The music of Laos includes the music of the Lao people, a Tai ethnic group, and other ethnic groups living in Laos. The traditional music of Laos has similarities with the traditional music of Thailand and Cambodia, including the names of the instruments and influences and developments. To categorize Lao music, it seems helpful to distinguish between the nonclassical folk traditions (which are presented through the ensembles and instruments used within), the classical music traditions and its basic ensembles, and vocal traditions. The most popular form of music in Laos is the indigenous mor lam. Classical music The Lao term ເພງລາວເດີມ "peng Lao deum" (traditional Lao songs) describes the royal court music of Laos. Historical records indicate that an indigenous classical tradition existed, which was mainly influenced by ancient Khmer traditions and mountainous ethnic groups. King Fa Ngum was raised and educated in Angkor Wat, so the Khmer traditions were the first center for the court music, which changed in 1828 when the Siamese sacked Vientiane and slowly infiltrated the musical traditions of the court as well. Today, the court music has mostly vanished. It was considered as "elitist, bourgeoisie" and forbidden by the communist government, and the last performers in Tennessee, USA tried to rebuild the court music in diaspora but failed due to a lack of members. The classical ensemble and its instruments still get used in many Lao traditions today, are only used for the "lam" traditions and the only "theater" like traditions "li-ke" (or "lam poem", from 1940) which immigrated from northern Siam, gets performed with acting, storytelling in "lam" singing styles and a Khene mouth organ, thus remaining the only theater tradition in Laos today. Mor lam Laotian mor lam (also spelled maw lam), though usually called simply lam in Laos () is considered purer and more traditional than the forms found in Thailand. It often features the khaen () (bamboo and reed mouth organ) and jousting pairs of singers, backed by colorful troupes, who improvise stories and courting duels. The material is often topical, colloquial, sexual and bawdy and is tolerated by the government even when sometimes it is the object of some of the jokes. Ensembles typically include two singers (mor lam, the same term referring to the genre of music)— one male and one female—, a khene player (mor khaen), and other instruments including fiddles, flutes and bells. Music varies widely across