Musical instruments in unusual shapes. What are musical instruments? (photo, names)
Your attention to the top of one of the most unusual instruments in the world. All of them are still played by musicians, no matter how ancient or strange these instruments may seem.
Theremin
was invented in Russia in the last century. More specifically, in 1919. The instrument received this name from the name of its creator - Lev Sergeevich Termen. This unusual instrument is the first ever electric musical instrument. Sounds are extracted, it would seem, by a simple movement of the hands: you know, move your hands within the radius of the electromagnetic field next to the metal antenna. Left hand usually adjusts the volume, and the right one is responsible for the pitch. But learning to use both hands when playing this instrument is not so easy!
reactoscope
or in other words - a multimedia media table. The thing is unique and moreover - beautiful. You touch it and it makes a sound, and what's more, the instrument can be programmed to suit almost any requirement. With the help of a multimedia table, you can not only surprise clubbers, but also delight colleagues and partners with bright presentations, for example, or notify visitors about the variety of menus in a restaurant.
Bonang
Musical greetings from Indonesia. This instrument consists of a set of small bronze gongs, which are placed on a wooden stand and fastened together with cords. In the middle of each gong there is a small bulge, striking on which with a special wooden stick, a soft sound is obtained. The stick is wrapped with either a rope or cotton cloth to give more depth to the sound. Distinguish male - with higher wooden sides and convex gongs - bonang and female - on the contrary, lower sides and flat gongs.
Subcontrabass flute
it looks like a large curved flute, and makes very strange sounds. Some instruments can be up to 4.5 meters long! It's not so easy to play on such a colossus, you see. The sounds extracted from the sub-contrabass-flute can confuse many - they are similar to those as if someone were simply blowing into a pipe.
Serpent
also called contrabass anaconda for its appearance. However, the instrument sounds far from being as quiet as a snake, but rather like an elephant: loud and rolling. The serpent was invented back in 1590, but fell out of use by the 19th century. Today it is played only by musical maniacs, mastering more and more old inventions.
Lituus
translated from Latin, it primarily means the curved staff of an augur or a military trumpet, also curved. Used this tool most often as a warning signal in wartime. But in the Middle Ages, the notorious Johann Sebastian Bach glorified the lituus by writing under it the coins OJesuChrist, meinsLebensLicht.
Trembita
It can be safely said that the Ukrainian relative of the Lituus. Trembitas, like their ancient counterparts, are primarily used for various kinds of notifications. And since they are popular in the majority in the Hutsul region and the east of the Carpathians, they are widely used by shepherds. But also this wooden pipe is sometimes included in orchestral performances.
Hang
consists of two metal hemispheres interconnected and remotely resembles the notorious UFO saucer. This tool is still childhood because it was invented only in 2000. As a rule, the hang is placed on the knees or between them, and the sounds are extracted depending on the imagination of the player: fingers, hands, palms.
Otamaton
quite justifiably called the singing tadpole. This Japanese invention looks really funny: like a note with eyes and a mouth. By pressing the head and manipulating the “tail”, the gadget is activated and makes annoying sounds. What only the Japanese do not invent! This toy tool is only two years old, but it is confidently occupying positions in the market, but, according to by and large, entertaining, not musical.
glass harmonica
Outwardly, it slightly resembles a loom and consists of glass hemispheres of various sizes. The spheres are strung on a metal rod, which, in turn, is fixed in a kind of resonator box with water and vinegar, but in such a way that the spheres are only half immersed in it. Having improved simple game on wet glasses in the 18th century, an inventive Irishman conquered the world with a new instrument. He was admired by the great composers and writers of that time, but nevertheless, someone started a rumor that the glass harmonica was the work of the devil's henchmen: it causes premature birth in women, it has an extremely unsatisfactory effect on state of mind people and scares animals. The instrument was forgotten until our times, until in the 20th century composers decided to return the selected “voice” to the instrument.
Vargan
It looks like a very strange and even incomprehensible instrument. At first glance, not everyone can figure out how and where to apply it in order to extract sounds. Vargan refers to reed musical instruments, and sounds are extracted from it in an appropriate way. It is worth holding it between your lips or teeth, blowing it or changing the position of your lips - and sounds will be heard. It is often called a pagan instrument, because history cannot find the origins of its appearance. Recent studies show that the jew's harp could well have been invented five thousand years ago in South Asia and spread throughout the world due to its compactness, simplicity and undeniable unusualness.
Theremin
Many have heard this musical instrument without knowing it, for example, in old horror films.
Theremin was invented by Russian scientist Lev Theremin in 1928. It produces a rather unusual, even slightly creepy vibrating sound that many underground musicians adore. However, it was the sound of the instrument that did not allow him to gain wide popularity. Playing the theremin consists in the musician changing the distance from his hands to the antennas of the instrument, due to which the pitch changes.
Banjolele
Despite the fact that both the banjo and the ukulele quickly gained an army of numerous fans, the hybrid of these two instruments, the banjolele, never became popular. It is essentially a very small banjo, with only four strings instead of five. The instrument produces a pleasant soothing sound, but it is rather problematic for people with large hands to play it. Maybe that's why, or maybe because of the dissonance of its name, the banjolele has remained a niche instrument.
Omnicord
The Omnicord is an electronic musical instrument introduced by Suzuki in 1981. The sounds in it are created by pressing the button corresponding to the chord and hitting a special metal plate. Being incredibly easy to use, the omnicord had every chance of becoming popular, especially among novice musicians. But it didn't. The famous melody from the song Clint Eastwood British group Gorillaz is perhaps the most famous work played on this musical instrument.
baritone guitar
Both the bass guitar and the regular guitar are among the most popular instruments in the world. However, as in the case of the banjolele, their hybrid, despite its deep and rich sound, did not find much popularity. Due to their design, these guitars sound much lower than usual. These days they are sometimes used in recording studios to give the main guitar part a richer tone.
Glucophone
Despite the dissonance of its name, this instrument makes very pleasant sounds. Most of all, it looks like a metal hand drum. It consists of two bowls, on one of which the "tongues" of the drum are located, and on the other - a resonating hole. Each bowl is fine-tuned.
The tool has found some popularity among street musicians, but it still cannot be called massive.
Keyboard
In the 80s, in the wake of the popularity of pop music, this instrument almost entered the mainstream. Almost…
In fact, this is an ordinary synthesizer enclosed in a plastic guitar case. Like previous hybrids, it is mostly played only as needed. One of its main advantages is compactness.
Few people know that Matthew Bellamy, the leader of the popular British band Muse, regularly uses the keyboard in his performances.
Wind synthesizer "Evie"
"Evie" is the most popular wind synthesizer, but is still unknown to a huge number of music fans. It is a mixture of saxophone and synthesizer. The principle of playing on it is almost the same as on the sax. However, the "synthesizer past" of the instrument makes it possible to connect it to a computer.
Electronium
The most mysterious tool in our selection. It was invented by inventor Raymond Scott. Little is known about it, except that it is a huge prototype of a modern synthesizer. The only remaining electronium belongs to the composer Mark Mothersbaugh, and even that does not work.
musical saw
This saw differs from the usual one only in that it can bend much more. When playing, the musician rests one end of it against his thigh, and holds the other end with his hand. The sound is extracted with a special bow. I must say that the unusual sound of the saw can be heard in the compositions of some folk groups. However, outside the genre ethnic music it has not been widely adopted.
"Waves of Martenot"
Perhaps the most unusual tool in the collection. It was invented by Maurice Martineau in 1928. The sound of the instrument simultaneously resembles a violin and a theremin. The design of the French invention is quite complicated: when playing, the musician needs to simultaneously press the keys and pull the special ring. By the way, Radiohead member Jonny Greenwood used "Morteno Waves" when recording several songs, giving them a unique sound.
Musical works are written in different countries, in a variety of genres and directions and can immediately be performed in any city on any continent, because professional musicians it is not necessary to be able to speak the language of their colleague, they understand each other in the language of music. Fortunately, musical instruments are as versatile as musical notation, but not all musicians are satisfied with the existing variety, some are constantly looking for something new, unusual, if they don’t find it, they invent their own.
Perhaps the most popular musical instruments in the world are strings and winds. Therefore, it is not surprising that some music masters come up with any improvements and changes to the already established traditional device And appearance, for example, violins, guitars, pipes or bagpipes, and examples do not have to look long.
Fancy strings
One music master built a violin, which "in combination" was also a telephone, it turned out something in between a violin-telephone and a telephone-violin. Apparently, the instrument did not take root, because the world did not suddenly begin to play it, although it was invented at the end of the 20th century in 1998.
But, apparently, the most innovations goes to the guitar.
This instrument is known all over the world, but one inventor took it into his head to make the guitar even more popular, and he created an automatic guitar. As a result, outwardly, the tool became similar to the Kalashnikov assault rifle, also world famous, but only a weapon. The guitar was named Escopettara.
From the machine gun, a butt, an automatic mechanism and a magazine for cartridges, which housed the regulator panel, entered the body of the guitar, and instead of a muzzle, a real one guitar neck. But the most original thing in the design is that it was not the guitar that was made to look like an automaton, but a real automaton was converted into a guitar.
Stratocaster - super guitar!
We are used to the fact that the guitar has six strings - this is Spanish guitar. True, there is also a Russian guitar - a seven-string one, but the six-string one has more fans and has almost replaced the seven-string guitar. It can be concluded that the more strings, the less fans the guitar has, but a certain artist, Yoshiko Sato, did not agree with this idea.
He took twelve guitars, completely dismantled them, and assembled one new one from the resulting parts. His guitar has seventy-two strings, which is almost equal to a piano keyboard. It is hard to imagine that there is a musician who wants to master the game on this instrument, but is it really that important for an inventor? The main thing is the fact of invention and the sonorous name - Stratocaster.
CASIO guitar DG-10
At a time when all sorts of keyboard "playbooks" filled Russian stores and markets, it's 1997, the Japanese CASIO campaign has a new musical instrument - the DG-10 guitar. In terms of content, this musical toy was an electronic stuffing in a plastic shell, but outwardly it was a real electric guitar.
Even a non-musician could play the instrument, having made small adjustments, as on a self-playing keyboard. But here the principle of sound extraction is interesting. The guitar had plastic strings, it was possible to play like an acoustic guitar, which triggered the corresponding sound. Sensitive strings increased the volume from the force of impact, that is, than hit harder across the strings, the louder the sound.
Since then, technology has advanced a lot, and a nano-guitar has appeared, however, it cannot be played, since it is cut from silicone using a high-frequency laser, and there are no such small musicians in the world, because the size of the guitar is less than the thickness of a human hair.
Against the backdrop of a silicone "guitar", the instrument of Canadian guitar luthier Linda Manzer is simply gigantic - it has four necks and forty-two strings, all real and made especially for guitarist Pat Metheny. The instrument is given the name "Guitar Picasso", it is at the same time a guitar, lute, viola and harp.
Brass
There are also enough oddities in the world of wind instruments, although visually, in comparison with guitars, they are not so noticeable. For example, a little-known French instrument, the Bombard, is somewhat similar to the Oboe, and the sound is much louder and stronger, and it takes great effort to extract it, and the musician is forced to rest without losing even ten seconds.
In Europe, in Alpine countries, a woodwind instrument - an alpine horn - is widely known. But in parallel there is a little-known alpine horn - Vakrapuku. For its manufacture are used different size horns of livestock, which are formed in order of increasing diameter into one large curling horn, the joints are fastened together and decorated with red cloth.
Quite famous all over the world Scottish bagpipe and it already seems familiar that the musician has to blow into a pipe to fill the bag with air, which exits through several pipes creating sounds. And in neighboring Ireland there is a similar, but little known Irish bagpipe, in which special bellows are used to fill the air bag, driven by the elbow of the musician's right hand.
The original Australian wind instrument is considered to be the Didgeridoo, the sound of which is most like a loud buzzing. The manufacturing technology has existed for one and a half thousand years, the material is parts of eucalyptus trees, in which termites have eaten through the core.
Considered unusual ancient chinese instrument- Ocarina. Its history goes back over 12 thousand years. For a long time it seemed childish to Europeans, but in the 19th century, after some modernization, it sounded beautiful and original. In fact, the Ocarina is an even bundle of small bamboo tubes, each of which, when a musician blows into it, emits a gentle high-pitched sound reminiscent of a flute in timbre.
Keyboards
In the fourteenth century, the musical world was enriched with a new instrument - the clavichord. He became a new generation musical instruments- keyboards. Clavichord quickly gained popularity, and its peak came in the Middle Ages. In the nineteenth century, the instrument was almost forgotten, but in the twentieth it was brought back to life when there was a need to preserve the musical historical culture. Today, the clavichord seems exotic, but for its time, it was quite common. As a similar but contemporary example you can cite the story of the VCR, it became exotic in just fifteen years.
Following the clavichord, another keyboard musical instrument appeared - the harpsichord, which surpassed its older "brother" in distribution and popularity. Of course, the piano became the pinnacle technical development keyboard instruments and eclipsed all that were before him, but all the same, the originality of the harpsichord remains unchanged.
The most original musical instrument
Architect David Henoelt built a house that makes sounds when the wind passes through its walls.
But the most original instrument that can be played is a two-handed wood saw. It can be played with a bow, changing the pitch by the degree of bending of the metal blade of the saw!
Unique, inimitable or just unusual? Of course, such a tool should be admired, since people like everything non-standard. However, it should be borne in mind that if an unusual musical instrument is presented in a familiar form (for example, a piano), but at the same time sounds like a violin, then its “unusualness” is doubtful. In this case, the interest will be minimal. Another thing is when a guitar sounds like a guitar, but it has twelve necks. That's when it can not be called otherwise than "unusual".
Music and cookware
Sometimes other criteria work. If the instrument evolved, developed over time, it could change dramatically, move away from the canons and turn into an unusual musical instrument. An example is the trombones and trumpets in Glenn Miller's legendary orchestra. To muffle the sound, the musicians took ordinary kitchen bowls and covered the bells of wind instruments with them. The effect was amazing. The instruments sounded new.
This is how the mute arose - a special device for changing the strength and timbre, and in some cases the tone of the sound. But until the invention was patented, bowl-covered trombones were considered unusual in Glenn Miller's orchestra. A new sound has opened wide opportunities for composers and especially for arrangers.
However, the mute is just an addition, but in general, an unusual musical instrument is characterized by other, deeper features that determine its exclusivity. First of all, it is a unique, special technique for extracting sound.
History of musical instruments
Man has been drawn to art since ancient times. Many folklore customs were accompanied by singing, and since the hands are free at this time, I wanted to play music somehow. This is how the first primitive musical instruments appeared. Bull veins were stretched over a piece of wood, resulting in a stringed plucked instrument. A barrel covered with an animal skin became a drum. Each following century brought new, more and more perfect musical instruments.
In the 16th century, the violin appeared, which immediately advanced the art of musical accompaniment. The noble instrument called "viola" required very delicate, careful handling. IN different time great masters began to appear - Amati, Stradivari, Guarneri - who made wonderful violins.
Later, in the 17th century, the harpsichord, the forerunner of the upright piano, was invented. The possibilities of musical accompaniment have become even wider.
Even in ancient times, man learned to blow into the hollow horns of animals, into sea shells and pipes carved from wood. And after people learned how to mine copper ore and smelt bronze, the simplest began to appear. wind instruments, which were gradually improved - it was already possible to play simple melodies on them.
Drums were easier. Ordinary pumpkins turned into maracas, empty barrels became drums, and all together became a means for performing rhythmic "works" that musicians invented on the go.
First groups
The history of musical instruments is far from over, it continues today. And it is already clear that there will be no end. There are more and more new and plucked, a variety of wind, reed and embouchure, rocker and valve. About two centuries have passed since the time when musicians began to gather in ensembles, quartets, quintets, and later in large symphony orchestras. Various musical instruments, as well as all kinds of auxiliary devices, were combined for the purpose of concert activity.
Didgeridoo
This is a rare wind instrument, which is included in the category "the most unusual musical instruments in the world." It is made from a branch of the Australian Arnhamland tree, which has been eaten away by termites from the inside. The sound of the didgeridoo is low, vibrating, with continuous sounding it can have a therapeutic effect on the human respiratory centers and prevent the occurrence of sleep apnea syndrome (stopping breathing during sleep).
Alpenghorn and duduk are a variety of didgeridoo, and the direct successor is lituus, a wooden pipe about three meters long with an extension at the end and a mouthpiece made of mouflon horn. With the help of a unique instrument in 1738, Johann Sebastian Bach's cantata "Jesus Christ, the light of my whole life" was performed, in which the part for the lituus was written.
reed device
Unusual - these are two flattened hemispheres of brass, half a millimeter thick, with a diameter of 250 millimeters, tightly connected to each other. The upper part - the ding - is cut in such a way that eight segments with tongues are formed on its surface, sounding from light touches. Each of the seven reeds corresponds to one note, and the eighth sounds like F sharp. The lower part of the hang is a resonator called "gu", which greatly enhances the strength of the sound, evens out the timbre and gives the melody a special appeal due to its slight vibration.
The instrument was created by engineer Felix Rohner and musician Sabine Scherer in 2002. Later, they made the task more difficult and designed a one-piece hang, with better acoustic characteristics. The new instrument was shown to the public in 2009.
Viel, or hurdy-gurdy
Any reference book can tell about what musical instruments are in Europe. But not everywhere there is information about the hurdy-gurdy. This unique stringed instrument invented monks-wanderers who asked for alms, be sure to accompany their bows with music. On the body of an ordinary lute, melodic strings were stretched, and next to them - bass strings for a buzzing background. Along the string row, special levers were installed, dividing the strings into sections. A drum-bow revolved at the top. Touching the stretched strings, he made them ring.
The instrument is large, you cannot play it alone. The monks always played together. One turned the wheel, the other fingered the frets. In the 15th century, the lyre was reduced and it began to fit in the hands of one musician. It is characteristic that throughout Europe the viel was an instrument of wandering musicians, and in France playing it was considered an art.
Strings and wind
In the list of "unusual stringed musical instruments", the first place is occupied by the Aeolian harp. The principle of operation - the strings sound under the pressure of the wind. The ancient Greeks, in addition, built a resonator that amplified the sound. The harp, created in the 14th century, was forgotten for several centuries, and only in the 17th century the instrument was revived by two scientists: Athanasius Kircher and Giambatista de la Porta.
Currently, the Aeolian harp is located in the arbor of the same name in Pyatigorsk, the instrument is located in the center of the rotunda. And in the city of San Francisco (or rather, far outside the city) in 1967, landscape sculptors Aristide Demetrios and Lucy Ames built an Aeolian harp 27 meters high.
Music and air currents
You can learn about what musical instruments are movable by the example of a singing tree in the city of Burnley (Great Britain, Lancanshire).
The multi-meter-high structure is made up of metal pipes of different lengths and diameters and is a spiral expanding upwards. No matter where the wind blows from, its streams will surely fall into the pipes, and the metal tree will sing. And although the melody is conditional, it is still the music of nature. A deep vibrating sound is carried far around.
This unusual tool was created by Mike Tonkin, a London-based architect, and Anna Liu, a landscape designer.
laser music
Rare and unusual electronic musical instruments are very effective in use. Music as such is accompanied by a real laser performance, colorful and mesmerizing. In 1976, amateur musician Geoffrey Rose invented laser harp, acting on the principle of extracting sound by touching the musician's fingers to the laser beam. Multi-colored electronic filaments vibrating in the air imitate stretched strings ordinary harp. As soon as you lightly touch the beam, the sound of a given tone is immediately heard, clear and sonorous.
In 1981, he included the famous electronic musician Jean-Michel Jarre in one of his performances, and after obvious success he began to use it when recording studio albums.
stalactite organ
Another unusual electronically controlled musical instrument was created by engineer Leland Sprinkle in one of the cave labyrinths in the American Inventor chose several dozens of stalactites in the vast Lurey cave, which, when struck with a hammer, made a sound corresponding to the tone of any note. Then he systematized the search results, after which he equipped each stalactite with a percussion mechanism. Having connected all the devices into one circuit, the engineer connected to it a computer with an electronic module containing a database of various melodies. It remains to select any song and press the button. Flashed in the cave bright light and the music began to play. The impression was amazing, because the natural acoustics in the underground labyrinth perfectly reflects the slightest nuances of sound.
glass harmonica
In the middle of the 18th century, all of London, from pubs to aristocratic salons, was embraced by fashionable entertainment - "Irish gadgets", that is, extracting sounds from thin glass glasses by sliding a finger along its edge. The tone of the sound depended on the level of the water poured into the vessel.
The notorious Benjamin Franklin, who was then the US Ambassador to London, free time started making a musical instrument called "glass harmonica". The principle of operation of the device consisted in the rotation of 48 glasses without legs of different sizes, mounted on one axis and half immersed in a bath of water. The touch of the musician's fingers to the edges of the rotating glasses caused a deep and strong sound. At the same time, it was even possible to select a melody by alternating touches on different parts glass set.
In the next few decades, the unusual instrument was a popular means of entertainment, but one day it was declared the cause of many ills, such as quarrels in the family, nervous breakdowns, and unreasonable anxiety of dogs and cats. The harmonica was banned and forgotten. However, a certain musician Bruno Hoffman not only continued to use the instrument, but even released several records recording his jazz compositions on a glass harmonica.
"Coil"
The unique instrument was created by a priest from French city Auxerre, Edme Guillaume. Not all churches and cathedrals had an organ, but musical accompaniment all the choirs were in need. The serpent, as the instrument is called, was a repeatedly bent pipe of their wood, covered with leather. Its total length was three meters, which made it possible to achieve a strong and beautiful sound. Six holes were located on the pipe, blocking which the musician could play a simple melody. In the second half of the 17th century, the serpent settled in military bands, and then in the court. At the same time, the instrument was improved, the holes were closed with valves, and the bone mouthpiece was made removable.
Serpent is currently used in concert programs dedicated to ancient musical works. He is recruited and contemporary authors like Judith Weir, who writes for the theatre. Or composer Jerry Goldsmith, who tries to make his works for cinema as interesting as possible in sound.
Sakuleita
In 2002, musician Monty Levinson took a conventional valve-operated orchestral flute and combined it with a Japanese bamboo shakuhachi pipe.
folklore japanese music established itself in Europe in the early 20th century. And by the middle of the last century, the shakuhachi ethnic instrument began to be used in many concert performances famous performers. The first popularizer of the Japanese was Bill Walker from Jamaica, who played it at almost every performance.
In the sixties, the Japanese flute participated in concerts of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. In the 80s, an ethnic fife from the country rising sun further strengthened its position. Then the shakuhachi was combined with a European-style orchestral flute - thus another unusual musical instrument appeared, which is called the sakuleita.
Entertainment or art
The most unusual musical instruments are of interest primarily for their appearance. They are unlike the usual piano, guitar, saxophone. Each one is sure to have a zest that makes the instrument unique. Unusual musical instruments, photos of which, if it is not possible to see with your own eyes, always arouse great interest and, of course, are part of the culture of the country in which they appeared. There are museums where unique exhibits of historical and antiquarian value are collected.
Playing unusual musical instruments can also be special, not like common ways. And the principle of sound extraction is far from always clear.
The world is full of different, amazing and unusual sounds. Merging together, they turn into a melody: pacifying and cheerful, cheerful and sad, romantic and disturbing. Inspired by the sounds of nature, man has created musical instruments with which it is possible to recreate the most impressive, soulful melodies. And in addition to world-famous instruments, such as the piano, guitar, drum, saxophone, violin and others, there are musical instruments that are no less interesting both in appearance and in sound. We offer you to get acquainted with the ten most interesting musical instruments in the world.
whistle
This musical instrument is the basis of Irish culture. Rarely does Irish music do without the sound of this authentic instrument: cheerful jig motifs, fast polkas, soulful airs - in each of the directions presented, the voice of the whistle is felt.
The instrument is an oblong flute with a whistle at one end and 6 holes on the front side. As a rule, whistles are made of tin, but instruments made of wood, plastic and silver also have a right to exist.
The history of the whistle goes far back to the 11th-12th century. It is these times that the first memories of this instrument date back. Whistle is easy to make from improvised materials, which is why the instrument was especially valued among common people. Closer to the 19th century, the general standard for the whistle was established - an oblong shape and 6 holes used for playing. The Englishman Robert Clark made the greatest contribution to the development of the instrument: he proposed to make the instrument from light metal - tinplate. Thanks to the hoarse and perky sound, the whistle was very fond of the Irish people. Since then, this instrument has become the most recognizable folk instrument.
The principle of playing the whistle is very simple, so much so that even if you have never picked up this instrument, after 2-3 hours of hard training you will be able to play your first melody. Whistle is both a simple and complex instrument. The difficulty lies in its sensitivity to breathing, and the simplicity lies in its easy fingering.
Vargan
This ancient reed instrument has practically not changed in appearance over the centuries of its existence. From the Old Slavonic "vargi" means "mouth". It is in the name of the instrument that the method of extracting sounds from the instrument is hidden. The most common harps are among the peoples of the north: Eskimos, Yakuts, Bashkirs, Chukchi, Altaians, Tuvans and Buryats. With the help of this unusual instrument locals express their emotions, feelings and moods.
Vargans are made of wood, metal, bones and other exotic materials, which in their own way affect the sound of the instrument. The reliability and durability of the jew's harp also depends on the material used.
It is almost impossible to describe the sound of the instrument - it is better to hear its melody once than to read its description 10 times. But still, we can confidently say that the melody emanating from playing the jew's harp is velvety, soothing, setting you up for reflection. But learning to play the jew's harp is not so easy: in order to extract a melody from the instrument, you need to learn how to control your diaphragm, articulation and breathing. Indeed, in the process of playing, it is not the instrument itself that sounds, but the body of the musician.
glass harmonica
Perhaps one of the rarest musical instruments. It is a construction of glass hemispheres of different diameters strung on a metal rod. The structure is fixed in a resonator box. The glass harmonica is played with lightly moistened fingertips by rubbing or tapping.
The first information about the glass harmonica has been known since the middle of the 17th century. Then the instrument was a set of 30-40 glasses, which were played by gently touching their edges. During the game, the musicians produced such unusual, exciting sounds that it seemed as if hundreds of glass balls were falling to the ground.
After the grandiose tour of the Irishman Richard Pakrich in England in 1744, the instrument became so famous and desired that others began to learn to play it. famous musicians. Moreover, the great composers of that time Mozart, Beethoven and Richard Strauss, captivated by the beauty of the sound of the harmonica, wrote the best compositions especially for this instrument.
However, in those days it was believed that the sound of a glass harmonica had a negative effect on the human psyche: it disrupts the state of mind, causes premature birth in pregnant women, and leads to mental disorder. In this regard, in some German cities the instrument was banned at the legislative level. And at the beginning of the twentieth century, the art of playing the glass harmonica was forgotten. But everything well forgotten will ever return. This is what happened with this wonderful instrument: Viktor Kramer, director from St. Petersburg, in Glinka's opera, presented in Bolshoi Theater, successfully used the glass harmonica, returning it to its rightful place in contemporary art.
Hang
An amazing musical instrument, one of the newest inventions of our time. Hang was invented in Switzerland in 2000 by Felix Rohner and Sabina Scherer. The creators of the instruments claim that the basis of playing the exotic percussion instrument is the feeling, the sensation of the music and the instrument itself. Yes and ear for music the owner of the hang must be perfect.
Hang consists of a pair of metal hemispheres, together forming a disc, similar to a flying saucer. The upper part (it is also the front) of the hanga is called DING, it contains 7-8 keys enclosed in a musical circle. They are marked with small depressions, and in order to get a certain tonality of the melody, you need to hit one or another depression.
The lower part of the instrument is called the GU. It has a deep hole in which the musician's fist should be located. The structure of this disk acts as a resonance and modulation of the sound.
Bonang
Bonang is an Indonesian percussion instrument. It consists of a set of bronze gongs, which are fixed with cords and placed horizontally on a wooden stand. On top in the central part of each gong there is a bulge - pencha. It is she who makes a sound if you knock on it with a wooden stick with a winding on its end made of cotton fabric or rope. Burnt clay balls suspended under the gongs often act as resonators. Bonang sounds soft and melodious, its sound fades slowly.
Kazu
Kazu - folk instrument America. Used in skiffle style music. It is a small cylinder, tapering towards the end, made of metal or plastic. A metal cork with a membrane made of tissue paper is inserted into the middle of the instrument. It is very easy to play the kazoo: it is enough to sing in the kazoo, and cigarette paper will do its job - change the voice of the musician beyond recognition.
Erhu
Erhu is a stringed bowed musical instrument, it is also an ancient Chinese two-stringed violin that uses metal strings.
Scientists cannot say exactly where and when the first erhu instrument was created, since it is a nomadic instrument, which means that it changed its geographical location along with nomadic tribes. It is established that the approximate age of the erhu is 1000 years. The instrument became popular during the Tang Dynasty, which fell on the 7th-10th century AD.
The first erhus were somewhat shorter than modern ones: their length was 50-60 cm, and today it is 81 cm. The instrument consists of a body (resonator) of a hexagonal or cylindrical shape. The body is made of high quality wood and snakeskin membrane. The neck of an erhu is where the strings are attached. At the top of the neck is a curved head with a pair of pegs. Erhu strings are usually made of metal or animal veins. The bow is made in a curved shape. The string for the bow is made from horse hair, and the rest is made from bamboo.
The main difference between the erhu and other violins is that the bow should be fixed between two strings. Thus, the bow becomes one and inseparable from the base of the instrument. During the game, the erhu is held in a horizontal position, resting the leg of the instrument on your knee. The bow is played with the right hand, and at this time the strings are pressed with the fingers of the left hand so that they do not touch the neck of the instrument.
Nikelharpa
Nickelharpa is a Swedish folk musical instrument from the category of bowed strings. Due to the fact that its development lasted more than 600 years, the instrument has several modifications. The first mention of the existence of the nikelharpa is on the gate leading to the Shchelunge church on the island of Gotland: they depict two musicians playing this instrument. This image was created back in 1350.
The modern modification of the nikelharpa has 16 strings and about 37 wooden keys that slide under the strings during the game. Each key moves up the slide, where, reaching its top, it clamps the string, changing its sound. The player with a short bow draws along the strings, and presses the keys with his left hand. Nickelharpa allows you to play melodies in the range of 3 octaves. Its sound is similar to a regular violin, but it sounds with much more resonance.
Ukulele
One of the most interesting musical instruments is the ukulele, a string instrument. The ukulele is a miniature ukulele with 4 strings. It appeared back in 1880 thanks to three Portuguese who arrived in Hawaii in 1879 (so the legend says). In general, the ukulele is a consequence of the development of the Portuguese plucked instrument cavaquinho. Outwardly, it resembles a guitar, with the only difference being a reduced shape and the presence of only 4 strings.
There are 4 types of ukulele:
- soprano - instrument length 53 cm, the most common type;
- concert instrument - 58 cm long, slightly larger, sounds louder;
- tenor - a relatively new model (created in the 20s of the last century) 66 cm long;
- baritone - the largest model with a length of 76 cm, appeared in the 40s of the last century.
There are also non-standard ukuleles, in which 8 strings are paired and tuned in unison. The result is a full, surround sound of the instrument.
Harp
Perhaps the most amazing, interesting and melodic instrument is the harp. The harp itself is large in size, but its sound is so exciting that sometimes you just don’t understand how it can be so amazing. So that the instrument does not seem sloppy, its frame is decorated with carvings, making it elegant. Strings of different lengths and thicknesses are pulled onto the frame so that they form a grid.
In ancient times, the harp was considered an instrument of the gods, in the Middle Ages - theologians and monks, then it was considered an aristocratic passion, and today it is considered a magnificent instrument on which absolutely any melodies can be played.
The sound of the harp cannot be compared with anything: it is deep, exciting, unearthly. Thanks to the capabilities of the instrument, the harp is an indispensable member of symphony orchestras.
There are many amazing musical instruments in the world. And they all sound special, creating melodies that touch the soul. Each of the tools presented above certainly deserves attention. But still, we should not forget about the well-known violins, guitars, pianos, flutes and other equally beautiful and interesting tools. After all, they are the basis of human culture and The best way expressions of feelings and emotions.
