The Virtual Party

Mishig took video of the singers in each of our recording sessions. This provided a means for establishing rapport with each new family and singer. 

In fact, everyone was more than eager to see and hear those who had already sung for us. The elderly lady who showed up with such enthusiasm in Bayanzurkh unwittingly performed for her friends throughout the valley, by way of Mishig's videocamera. Of all those we had recorded, people requested her by name more than any other! It was an especially heartwarming moment when we showed that video to the author/poet who had actually written one of the songs she sang. Her many friends scattered about the region all saw her... by the end of the trip I was wishing we could return to share their songs with her, but that would have to wait. 

Thus we had an increasingly large entourage of singers - a virtual party - traveling digitally with us in this remote region. 

It became clear to me that the Darhad people are a well-defined community, even if they live in small towns or even smaller clusters of camps in various corners of this valley. The Darhad number approximately 13,000. They are not the smallest ethnic group in Mongolia; the 400 Dukha, or reindeer herders (who also share the northern part of this valley), may claim that distinction. The Darhad know each other. They know who the poets are, who sings, and who lives where during the winter and summer. Some of the songs pay tribute to (or tease about) people they know, characters who have lived among them and ultimately joined the collective consciousness.