Transcript World Music

Discovering the arts
World
of Art
World Music
• Music is one of the great pleasures of life. It has the
power to entertain, to amuse, to move, and to
inspire. Music plays an indispensable role in our
celebrations, rituals, and commemorative
ceremonies. It can also provoke thoughts about the
mysteries of life, such as the vastness of the
universe and the meaning of our existence. Music
provides us with a creative way of self expression. It
reaches deep into our souls to console us, to
reassure us, and to help us express who and what
we are as human beings.
World Music
• Music is sometimes called a universal language. However, it
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is more accurate to say that music is a global expression.
While music does communicate globally, sharp variations
exist among the music created by different peoples. What is
truly universal is our capacity to respond to and derive
pleasure from music.
Advances in technology have brought us, among other things,
the gift of music from around the world. Radio, television,
movies, and – more recently – the Internet have allowed us to
enjoy a vast array of music and the cultures that produce
them. It was not always so. Before Thomas Edison invented
the phonograph in 1877, the only way to hear music from
other lands was to experience it live. You had to travel to the
source.
World Music:
Definitions
• Anthropologists – scholars who study the physical and
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cultural characteristics and social customs of a group of
people.
Ethnomusicologists – scholars who study the music of
different cultural groups.
Culture – the customs, beliefs, language, arts and
institutions of a group of people that are learned and
transmitted within the group.
Music culture – the performance practices, means,
traditions, uses, and beliefs about music of a group of people,
either from a specific time or place.
Timbre – the distinct tonal quality of an instrument or voice,
which is clearly identifiable by the ear; also known as “tone
color.”
World Music:
Classification of Instruments
• Aerophones – instruments that produce sound by
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a vibrating column of air. Usually these consist of a
pipe made out of wood, metal, or plastic.
Idiophones – simple, solid instruments that
produce sound by being struck, scraped, or
shaken.
Membranophones – instruments that produce
sound by striking or rubbing a skin or membrane
stretched across a resonating air chamber.
Chordophones – instruments that create sound by
striking, rubbing, or plucking a taut string (or chord).
Electrophones –instruments that generate sound
from electricity.
World Music:
Classification of Instruments
Aerophone: bagpipes
Idiophone:
Vietnamese dan t’rung
Membranophone:
Gamelan kendang
World Music:
Classification of Instruments
Chordophone: sitar
Electrophone: keyboard
World Music:
Activity #1
Demonstrate Knowledge of Music Vocabulary
• How would you categorize familiar musical
instruments using the five basic world music
classifications? Working in small groups, make a list
of the musical instruments with which you are familiar.
Spend no more than five minutes compiling your list.
Then complete the following:
– Classify the instruments into the five basic categories:
aerophones, idiophones, membranophones, chordophones,
or electrophones
– What characteristics of the instruments helped you classify
them?
– Are there any instruments that might fall into more than one
category? How did you decide?
World Music:
Traditional Music Cultures
• Traditional musical styles and genres are
often associated with specific cultures or
geographic areas. Indeed, some cultures
have musical expressions so distinctive
that they are immediately recognizable.
World Music:
Mexico
• Mexico is a large country with many regions.
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As in the United States, these regions differ
in dialect, foods, clothing, and music. The
official language is Spanish.
For many centuries music has played a
central role in the lives of the Mexican
people. Before the arrival of Spanish
conquistadors in 1519, both religious and social music were
important to the native cultures living in the region. The Spaniards
introduced a rich musical heritage, including a wide variety of music
and instruments. Enslaved Africans and Caribbean immigrants also
influenced Mexican music. The cross-fertilization and blending of
native, Spanish, and African cultures produced a rich mestizo, or
mixed, culture. It also produced forms of music that have been
enjoyed by people around the world.
World Music:
Mexico
• Mexicans use music to celebrate events such as baptisms,
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birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, funerals, civic ceremonies,
and religious holidays. The people sing along with the
musicians and burst out with enthusiastic yells, laughter,
clapping, and dancing.
Traditional songs are called sones jarochos. One of the most
famous sones jarochos is “La Bamba.”
A style of ensemble music from the
Mexican state of Jalisco is played
by the mariachi. This is a musical
group with several violins, trumpets,
large bass guitar, and special fiveand six-string guitars.
World Music:
Activity #2
Perform Rhythmic Patterns
• Hear and perform the repeated rhythmic
patterns in “La Bamba.”
Clap bass rhythm:
1
2&
3
4
Rhythm of feet:
Foot pattern:
l
r-l
r
l-r
(l = left, r = right)
p. 33, Activity 4
CD 1 #33: “La Bamba”
World Music:
West Africa
• The music of West Africa has made lasting contributions
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to our own culture. In particular, the rich heritage of
African rhythms has influenced much American music,
including jazz. Often, these unique percussive rhythms
find their basis in African drumming.
In much West African drumming, musicians
play clave. This is a basic rhythmic pattern
that provides the foundation for the complex
rhythms played by multiple drums. The
pattern is usually played on an iron bell or
on a pair of round wooden sticks called “claves.”
It can be played on any instrument so long as it is
enough to be heard above the drumming.
World Music:
West Africa
• Clave patterns can be heard in music everywhere.
They often serve as a recurring rhythm in Latin
jazz, rhythm and blues, and other African American
musical styles. Consider the international appeal of
salsa and other Latin-based music. The magnetic
attraction of the rhythms can be seen on dance
floors throughout the world.
World Music:
Activity #3
Learn to recognize and play the clave pattern.
• The clave pattern is actually two patterns in
one. That is, the first eight beats have one
pattern, the next eight a different pattern. The
beat patterns in clave music are as follows:
First half
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Second half
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
p. 16, Activity 6
CD 1 #18: “Gome drumming”
CD 1 #19: “Cha-cha”