COUNCIL FOR PEACE AND ORDER (NCPO)
5.6 The Summary of the Process and Strategies in Creating Patriotic Songs of the NCPO
Watcharabon Buddharaksa (2014, p. 213) specifies, “A sustainable revolution possibly needs a long time to struggle against people‟s ideas and ideologies to change their worldview. It requires „a collaboration‟ among parties to yield an actual outcome.”
As a consequence, a willingness of private sectors to collaborate with songs creation and to give their songs to the NCPO to use in the NCPO‟s activities reflects a unified focus and standpoint of doing something for the nation. The drawing of prevailing ideologies towards a collaboration possibly affected the creation of ideologies in changing people‟s worldview. It was also a power to support the NCPO in creating righteousness to govern the country during their time of being the government.
5.6 The Summary of the Process and Strategies in Creating Patriotic
2) The Department of Royal Thai Army Band, a coordinator in all steps of the creation process.
3) The Directorate of Civil Affairs, Royal Thai Army, a supporter in the creation and dissemination of the NCPO‟s songs to the general public.
4) Private Sectors: an independent composer supporting the creative process by collaborating with the NCPO in producing the songs/ private companies or the owners of songs the NCPO used to disseminate with those of the NCPO‟s songs/
the adoption of the NCPO‟s songs to be sung by famous artists in their version.
5.6.3 Steps of Creating the NCPO’s Songs: 6 Steps were Found:
1) An objective was given and General composed lyrics of the songs Prayut Chan-o-cha.
2) Lyrics were analyzed, and melody genre was advised by Major General Krisda Sarika, the director of the Department of Royal Thai Army Band, as a producer.
3) Music arrangement was made by Major Surachai Thawinprai who was responsible for harmony, melody composition, chords author, and a supervisor of song production.
4) Lyrics were refined and arranged by Wichian Tantipimolphan, an independent composer from the private sector who helped improve the original lyrics of General Prayut Chan-o-cha and also composed melody, including arranging a harmony of some the NCPO songs together with Major Surachai Thawinprai from the Department of Royal Thai Army Band.
5) The songs were sung and recorded. The singer was Sergeant Major First Class Pongsatorn Porchit of the Department of Royal Thai Army Band.
6) The finished songs were approved by General Prayut Chan-o-cha prior to the dissemination by the Directorate of Civil Affairs, Royal Thai Army Band, the military officers responsible for the distribution of the NCPO‟s songs.
5.6.4 Factors affecting the Creation Process of the NCPO’s Songs
In analyzing factors affecting the creation process, it was found that General Prayut Chan-o-cha, the Head of the NCPO, and the lyrics composers, initiated the
communication to people through patriotic songs. Besides, he provided the content for writing his lyrics, which affected the selection of melody genre. The significant internal factors were the NCPO as the government had power in monitoring and regulating principle media of the country. In terms of musical skills, the Department of Royal Thai Army Band lacked techniques and skills in producing songs to comply with the universal style that could respond to listeners‟ taste. As a consequence, a private sector was invited to participate in the creation process jointly. For instance, the song “Return Happiness to Thailand” required skills from the private composer to join in the song production for the NCPO. For external factors, listeners were the primary factor that drove the NCPO to adjust their genre to be Pop genre because of listeners‟ preference and easy understanding. Besides, due to the situation after the coup, the NCPO avoided using an aggressive melody like March genre in the past and turned to use a more soothing melody to relax people by arranging the melody that was sweet and passionate so that listeners could be touched by the songs more easily.
5.6.5 Strategies in Creating the NCPO’s Songs Two major strategic approaches were found:
1) Communication by Pop Music
The NCPO used Pop music to compose the melody that could reach listeners in a wide range. Besides, Pop music can increase the popularity of the songs more quickly than the traditional patriotic songs in the past in March rhythm. The four songs of the NCPO: “Return Happiness to Thailand,” “Because you are Thailand,”
“Hope and Faith,” and “The Bridge” all were arranged in Pop genre.
2) Power of Private Sectors in Supporting the NCPO‟s Songs and the Magnification
(1) The production of songs used some professional composers from private sectors who were experienced in Pop songs to participate in the creation process with the Department of Royal Thai Army Band to reach listeners nationwide and to make the songs memorable for listeners.
(2) Private-sector networks were used by collaborating with private sectors, i.e., the adoption of available songs of particular industries and the joint dissemination with the original songs of the NCPO, the permission for famous artists
to use the NCPO‟s songs to sing in various forms or their version. This strategy helped to expand the NCPO‟s songs to be well-known more rapidly. Furthermore, such collaboration could expand the Fan Club bases of the song owners and artists who adopted the NCPO‟s songs to sing and could make people accept the NCPO‟s songs and the coup more quickly than the military transmitted the songs by themselves solely.