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Beyond the Classroom Number Two

     Hey guys! This week, I am going to look into different types of instruments around Asia. First, I want to start with a Japanese chordophone known as a samisen. This instrument resembles an American guitar and many other chordophones we have studied in class. The samisen however has a small square body with only three strings made from twisted silk. The strings are plucked with large plectrums. There are several different styles in order to achieve different music styles. The tune is within normal tones, but there is a buzzing characteristic that is known as sawari. 

Source: https://www.britannica.com/art/samisen

   
    The next instrument I'm going to talk about is an idiophone from Nepal called the Bansuri. The bansuri is like a flute or recorder. It is made from bamboo and has finger holes to change notes. They are made in different thicknesses and lengths in order to change the pitch and sound. The instrument is played by blowing in one end, holding in horizontally and slightly tilted towards the ground. The bansuri has a slightly lower tone than the average flute and only has the ability to produce about two and a half octaves. It is also on a diatonic scale. 



Source: https://imartnepal.com/blog-article/bansuri-the-best-nepali-musical-instrument/

    My final instrument is a membranophone from Sri Lanka called the Lake Beraya. This is a tall cylinder drum with two faces made out of cow skin. The base is wooden (made from coconut trees) with vertical rope/leather chords stringing from one face to the other. The drum is tied around the players waste and is played by hand on each face. Some drummers have even become innovative and experimented with plucking the leather chords to create an alternative sound. The instrument is mostly used in the low country and is known as for its dances in religion. 




Source: https://lakpura.com/pages/yak-beraya, https://sonofthemorninglight.wordpress.com/tag/yak-bera/ 


Comments

  1. Luis Rios BrenaMay 3, 2022 at 9:34 PM

    hey ry i enjoyed reading you blog on the different types of instruments that different states used especially Asia but i saw you included Japanese instruments to and they way you explained it helped me understand.

    ReplyDelete
  2. CaraMay 6, 2022 at 7:29 PM

    Ryleigh,

    Your blog post is coincidentally the third one in a row I’ve read mentioning Japan! (although the only one not solely focused on it). Seems like a lot of people in the class were interested in Japanese instruments for this post :) I enjoyed your explanation on the bansuri, especially your mentioning that it’s played by being held horizontally and slightly tilted toward the ground. This is a detail I’ve noticed over the years watching people play various idiophones, but I’d always simply assumed it was more of a subconscious human tendency when playing. It was very interesting to me to learn that this positioning can be intentional. I also found the video you shared of it pretty soothing. Thanks for sharing!

    Cara

    ReplyDelete
  3. Caitlin MichelangeloMay 6, 2022 at 8:58 PM

    The second one I have read about instruments like Cara said above a lot of people were interested. But once again these were such cool instruments and cool how some of them look very familiar to other county instruments. Great blog!

    ReplyDelete

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