The khene is a traditional mouth organ of the Lao people, widespread in Laos and the Isan region of northeastern Thailand. It consists of many bamboo pipes of different lengths joined into a common air-chamber mouthpiece, each pipe fitted with a small metal reed.
The player blows into the mouthpiece while closing the holes on the pipes with the fingers, producing sound both on the inhale and the exhale — so the music sounds continuously. Thanks to its many pipes, the khene can carry a melody and hold a harmonic background of sustained tones at the same time. It is the heart of Lao folk music, inseparable from the lam song tradition. In 2017 the music of the khene was inscribed on UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage as a symbol of the national identity of the Lao people.
