Rhythms of the World Flashcards
Indian Classical instruments and their roles
- Melody- sitar, sarod or wooden flute
- Percussion- tabla
- Drone- tanpura
Indian classical structure
- Alap- slow, free time, improvised, no tabla
- Gat- clear pulse, tabla, still improvised
- Jhala- more intense, speeds up, complex rhythms
Sitar techniques
- Pitch bends (meend)
- Improvised fast scales* and runs
- Microtonal intervals
- Glissandos
- Lots of ornamentation
*based on ragas
Tabla techniques
- Fast notes
- Rhythmic patterns- ‘tala’
- Pitched percussion
- Usually quite complex
- Can play repeated rhythms or ostinatos
- Syncopated
Bhangra instruments and their roles
- Tumbi- riffs
- Dhol- chaal rhythm, polyrhythms - using the 2 drum head
- Harmonium- chords
- Voice- singing and shouts of ‘hoi’
Bhangra typical features
- Narrow range of singing
- Simple harmonies based on 1 or 2 repeated chords
- Short phrases- it is also common for the note to fall in pitch at the end oof a phrase
- Pitch bends and microtones
- Dynamics: LOUD, accents on beat 2 and 4
- Fast, ~180BPM, 4 4
- Homophonic texture
- Verse chorus
- Modal
Impact of modern technology on Bhangra
- Remixes
- Sampling
- Auto tune
- Synths
- Drum machine
- Electronic instruments
Greek instruments and their roles
- Bouzouki, violin, vocals or clarinet- melody
- Defi
- Doumbek
- Tambourine
Greek melody and structure
- Ornamented: tremolo chords, grace notes
- Stepwise
- Lyrical and melisma in voice
- Often harmonised in thirds
- Short repeated sections
Greek tonality and rhythm
- Bass plays tonic and dominant
- Modulation to other keys
- Diatonic major and minor
- Irregular rhythm like 7 8
African drumming instruments and their roles
- Dunun- bass drum; has bells attached
- Agogos- ostinato
- Djembe- played by master drummer
- Talking drum- can change pitches
Features of Samba- rhythm
- Son clave
- Ostinato
- Cross rhythms and Complex rhythms
- Triplets
- 2 4 or 4 4
- Accented beats
- Syncopation
- Fast >100BPM
Samba instruments and their roles
- Surdo: basic rhythmic pulse or ‘heartbeat’
- Caixa: snare drum; constant rhythmic drive; fast notes
- Repinique: High pitched so can be hear above the ensemble. Played by the master. Announces changes of sections, breaks and solos.
- Whistle/apito: also played by the repinique player
Tamborim: high pitched - Shakers and agogos: ostinato
Samba structure
- No set structure; repinique player decides breaks
- Starts with call and response between whistle/repinique and the other drums
- Main groove: drums play ostinato patterns. This pattern returns after breaks
- Breaks: May include a solo or C+R or unison rhythms
- Crescendo and speeding up at the end
Where is Samba from and where is Samba music played?
- Brazil
- Carnivals
Traditional Calypso instruments and their roles
- Steel pans- main melody and tremolo chords
- Congas and bongos- maintain rhythm
- Shakers- fast notes
- Reco reco- unique timbre adds texture
Modern Calypso instruments and their roles
Voice- main melody, short legato phrases
Saxophone- riffs
Bass Guitar- crotchet note bass line
Drum kit- repeated rhythms, often syncopated
Typical Calypso features
- Dynamics- very loud
- Tremolo on steel pans
- Syncopation and offbeat chords
- Improvisation
- Mainly homophonic
- Major key
- Primary triads on lower pitched steel pans
- Slow harmonic rhythm
- Call and response
- Short repeated phrases
- Verse chorus structure
Palestinian instruments and their roles
- Voice or clarinet: melody
- Oud: accompaniment
- Defi or doumbek: percussion
Features of Palestinian music
- Melody based on a maqam
- Irregular time signatures
- Double harmonic scale
- Rhythmic pattern is called a wazn
- Ornamentation
- Usually slow and lyrical
- Scalic ascending and descending
- Melisma in voice
Israeli instruments and their roles
- Clarinet or violin: melody
- Accordion: accompaniment
- Doumbek: rhythm
Features of Israeli music
- Fast tempo
- Bass plays root and fifth
- Block chords on beats 2 and 4
- Articulation: grace notes, pitch bends, other ornamentation
- 3 4 or 4 4 time signature