Tibetan folk singer comes to More Music

A Tibetan folk singer who made the 250 mile journey from Tibet to Nepal over 18 days on foot to escape Chinese repression more than 10 years ago will perform at the Hothouse on Saturday May 28.

Ngawang Lodup has gone on to great acclaim for his renditions of Tibetan folk songs, performing at the same event as the Dalai Lama and being the subject of a BBC documentary charting his remarkable story.

Featured on the BBC Radio 3 Introducing show for new music, Ngawang comes from a long line of famous Nomadic singers in the Amdo region of Tibet – a beautiful but harsh environment known for fine horses and wild grasslands. He plays traditional nomadic ballads and contemporary Tibetan folk songs performed on electric Mandolin and Dramnyen lute.

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His family herded yaks and sheep and taught Ngawang his unique repertoire of mountain songs from an early age while his brothers taught him the ancient art of the Dramnyen six-string lute which he smuggled into the Buddhist monastery he was required to attend.

He brings a remarkable story of leaving Tibet by walking alone for 18 days and 250 miles across the Himalayas to Kathmandu in Nepal to pursue a life where he could express himself freely.

Interest in Ngawang’s courageous back-story led to a very special invitation to “open” for the Dalai Lama.

Support comes from Deep Cabaret. Tickets cost £10 (£7 concessions) in advance and £12 (£9 concessions) on the door. Tickets at www.moremusic.org.uk/ngawang-lodup.

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