The International Council for Traditions of Music and Dance (ICTMD) is a global scholarly organization dedicated to the study, documentation, and promotion of music and dance traditions worldwide. Originally founded in 1947 as the International Council for Traditional Music (ICTM), it was renamed in 2023 to reflect its commitment to both music and dance research. ICTMD fosters interdisciplinary collaboration among ethnomusicologists, dance scholars, and practitioners through conferences, study groups, and publications, supporting the study, practice, documentation, preservation, and dissemination of diverse music and dance traditions across cultures. The 48th ICTMD World Conference was held in Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand, from 9 to 15 January 2025, bringing together scholars, performers, and practitioners from diverse backgrounds to explore global perspectives on music and dance. Notably, this marked the first time the ICTMD World Conference was hosted in New Zealand. Organized by Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington, and Te Kōkī, the New Zealand School of Music, the conference aimed to foster interdisciplinary dialogue, showcase new research, and strengthen connections between academia and performing arts communities.

This study explores the historical and cultural journey of the ching, a traditional Thai musical instrument, within the broader context of Asian musical cultures. Using archaeological findings, historical documentation, and field interviews, the researchers trace the diffusion and adaptation of the ching from its origins along the Silk Road to its contemporary significance in Thailand. The analysis reveals how the ching has become a symbol of national Thai identity, undergoing local transformations that reflect the dynamic interactions between indigenous practices and foreign influences. By examining the ching’s role in various regional ensembles and its physical and acoustical variance, this paper highlights the instrument’s impact on the preservation of cultural heritage and the ongoing dialogue between tradition and global influences in Thai music. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of the sociocultural dynamics that shape musical identities in a globalized context.

The often as “ornamental” syllables named language elements refer to song-text particles, sometimes also named ‘vocables’, or appellations interspersed among the lyrics during the actual singing process of the singer. It appears to some extent in the Zhuang singer's singing of songs in various regions. Unfortunately, these syllables are often overlooked in textual records because most of them cannot be interpreted in terms of their actual lexical meaning when they are independent of the wording of the phrase. The specific expressions of the singers play an essential role and are an inseparable part of Zhuang songs. If the core text of the lyrics is like the beam of the house, then the vocables are the bricks of the wall. The combination of the two can build a house of Zhuang songs. Based on audio data of Zhuang songs collected the border and junction areas of western Guangxi, this study compares the difference between the songbook texts written by the singers that need a memory tool and the actual singing syllables used. For that, the authors interviewed the singers, analyzing the changes produced in sound by the vocables or short sentences in the singing process and summarizing their laws and functions within the singing events.

In a consistently advancing world, the practice of ‘ozyn kѳy’ has become subject to different changes in the deduction of Tatar music. Beginning, as implied in this article, in Tengri ethereal aspect, ‘ozyn kѳy’ may have been then impacted by the Islamic custom of Koran recitations, its melismatic designs, along with parts of the munajat type (which itself experienced different changes). As a result, it is essential to acknowledge that the current version of ‘ozyn kѳy’carries the marks of both the extensive shamanic culture of the Tengri people and the undeniably flourishing Islamic tradition. The rich practice contains plenty of different impacts and multicultural examples, yet antiquated custom structures its very center. Subsequently, it very well may be acknowledged that, compelling stylistics, figurative symbolism, topical substance of affection and high virtues, and, surprisingly, a few parts of the melismatic singing might start from the old Bulgar (Volga) legacy of Tatar culture, as opposed to being totally acquired from the Islamic and Arabo-Persian culture.

This study focuses on a contemporary art work called Mediasi Ukiran – Tenunan VIII for String Quartet composed by Tazul Izan Tajuddin. The researcher highlights the concept of Islamic art, technique in the content, technique in the form, and the meaning of an ‘arabesque’. Compositional techniques were discussed in terms of: (1) pattern-based technique; (2) weaving as the concept of combining pitch and rhythm; and (3) a non-pitch-based concept of sound. The discussion includes the concept of geometrical design, which is reflected in the compositional structure. TTazul J.he weaving concept used in the music piece regards pitch and rhythm, and the concept of sound integrates pitches and non-pitches in the work. There are two main sources of contemporary art music in this study, which are Indo-Malay in ethnic essence and Islamic architectural and geometrical art. Mediasi Ukiran – Tenunan VIII is written for classical instruments, namely for a string quartet, though the concept of sound, composition, or better, the organization of materials, and the notation are made from combinations of some Eastern and Western ideas jointly creating a rather rarely appearing effect.

The second Official Symposium of the ICTM Study Group on Global History of Music was held in Palermo, Sicily, from 7 to 9 June 2023, under the title ‘An entire ocean in a drop of water’: Island Musics, Performance Identities, and Sound Archives. More than fifty scholars and researchers from all over the world came together in eleven sessions and three panels to discuss some of the most relevant topics of our time in the field of ethnomusicological studies, such as the function and value of archives, the musical traditions of the diasporas, and the historical dimension of music in prevalent oral tradition and mentality. The three days of the symposium held in Palermo were marked by an in-depth examination of cross-cutting themes, to which scholars from seventeen different countries contributed, including Russia, Italy, Azerbaijan, Canada, Germany, Austria, Portugal, Argentina, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, Ireland, China, the United States, Albania, Kyrgyzstan, the United Kingdom, and Malaysia. Some participants delivered their papers through online presentations, while most of them gathered to share the results of their latest research.

The present review focuses on the vision, philosophy, and methodology of C. de S. Kulatillake’s exemplary contribution to the subject. The methodology of this study is based on a qualitative approach narrative method, and information was collected through interviews, records, autobiographies, and various reports and books written by Kulatillake. Seven in-depth semistructured interviews were carried out at the University of the Visual and Performing Arts, Colombo 07, Sri Lanka, in September and November 2022. The participants were senior academic members and a scientific officer at C. de S. Kulatillake Research Centre. As a sampling method, nonprobability purposive sampling was used. The data were evaluated using content analysis. Kulatillake has always approached folk music from a scientific standpoint, linking it to ethnomusicology. He discovered 36 indigenous singing styles unique to Sri Lanka. According to Kulatillake, the Sri Lankan double-read instrument horanewa is a West Asian migrant. The individuality of Sinhala drum music, its peculiar rhythms that do not match the Indian “tal” systems, and Sinhala drum music is an incredibly remarkable performance style incomplete sentence. He discovered that the strange aspect of the visama nadi (irregular pulse) movement in Sri Lankan drum music is a unique style and should be accepted as a great feature inherited from the folk music of this country. Kulatillake traced cultural identity and pride; documented, taught, and presented it to national and international audiences; and preserved it for future generations, according to the study. A separate study focusing on trailblazers who used music education as a safeguarding measure would be a worthwhile investigation that would both enrich and broaden the findings of this study.

In contrast to the idea that the modernization of playing styles has unleashed the expressive potential of the pipa, this article suggests, through the individual case study of Wu Man, that traditional styles are essential to the numerous successful premieres of pipa concertos globally. It offers the experiences of diasporic pipa player Wu Man as an insider’s viewpoint, arguing that the demonstration and emphasis of traditional pipa playing techniques and styles are important to a successful contemporary performance. This article is the first to disclose Wu Man’s experience in how she applies traditional pipa music to the numerous successful premieres of pipa concertos, framing the pipa concerto as just one example of a much wider trend in the musical worldthat of the commissioning and performance of new music for cross-cultural instrumental groups. There are two essential elements to the upkeep of traditional pipa playing: one lies with the composer’s understanding of pipa music in their newly composed pieces and the other lies with the pipa player’s abilities (their mastery of playing techniques, broader experience in various traditional music genres, creativity, and taking on a leading role in playing). Thus, in this article, I will analyze these elements to reveal how a globally successful pipa musician has interpreted and translated the traditional aspects of pipa music in a global world.

Khmer folk music in Southern Vietnam is diverse in its forms and mainly serves religious rites and traditional ceremonies. However, with the trend of increasing integration and exchange, and under the strong and constant influence of the wave of Western civilization, the development and popularity of modern audiovisual media, new and attractive music shows on television and social sites, the folk music of the Khmer in the South is coping with a great deal number of difficulties and challenges. Although changing trends are inevitable, we need solutions to continue promoting the values of Khmer folk music in the South in new conditions and contexts without losing its identity, including training core human resources for this objective. The article focuses on two research objectives: the first is to understand the policies of the government of Vietnam and the results of practical training of human resources to preserve and promote the cultural values of Khmer folk music heritage in the South of Vietnam and the second is to propose solutions in developing and training human resources to preserve and promote the values of Khmer folk music and culture in the South of Vietnam.