Authors : Kasama Prasongcharoen, Angthong Bunserm and Supunnee Luaboonchu
Abstract: Ja-khe is a Thai stringed instrument that has been popular since the Ayutthaya period. This research aims to study, the Ja-khe teachers original and present knowledge to study, teachings and impart of Ja-khe musical skills in colleges of fine arts in Thailand under ministry of culture and to gather the knowledge and develop improvements to the teaching Ja-khe musical arts of Ja-khe teachers in Thailand. Research results have found that traditional teachers emphasized the basic skills while, the present teachers emphasized only playing the songs in the curriculum. This makes the students lack of the basic musical knowledge and skills. Traditional imparting of Ja-khe music was a person-to-person teaching method, memory-based teaching method and a teacher-imitating teaching method. By contrast, the present teachers used a person-to-person or group teaching method, practical and theoretical method, technology, based their teaching methods on modern classical notes. The current teachings of the Ja-khe today make the songs lack musical aesthetic and pleasantness. Strategies to improve the teaching the Ja-khe are improvements to traditional Ja-khe musical arts, which emphasized the traditional ways and patterns of teaching method for playing the Ja-khe. It will benefit the students, the teachers, the curriculum and the management in Dramatic arts colleges in Thailand qualitatively, because of its high standard and long tested success based on the indigenous knowledge of tradition Ja-khe teachers.
Kasama Prasongcharoen, Angthong Bunserm and Supunnee Luaboonchu, 2009. Developing Teaching Methods of the Ja-khe by Utilizing the Indigenous Knowledge of Traditional Thai Ja-khe Music Teachers of the College of Fine Arts in Thailand. The Social Sciences, 4: 448-452.