Come and experience the varied regional styles of the Tibetan dranyen (སྒྲ་སྙན་ lute) from the master musician and multi-instrumentalist, Tenor (Tenzin Norbu). The dranyen is played across the central, southern and western areas of the vast Tibetan Buddhist Himalaya in dance-songs performed for ceremonial occasions and entertainment by community and itinerant musicians. Both a melodic and a percussive instrument, its name means ‘sweet sound’. Tenor will also demonstrate the piwang (པི་ཝང་ fiddle) played with the dance-songs of eastern Tibet.
Tenzin Norbu is a distinguished Tibetan musician, educator, and cultural advocate, dedicated to preserving and evolving traditional Tibetan performing arts. Born in Lhasa, Tibet, in 1982, he relocated to India at the age of 11. His deep passion for Tibetan music began early in life, leading him to actively participate in school-based cultural programs and extracurricular activities. He joined TIPA in 2004, specializing in traditional Tibetan instruments including the dranyen, piwang, flute, and gyumang. He also learned Western guitar, bass, and piano, the Chinese erhu, and self-studied digital audio workstations. In 2014, Mr. Norbu relocated to New York City.