony,
and this ceremony
is usually performed
at the beginning
of the performance,
to pay their respect
to the teachers
who paved the way
for the artists.
And also it conveys
the profound respect
to the teachers,
like to emphasize
the important relationship
between teachers and
students in Cambodian
arts and culture.
Through these
integrative programs,
the intangible assets
of traditional
Khmer music and dances
are more and more
appreciated by Cambodia’s
young generation.
So lastly, I just want to say
thank you very much,
Supreme Master
Television,
for granting me
an interview, as well as
giving me a chance
to tell the world about
Cambodian traditional
performing arts, and
we hope that in the future
the world comes
to learn about our
Cambodian arts culture.
Our sincere thankfulness,
Mr. Arn Chorn-Pond,
for founding such
a wonderful organization,
and Mr. Song Seng,
for sharing with us
the crucial efforts of
Cambodian Living Arts
to revitalize the precious
cultural heritages
of your beautiful nation.
We wish your
dedicated endeavors be
graced with great success.
May Buddha
evermore bless the gentle
Cambodian people.
For more details on
Cambodian Living Arts,
please visit
Caring viewers,
thank you for
sharing a fantastic time
with us today
on A Journey through
Aesthetic Realms.
Up next on
Supreme Master
Television is
Vegetarianism:
The Noble Way of Living,
after Noteworthy News.
May your journey
on Earth be illuminated
with Divine wisdom
and compassion.
Thank you for watching
Supreme Master
Television.
Up next is
Vegetarianism:
The Noble Way of Living,
after Noteworthy News.
Farewell.