Part Eight: Tuva

Quick facts about Tuva

Population: 310,000 (1998 est.)
Capital: Kyzyl
Ethnic Groups: Tuvan 64%, Russian 32%, Other 4%
Religions: Lamaism (a branch of Buddhism)
Languages: Russian, Tuvan

Tuva is the only region in my Central Asian guide that is still part of Russia. As the map above notes, Tuva is situated on the Mongolian border, within shouting distance of Kazakhstan and China. As you might expect, Tuvan culture is remarkably similar to Mongolian and Kazak, with a large percentage of the population devoted to nomadic herding.

Of course, there are some differences, especially since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Kazakhstan's post-independence history has been relatively successful; it has welcomed (to some extent) western investment and influence, and the country's future looks bright. Mongolia's recent history, on the other hand, has been a struggle: to build an infrastructure, to feed its people, and to reassert its own identity after years of de-facto Soviet control. Tuva's post-Soviet life falls somewhere between these two extremes. Tuva is, after all, still part of Russia, so when there are problems in Moscow (economic, military, etc), those problems also effect Tuva. However, Tuvans have benefited from the fall of the USSR in one significant way: they are now free to communicate with (and travel to) the west.

During Soviet times, Tuva was isolated from most of the rest of the world. The famous physicist and Novel laureate, Richard Feynman, spent years trying (and failing) to gain permission to visit Tuva. However, his friend, Ralph Leighton, did manage to obtain permission to travel shortly after Feynman's death. He wrote the book, Tuva or Bust!, about the pair's obsession with this magical place. That was back in the 1970s and 1980s, during the cold war. Today, adventurers, following in Feynman and Leighton's wake, are beginning to discover this distant, mysterious land.

It's ironic, then, that this tiny sliver of Central Asia would be so much better known in the west than other, larger areas. One reason is, clearly, Feynman's obsession and Leighton's book, which (to some extent) inspired the formation of a Friends of Tuva society, dedicated to spreading the word about this wonderful, beautiful, and peaceful corner of the world. Another, possibly bigger, reason for all this attention is the region's music. Whereas most Central Asian musicians are virtually unknown in the west, Tuvan music has actually made some inroads in popular culture in the United States and Europe, to the point that Tuvan groups like Huun-Huur-Tu regularly perform here, and a documentary was made about the American blues musician Paul Pena learning Tuvan throat singing and then traveling to Tuva to compete in a throat-singing competition. The movie, Genghis Blues, is a wonderful introduction to Central Asian music; I highly recommend it.

Oddly, Tuvan music isn't really that different from the music of Kazakhstan, Mongolia, or even the Xinjiang province of northwestern China (also known as Chinese Turkestan): nomadic folk tunes, horsehead fiddles, throat singing, and so on. But somehow, for whatever reason, Tuvan music is singled out as exemplary. This is, in part, because of throat or overtone singing, a technique whereby a singer simultaneously emits two or even three notes: one low-pitched, one high-pitched, and occasionally another one in between the two. It's an incredibly difficult technique to master, which makes it an ideal distraction from the solitary, isolated life of a nomadic herder. It's also undeniably beautiful, a cross between the sounds of a strong breeze and a whistle.

Another reason that I think Tuvan music has caught on (to some extent) in the west is the simple fact that Tuva is still part of a European country, Russia. True, Tuva is all Asian, but being part of Russia means Tuvans have greater access to news and information about the west and about popular cultures in other parts of the world. Add to this the fact that most Tuvans are not Moslem but Buddhist, a religion that is undeniably more tolerated and appreciated in Europe and America than Islam, and you have the recipe for a musical culture that has no problems selling its brand of art to the world at large.

Yes, there are women in Central Asia. Some of them even play and sing music (though few women go in for throat singing). This is courtesy of Sami Jansson's web site.