This dokumentary should be recognized as a award-winning lifetime work about how music can change and affect deeply people, countries and politics in a most severe way. That there's hope and no boundaries for the lifetime everlasting music what can restore people and countries through the world...
This movie was very well done. I still have tears in my eyes. I am so heartbroken for what Cambodians have endured but so inspired by their strength, smiles, and beautiful music.
Rest In peace all of my beloved singers! I adore your contributes to the music of this planet! Thank you for raising your voices and let it last forever. Love from Vietnam
This documnetary was very touching, while also being incredibly sad to watch! Especially regarding the people being torn apart from each other. Music brought them together, and that was stripped away when the government wanted to control everything to an extreme level. The Prince was very flip-floppy with his position in which government he supported. The emphasis on culture and arts started to shift towards militant attitudes that brought the people to a divide. I'm glad the people preserved through a lot of it, despite the chaos going on around them. Thank you for uploading this mastery of a documentary to youtube.
I am amazed, perhaps heartbroken as well, that you failed to mention Pol Pot came to power amidst Cambodia's destabilization as the "secret" Kissinger-Nixon carpet and mine bombings had their intended effects. 1/3 of Cambodia's population was killed during that period. All elements of Western culture where "wiped" away, as the population largely died of starvation while in Pol Pot's concentration camps. After Pol Pot was driven from power a shell of normalization emerged. but the USA's mines continue till today to take their toll. LP's and 45's of this past era. the mish-mash of USA rock, pop, lounge, and country-western music played on USA Armed Forces Radio, was integrated into Khmer music, then came out of walls, floorboards, and other hiding places. That is the history, and the music, this film recounts. If you need a non-textbook introduction to what the USA enabled in Cambodia, read this book: www.amazon.com/When-Broken-Glass-Floats-Growing/dp/0393322106. You may also want to learn the fever of the USA/Cambodian band, Dengue Fever
@@RobertHogner I’ll also mention the fact that this is well explained in the video, Sisamouth and Ros both were enslaved for a few years before they attempted to make a run and their existences were long questioned as many of the Cambodian’s lives were devastated. I was looking at the brighter side of culture and how that can be easily taken away and destroyed when things like war take initiative over society, some many of the western influences altered the Cambodians looks at music and brought a new taste into their lives, thank you.
@@RobertHogner Pol pot is what I implied when I mentioned armed war, Cambodia going into a frenzy from Nixon bombing the Ho Chi Minh trails brought a lot of contraversity from American citizens, propaganda controlled the Cold War during this time, and as the USA's focus on communism brought them into the Vietnam war this attitude furthered many deaths in Cambodia and Vietnam. I didn't mean to come off insensitive when I mentioned the Prince, he didn't have much of a choice as he had to submit to the forces of Pol Pot otherwise he would see his life being taken out of desperation. Western culture made its away over to Cambodia in many forms of music and artistic culture, a lot of which had a profound effect on the youth. 1/3 of the population did get killed and this is very heartbreaking as I mentioned people were stripped away from each other and divided to only become slaves under the authority of Pol Pot as a Socialist society, but the Prince wanted a mix of Capitalism and Socialism, not outright one or the other. If you want to continue a discussion, I'm all ears and I look forward from hearing from you once more, the book you sent looks very interesting and I'd be more than willing to give it a read, thank you and I wanted to clarify what I said as it may have been interpreted the wrong way as a prop piece, however my intentions are purely to explain how I feel about the people and their decimated culute and lost memories of people and villages. Thank you. The genocide fields and prisons are dishearting. Villages left with very few left in them, and 260,000 Cambodians fled to France and the USA to get away from the trouble that was Pol Pot's decimation of the Cambodian People's. He overthrew Lon Nol to take power and abused that power to his liking which continued for 3 years until it was too late where 1/4 of the entire population was gone in less than 5 years. Its horrifying to think about.
Beautiful history. I grow up in America when I was 5. I learn part of our culture through sinsisamuth songs. Ultimately learn the Khmer language and singing through it. sanity my legend. Watching this bring hearts and tears to my soul. Thank you for posting.
I’m so glad to be Cambodian, and it’s so sad that most of my family that I never get to meet them. They died during that time it’s so tragic, but some of my family and my parents have survived there I know what they’re going through I understood. Also it’s so sad that a lot of famous singer like Sinn Sisamouth, Ros Sereysothea, and Pen Ron (more) were killed there in the Khmer Rouge is still heartbroken! (RIP Khmer the Legacy)
The wonderful of Cambodia and the wonderful of Cambodian people had been torn apart because of one person who wanted to be in power and fame. The people of Cambodia paid the ultimate price their lives, torn the family apart when I am watching this documentary film it makes me very sick and very angry I can’t forget I love the soul of Cambodian music the legend singers the golden voices of many singers…..
Pol Pat came to power amidst the carpet and mine bombings of Cambodia,, an illegal "secret war"(secret only to the USA's people) that destabilized Cambodia. The USA's bombing of Cambodia, leading to 1/3 of Khmer population perishing/murdered. Both Kissinger and NIxon never had to face Crimes against Humanity or war criminal charges.
Say it: "The Cambodian destabilization brought on by Nixon's and Kissinger's "secret war" against Cambodia(deemed by them necessary to win the USA War Against Vietnam). The USA was not complicit in Pol Pot coming to power, we paved the way and laid our a blood-stained red carpet runway for his ascending to power.
That's not how it went, pol pot is the result of the traitor lon nol who over throw prince sihanouk in a coup d'etat, that's when all these happiness ended.
@@heavent883 likewise, lon nol doesn't have to become a traitor and staged an illegal coup detaté, because that is the result of that treacherous act of indecency.
I’d like to know a lot more about the sorts of guitars and amps they used, where they bought them, and so on. For any musician, this question of equipment ( ‘gear’) is always crucial…
Я только начала смотреть фильм, уже слёзы градом... Целый культурный пласт просто уничтожен... Ужасно, что один человек способен так жестоко перевернуть жизнь
One person, whose ascendency to power was paved by Cambodia's destabilization, a period ushered in by the USA's "secret war" bombings of Cambodia. Kissinger and Nixon were never prosecuted for this set of crimes against humanity.
So what’s the real reason why Khmer still can’t get along with each other til today? Very sad to see today leader can not work together to rebuilt our country. Foreign influence is destroying our country before our very eyes. The rich and powerful turn their blind eye. Greed and ignorance is what Khmer society has become. History will repeat itself. In 50 years Khmer will become a minority living in our own land just like Khmer Krom. Very sad indeed.
The quality of Khmer modern music has declined so much. At the end of the video when they had played rap music, present music cannot compare to the style and lyrics of the oldies.
Does anyone know the song title from 12:18 to 13:22? Since I tried searching Bien Dormir Mon Cheri as revealed at 13:16 but couldn’t find the song that matched the one above
you're mistaken if you think america alone is to blame for this. or so you're making it seem that way by name dropping them only. are you ignoring china's aid to the khmer rouge throughout the 70s? including the genocide years?
@@jeff-nz3ij the monarch wasn't good but the things were under control yankee bombings made him weak so everyone decided that they will do a better job, then yankees bombed everyone to help pol pot then yankees continued to suppoer pol pot until 1993 just to spite vietnam so no it's not everything puppeteered by yankes but they started it all there was no north korea until yankees decided to create it there was no saddam there was no isis there were no many european and south american dictators until yankees created them soviet union has fallen china will fall soon putin dictatorship is barely hanging yankeestan will never pay for its sins because it denies them
Note that a good deal of the emergence of this Khmer music was influenced by the rock/pop/psychedelic,country-western music played on USA's Armed Forces Radio during the USA's War Against Viet Nam. The associated Nixon/Kissenger secret war against Cambodia(carpet and mine bombings)destabilized Cambodia, allowing Pol Pot to easily march to power.
