Алтай Хайрхан - Altai Khairkhan

Founded in 2002 by Ch.Palamjav, Altai Khairkhan performs performs either songs of their own composition or Mongolian traditional songs using Morin khuur, Tovshuur and a range of overtone singing techniques called Khöömii. It has already produced 2 CDs and one DVD.

P.Lkhamjav - overtone singing, tovshuurBorn July 25, 1979

Lkhamjav, born in the year of the Earth Sheep, in the Uvs province learned to appreciate mongolian dance and music traditions through watching his father perform, since he was just a child. Palamjav, his father, taught him biyelgee dance and an extended song repertoire.
Although skilled in the common vocal folk style, Lkhamjav mainly uses the kharkhiraa technique when singing magtaal (praise-songs).

S.Purevjav - singing, morin khuurBorn March 15, 1954

Born in the year of the Water Snake in Uvs province, Purevjav attended morin khuur and khuuchir classes from the age of seven. For thirty years he has been working as a professional musician and music teacher. Purevjav started his career at his local "Music and Drama" theatre, and moved on to work in Ulaanbaatar, where he co-founded several ensembles, like "Tumen Ekh" or "Khuur Magnai".
Today, Purevjav gives morin khuur lessons at the "Egshiglen Khuur Magnai" music school in Ulaanbaatar.

L.Lkhamragchaa - overtone singing, tovshuurBorn April 8, 1981

From 2007 to 2009, Lkhamragchaa was the overtone singer in the National Ensemble of Song and Dance of Mongolia.
The youngest member of the ensemble, Lkhamragchaa is Altai Khaitkhan's lead overtone singer and has won numerous overtone singing contests : Winner of the 1st prize in the 9th World Choral Symposium and Runner-up of the 6th National Overtone Singing Contest (Mongolia).

Ya.Suglegmaa - yatgaBorn February 22, 1977

After having played yatga from 1997 to 2003 at the Musical Drama Theatre of Bayankhongor province, Suglegmaa studied music at the Song and Dance College of Zavkhan province and received her bachelor's degree to become a professional player of yatga.
Today, Suglegmaa teaches music at the Cultural Palace of Nalaikh district in Ulaanbaatar.

Morin khuur & Khöömii

With its name translating to "horse fiddle" in Mongolian, the Morin khuur (Морин хуур) is instantly recognizable by its distinctive carved horse-head pegbox. The tuning pegs on either side are known as the "horse's ears." The instrument’s two string and bow are traditionally made of horsehair, although they are now often made of synthetic material. The morin khuur plays a prominent role in Mongolian music and culture. It is used to accompany folk singers and, less frequently, as a solo instrument and in small ensembles. Traditionally, the people of Mongolia are nomadic herders, and the morin khuur's evocative shape and ability to imitate the sound of neighing horses reflect the importance of the horse to Mongolian national identity.

The technique with which a single human voice can simultaneously produce two or more clearly audible tones, are called Khöömii (Хөөмий) by Mongols. The usual sensation of hearing a single tone in the voice (as with a normal song) shifts to hearing seemingly independent tones above a low drone. Because for westerners the higher tones, called harmonics or overtones, are the most striking feature, this way of using the voice is usually called overtone singing. In Central Asia, overtone singing has been practiced since times unknown by Mongol and Turkic nomadic tribes, as well as some Tibetan monks.