Background
Khin Maung Toe was born in Mawlaik, Sagaing Division (now Sagaing Region) in northwestern Myanmar, third son of Daw Khin Hla and U Khin Maung. His father was a regional government official
Khin Maung Toe was born in Mawlaik, Sagaing Division (now Sagaing Region) in northwestern Myanmar, third son of Daw Khin Hla and U Khin Maung. His father was a regional government official
He was one of the few successful Burmese singer-songwriters who wrote his own original songs. He is best known for his 1984 hit "Maha Hsan Thu" (မဟာဆန်သူ). Khin Maung Toe became first interested in making music in his second year at the University of Mandalay in the late 1960s, when the Burmese popular music, modeled on Western rock-and-roll and country music, was just taking shape.
He said in a 2000 interview that he and his generation of musicians faced both encouragement and criticism for the new kind of music
He released his debut album in 1973 with the East Machines band, and the follow-up album a year later. In 1978, he left Mandalay for Yangon, then the capital and largest city.
In the early 80s, he formed a band called the Mizzima Hlaing (မဇ္ဈိမလှိုင်း, lit the Middle Wave), and became the lead singer of the band. In 1984, the band released Maha Hsan Thu album.
The success of the album made Khin Maung Toe and the band household names.
Their style was a modernized version of traditional Burmese music updated with Western musical instruments and arrangements. Their biggest hit, "Maha Hsan Thu", could have been a classic Burmese song from the prewar era if not for the background Western instrumentals and arrangements. In the 1980s and the 1990s, Khin Maung Toe and the Mizzima Hlaing with their "original" music successfully carved out a niche in the Burmese popular music scene which was mainly dominated by covers of foreign songs.
They released 18 albums in those two decades.
However, the band broke up in the early 2000s after its Keyboardist Myo Khin had died. His last performance was in September 2012 in a charity concert organized by the 88 Generation Students Group.