Namgyal Lhamo
Encyclopedia
Namgyal Lhamo is an acclaimed exponent of Tibetan traditional singing and Tibetan Opera
, Lhamo
; She is based in Utrecht
, The Netherlands.
Starting at a the age of 8, Namgyal Lhamo, recognized by many as a child prodigy; trained for fourteen years under great masters of Tibetan Opera and Classical Music at the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts
(www.tibetanarts.org) set up by H. H. the Dalai Lama
. She went on to become the star performer of the TIPA. Through this passage she stepped into the tradition of the various kinds of classical and folk music of her country. Her interpretations of the Nangma
and the Toeshe, Tibetan classical songs from the 17th century, have been universally acclaimed and she has been christened The Nightingale
of Tibet.
She toured in 1998 through Holland, Germany and Belgium with Tibet Impressions and participated in global manifestations such as Earth Dance, World Artists for Tibet, the 50th Anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights
and performed at Freedom concerts in Amsterdam
and New York
city alongside acts like The Beastie Boys
, Alanis Morissette
and Björk
.Since the 1980s Namgyal Lhamo lives in the Netherlands
, still pursuing the mission to preserve Tibetan culture through her music.
Namgyal Lhamo performs solo and is accompanied on stage by her voice, the Tibetan lute (Dranyen) and her independent spirit. She also owns the eclectic vegetarian restaurant “De Werfkring” in Utrecht
. Besides her singing, she has developed a unique style of songwriting that is deeply rooted in her Tibetan tradition, free of political discourse but astoundingly powerful in communicating Tibet’s culture in a modern environment.
Her latest albums "Pure" - classical-based Tibetan songs - and "The Enchanted Land" - a collaboration with electronic lounge musician Arnav Srivastava
- have been released worldwide in August 2007.
The first music video release from her upcoming album,the critically acclaimed 'Paradise Lost' made its festival debut by screening in competition at the Asian Hotshots Berlin
film festival
in January 2009 and continues its festival run with screenings at The Tibet Film Festival in London in 2010.
'Paradise Lost' was voted the Best Music Video at the 2009 Tibet
an music awards.
Namgyal Lhamo has independently produced and acted in the film 'Karma' (Dir:Arvind Iyer
) which is currently being distributed across Europe by Scandinavia's VoD channel Glimz.Her debut feature film as lead actor titled 'Drapchi' (Dir:Arvind Iyer
) in the Tibetan language is scheduled for a 2011 release.
The film also stars Lobsang Yonten, Gen Tenzin-la and Chris Constantinou
and has been written by Pooja Ladha Surti, the writer of Indian films, Ek Hasina Thi
and Johnny Gaddaar
.
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
, Lhamo
Lhamo
Lhamo, or Ache Lhamo, which literally means "sister goddess", is a Tibetan folk opera. It is a combination of dances, chants and songs. The repertoire is drawn from Buddhist stories and Tibetan history....
; She is based in Utrecht
Utrecht (city)
Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
, The Netherlands.
Starting at a the age of 8, Namgyal Lhamo, recognized by many as a child prodigy; trained for fourteen years under great masters of Tibetan Opera and Classical Music at the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts
Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts
The Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts was founded by Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama on reaching Dharamsala, India in exile from Tibet in August 1959, it was one of the first institutes set up the Dalai Lama, and was established to preserve Tibetan artistic heritage, especially opera, dance, and...
(www.tibetanarts.org) set up by H. H. the Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
. She went on to become the star performer of the TIPA. Through this passage she stepped into the tradition of the various kinds of classical and folk music of her country. Her interpretations of the Nangma
Nangma
Nangma is a genre of Tibetan dance music closely related to Toeshey. The word Nangma derives from the Persian word Naghma meaning melody. Both a band and a nightclub have been named after it. "Nangma" is the name of a four-person, traditional Tibetan band dedicated to these two styles of music...
and the Toeshe, Tibetan classical songs from the 17th century, have been universally acclaimed and she has been christened The Nightingale
Nightingale
The Nightingale , also known as Rufous and Common Nightingale, is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae...
of Tibet.
She toured in 1998 through Holland, Germany and Belgium with Tibet Impressions and participated in global manifestations such as Earth Dance, World Artists for Tibet, the 50th Anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
and performed at Freedom concerts in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
and New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
city alongside acts like The Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys are an American hip hop trio from New York City. The group consists of Mike D who plays the drums, MCA who plays the bass, and Ad-Rock who plays the guitar....
, Alanis Morissette
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
and Björk
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
.Since the 1980s Namgyal Lhamo lives in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, still pursuing the mission to preserve Tibetan culture through her music.
Namgyal Lhamo performs solo and is accompanied on stage by her voice, the Tibetan lute (Dranyen) and her independent spirit. She also owns the eclectic vegetarian restaurant “De Werfkring” in Utrecht
Utrecht (city)
Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
. Besides her singing, she has developed a unique style of songwriting that is deeply rooted in her Tibetan tradition, free of political discourse but astoundingly powerful in communicating Tibet’s culture in a modern environment.
Her latest albums "Pure" - classical-based Tibetan songs - and "The Enchanted Land" - a collaboration with electronic lounge musician Arnav Srivastava
Arnav Srivastava
Arnav Srivastava is an independent musician and composer. He is based in the city of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Srivastava began learning Indian classical music since the age of 3 and remained interested in music since. He took up DJing at the age of 16 and was exposed to underground dance music...
- have been released worldwide in August 2007.
The first music video release from her upcoming album,the critically acclaimed 'Paradise Lost' made its festival debut by screening in competition at the Asian Hotshots Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
film festival
Film festival
A film festival is an organised, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theaters or screening venues, usually in a single locality. More and more often film festivals show part of their films to the public by adding outdoor movie screenings...
in January 2009 and continues its festival run with screenings at The Tibet Film Festival in London in 2010.
'Paradise Lost' was voted the Best Music Video at the 2009 Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
an music awards.
Namgyal Lhamo has independently produced and acted in the film 'Karma' (Dir:Arvind Iyer
Arvind Iyer
Arvind Iyer is an Independent filmmaker and writer of Indian origin.His family comes from the Tamil Brahmin Palghat Iyer community in Southern India and he is the grand nephew of Justice V.R...
) which is currently being distributed across Europe by Scandinavia's VoD channel Glimz.Her debut feature film as lead actor titled 'Drapchi' (Dir:Arvind Iyer
Arvind Iyer
Arvind Iyer is an Independent filmmaker and writer of Indian origin.His family comes from the Tamil Brahmin Palghat Iyer community in Southern India and he is the grand nephew of Justice V.R...
) in the Tibetan language is scheduled for a 2011 release.
The film also stars Lobsang Yonten, Gen Tenzin-la and Chris Constantinou
Chris Constantinou
Chris Constantinou is an English musician. Famous for being the bass guitarist and backing vocalist for Adam Ant. He is now the lead singer and bassist of the band, The Wolfmen.- Childhood and early bands :...
and has been written by Pooja Ladha Surti, the writer of Indian films, Ek Hasina Thi
Ek Hasina Thi
Ek Hasina Thi is a 2004 Indian psychological thriller film noir by Sriram Raghavan, produced by Ram Gopal Varma, and starring Urmila Matondkar and Saif Ali Khan in the lead roles. The screenplay was by Sriram Raghavan and Pooja Ladha Surti...
and Johnny Gaddaar
Johnny Gaddaar
Johnny Gaddaar , is a 2007 Indian crime thriller noir film written and directed by Sriram Raghavan; produced under the banner Adlabs...
.
Actor
- Drapchi (2010)
- Paradise Lost (2008)
- Karma (2006)
- Seven Dreams of Tibet (2001)
Awards and nominations
- 2006/7:Winner Best female Tibetan singer-Tibetan Music awards.
- 2007:Winner Best female solo artist Tibet/India-International music awards,Musicaid-BroadjamBroadjamBroadjam is a US-based music community website, founded in September 1999. The service is aimed primarily at independent musicians. Users can interact with other artists, enter contests, and collaborate with peers through email, reviews, blogs and other social networking tools...
- 2008:Nominee Best world music act Holland/Belgium-MixedMagazine awards.
- 2009:Winner Best Music Video-Tibetan Music awards.
Discography
- Voices from Tibet (with Gang Chenpa: Papyros, MWCD5005, Music & Words, 2000)
- Songs from Tibet (Papyros MWCD5010, Music & Words, 2005)
- Pure (Silk Road, 2007)
- The Enchanted Land (Silk Road, 2007)
Sources
- http://www.namgyallhamo.com - Official website
- http://www.day-fornight.org/tibetfilmfestival/images/stories/TFFbrochure.pdf
- http://www.thetibetpost.com/en/news/exile/406-tibetan-and-international-artists-honored-at-2009-tibetan-music-awards
- http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0389366/
- http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1499738/
- http://www.drapchithefilm.com
- http://www.facebook.com/drapchi
- http://www.myspace.com/namgyallhamo
- http://www.musictibet.com/awards/
- http://www.asianhotshotsfestival.com/eng/film-programme/competition/short3.php?modus=view&ident=39074
- http://worldmusiccentral.org/article.php/paradise_lost_namgyal_lhamo
- http://www.glimz.net/info.php?individual=10265
- http://insideworldmusic.blogspot.com/2009/04/cd-review-tibets-new-voice.html
- http://insideworldmusic.blogspot.com/2009/04/cd-review-tibets-trip-hop-temptress.html
- http://www.glimz.net/film.php?movieId=1062&title=Karma
- http://thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=19&id=263073&usrsess=1
- http://www.worldmusiccentral.org/article.php/namgyal_lhamo_wins_international_award
- http://www.tibet.ca/en/newsroom/wtn/4984
- http://www.welt-musik.net/?p=867
- http://www.worldmusiccentral.org/article.php/namgyal_lhamo_pure_2007
- http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?id=23619&t=1&c=10
- http://www.musicwords.nl/papyros~artist~Lhamo,%20Namgyal_en.html