Evolution of the Morin Khuur

 Evolution of the Morin Khuur

One of my favorite genres of music is Mongolian Folk Metal, due to its rich, deep, and powerful style of music.  This genre of music combines the traditional aspects of Mongolian history and storytelling with today's modern metal flare.  A key piece of this music is the traditional Mongolian instrument, the Morin Khuur or the Horse Head Fiddle.

 

Historically, the origin of the Morin Khuur is described by Mongolian folklore and legends.  One example is the Legend of Khokhoo Namjil.  Khokhoo Namjil was a horse shepherd known for his lovely singing voice but was drafted into the army.  Towards the end of his service, while tending to the horses, a beautiful and mystical woman riding a black horse emerged from the lake waters where Khokhoo Namjil was watering his horses.  She told him how her parents sent her and took him to meet them.  After the introductions were made, her parents asked Khokhoo Namjil to sing for them.  Upon doing so, the parents requested that Khokhoo Namjil marry their daughter.  He accepted but asked them how he was to visit when he lived so far away.  The daughter gifted him a pale brown horse with wings that could fly him to see her at night and bring him back home during the day.  This affair lasted for months before Khokhoo Namjil’s first wife became suspicious and caught him returning on his winged horse.  This sight scared her, and she cut the winged horse’s throat.  Devistated that he could no longer see his beautiful second wife, he carved the head of his beloved horse out of wood, fixed it to a violin, and used it to recreate the sound of his horse running across the fields.  Thus, creating the Morin Khuur.

 

While there is no one set story that tells where the Morin Khuur came from, historians and musical experts all agree that the Morin Khuur is meant to show respect and appreciation for the horse.  This respect and appreciation does not only show in the decorative horse head on top of the instrument but throughout its whole construction.  This instrument has a soundbox with two strings, one large string, and one smaller string.  In traditional construction, the larger string, or male string was made from 130 hairs from a stallion’s tail.  While the smaller string or female string was made from 105 hairs from a mare’s tail.  The frame was also wrapped in either horse, goat, camel, or sheep skin.  Horsehair was also used in the construction of the bow and finished with larch or cedar wood resin.  Nowadays, the horse hairs have been replaced with nylon strings, the animal skin finish has been removed, and the soundbox has carved F-holes similar to European instruments.

Traditional Morin Khuur

Modern Morin Khuur

The Morin Khuur has played a key role in traditional Mongolian music and dance festivals for centuries.  It wasn’t until Mr. G. Jamiyan, also known as the Master of Mongolian Music, came around and modernized Mongolian music.  He taught the traditional way of holding the Morin Khuur and expanded on new ways of fingering the strings to increase the capabilities of the instrument.  He is also known for opening the first professional Khuur class.  After 1930 the musicians that he taught began playing Mongolian music all over the world.  The greatest accomplishment for Mongolian music was in 1992 when the Mongolian Presidential Morin Khuur Ensemble was created.  It consisted of 30 professionally trained Khuur musicians and played in over 30 countries. 

 

While traditional Mongolian music has been introduced to the rest of the world by the Mongolian Presidential Morin Khuur Ensemble, another musical group formed in 2016 bringing Mongolian music to a larger audience.  The Hu.  They took traditional Mongolian folk music and threw in modern metal aspects, creating a whole new sound that is sweeping the world.

 

This musical example demonstrates how the Morin Khuur is played traditionally.  As you can see, it is played in a seated position where the musical work is done by the articulation of the bow and the fingering of the strings.  While fingering the strings changes the notes, the bow work gives the music incredible articulation using accents and vibrato.  Because of its peaceful and calm tones, the Morin Khuur can be used not only for Mongolian folk music but for classical music as well.

 

Now this is a more modern use of the Morin Khuur.  The Hu combine traditional Mongolian music and add Western metal to it making a whole new sound.  In the first minute of the video, the Khuur can be seen being played similarly as the traditional example above.  Steady bow and finger work, subtle accents on certain notes, and a calm peaceful timbre.  At about the two-minute mark, the Khuur begins to demonstrate metal aspects.  The fingerwork begins to speed up and the bowwork becomes more aggressive.  These changes give The Hu the metal vibe they wanted to combine with their traditional music.  As the song continues, the melody increases, and the Morin Khuur can be seen being played more aggressively similarly to how an electric guitar is played by rock bands.

 

While the Morin Khuur may be many centuries old, its importance and relevance has not died out in the Mongolian culture.  Whether it is used for a traditional music and dance festival or for a metal concert, the world will continue to see great music made by the Morin Khuur.

Work Cited

“Everything About.” INDY GUIDE, indyguide.com/article/everything-about-the-hu-band. Accessed 16 Oct. 2024.

“Morin Khuur’s History and Evolution from XII Century.” Mongulai, 17 June 2024, mongolianstore.com/morin-khuur-origin/?srsltid=AfmBOoqeNlMWxVoQS4jvxgdglGGT_TJZ5tPmb09psuZEpEG2FkyEmrNz.

“Morin Khuur.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 21 Aug. 2024, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morin_khuur.

“The Hu.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Oct. 2024, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hu.

“Tale #3 – the Legend of Khokhoo Namjil.” Telling All Kinds of Tales..., 1 May 2010, taletellerin.wordpress.com/2010/04/18/3-the-legend-of-khokhoo-namjil/.