Kaen, Professional Grade in Am

The Khaen (or Khene) is a traditional free-reed mouth organ from Laos and Northeast Thailand (Isaan region). It is made of multiple bamboo pipes of varying lengths, inserted into a wooden windchest with a blowpipe attached. Each pipe contains a small metal  free reed near its base. This professional-grade model uses a silver alloy in its reeds.

The khaen is central to Lao and Isaan folk music, especially the lively molam genre. It’s often played solo for song accompaniment, in pairs, or with ensembles featuring fiddles, drums, and singers. It’s also recognized by UNESCO as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (inscribed in 2017).

Sound Production

• Holes in some of the pipes allow you to control which notes sound; others always sound when you blow or draw air if their holes are covered.
• The player blows or inhales through the windchest — the khaen sounds both on exhalation and inhalation.
• By covering or uncovering the finger holes, you let certain pipes vibrate.
• It produces a continuous, drone-like, reedy tone, often compared to an accordion or harmonica but with a more organic bamboo resonance.
  

Comes with a cloth bag.

Sound Sample