Pheuan Srey Peu, 15, lives in Tropeang Po village in Kompong Speu Province, where she has been studying smot since January 2004. Currently a ninth-grade student in local public school, Ms. Srey Peu never had musical training before masters Prum Uth and Gaut Ran began to teach smot in a new CLA-sponsored class two years ago.
Smot is a particularly difficult form of music for young Cambodians because the melodies and vocal style are unlike any other form, and the words use Pali and other cryptic vocabulary highly removed from everyday Khmer. Nevertheless, the form is deeply integral to Khmer culture and especially Khmer Buddhism (over 90% of Cambodians are Buddhist). When Srey Peu heard of auditions for CLA’s smot class, she was immediately interested.
After just two years, Srey Peu has excelled in her studies and has been identified as one of the most promising students in the class, especially for her well-developed voice and amazing capacity to commit songs to memory. Though still a student, she is frequently asked to perform smot at the local wats, much to the appreciation of the older members of the community.
In her words, “Before I began to study smot, I was interested in singing traditional Khmer songs, but I never had the chance to study. So I only thought of myself as a normal, average person. After having studied smot, we have the feeling that we are special and extraordinary, because we are young and yet we know how to smot and we know about Buddhist chants.” Srey Peu is known throughout the village and neighboring ones for her beautiful voice.
When she graduates from high school, Srey Peu hopes to teach smot to children, because she wants the traditional smot of the Khmer people to continue to be part of the rebirth of Khmer society. Although she speaks truthfully that a good salary is probably the most important consideration for her future employment, she says whatever career she ultimately pursues, smot singing and her passion for teaching it will be present, adding, "I don't want it to disappear, and hope that we will have it forever."