Instruments are important for the production of Greek folk music. Five important instruments of the Greek culture include: the Pontic lyra, zournas, the daouli, the klarino, and the tsabouna. The Pontic lyra is a three-stringed instrument. It is tuned to the player's desire, and it is able to be played while dancing. Zournas are the Greek version of the oboe. It has a Turkish origin and also has a reed like the European oboe. The zourna is made out of wood and has a total of eight or more holes. The third instrument that I will discuss is the daouli. The daouli is a drum and mostly keeps the beat. The beat is played on the right side of the drum which has a lower pitch when compared to the left side which has a higher pitch. The skin of the drum can be either wolf or goatskin. The klarino is the Greek version of the clarinet. It also has many keys like the European clarinet, and it mostly plays the lead. The tsabouna is a bagpipe. It has two pipes that are played simultaneously. These two pipes are not in tune with one another. It helps to create the desired sound.
I chose this video to represent how the daouli is important not only in the music but also in the dance of the culture.
This man will show how the zourna is held while being performed. You can hear the Turkish influence in the sound of this instrument.
I liked this video because it represents the abilities of the Pontic lyra. The embellishments help the instrument sound prettier in my opinion. Also, the position at which the instrument is being played is different from the Thracian lyra because the Pontic lyra is not vertical on the legs.
The klarino has a very distinctive sound, and the man playing in this video truly shows that he enjoys playing it.
The tsabouna is a larger instrument. It almost looks too big for the man playing it in this video.
Hoerburger,
Felix. "Oriental Elements in the Folk Dance and Folk Dance Music of Greek
Macedonia." Journal of the International Folk
Music Council 19 (1967): 71-75.
I enjoyed how the dancing is an integral part of the music. I wonder what types of systems are used (if any at all) to amplify the sound. I can imagine with large crowds dancing and stomping the music would be drowned out. It would be interesting to research the techniques that are used to project sound and yet still maintain the traditional feel.
The klarino is one of the coolest instruments we talk about in class. I Love the way in looks and it has a great sound. I also love the video of the man playing the klarino. When I here the klarino being played it makes me think of ancient Greek. How people could hear this music as they walked down the streets of Rome. That is really cool to me.
The last video looks very similar (if it isn't the same thing) as one of the versions of bagpipes I used in my presentation. Specifically the bagpipes of Gaida and Tulum.
I enjoyed how the dancing is an integral part of the music. I wonder what types of systems are used (if any at all) to amplify the sound. I can imagine with large crowds dancing and stomping the music would be drowned out. It would be interesting to research the techniques that are used to project sound and yet still maintain the traditional feel.
ReplyDeleteI like the sound of the Klarino. It reminds me of a cross bread between the clarinet and the oboe.
ReplyDeleteThe tsabuona is interesting. I also think it's interesting that there are so many cultures that seem to have some sort of bagpipe.
ReplyDeleteThe klarino is one of the coolest instruments we talk about in class. I Love the way in looks and it has a great sound. I also love the video of the man playing the klarino. When I here the klarino being played it makes me think of ancient Greek. How people could hear this music as they walked down the streets of Rome. That is really cool to me.
ReplyDeleteThe klarino is a very unusual instrument that really isn't prominent any other culture in the world.
ReplyDeleteThe last video looks very similar (if it isn't the same thing) as one of the versions of bagpipes I used in my presentation. Specifically the bagpipes of Gaida and Tulum.
ReplyDelete