Transcript Musical instruments - Comenius

Comenius Project
DISCOVER YOUR HIDDEN SKILLS
Școala Gimnazială Nr. 3 Oțelu Roșu
ROMÂNIA
By Alina Butoi-Draghici
Romanian traditional instrument
The Bucium
 The bucium (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈbut͡ʃjum], also
called trâmbiţă or tulnic) is a type of alphorn used by
mountain dwellers in Romania. Of Dacian originit was
used in the principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia as
signaling devices in military conflicts.The word is derived
from Latin bucinum, originally meaning "curved horn", an
instrument used by the Romans. The word is a cognate
with English "bugle".
 The tube is made from limetree bark, wood, or even
(partially) from metal. It is mostly used by shepherds for
signaling and communication in the forested mountains,
as well as for guiding sheep and dogs. Trâmbiţa produces
sounds altogether different from those of the alphorn.
Bucium
players
A mural in Voroneţ Monastery showing
an angel playing a bucium at the onset of
the Last Judgment.
 1921 photo of a shepherd
with a trâmbiţă, in
Giuleşti (Maramureş).
A music instrument by choice:
The piano
 The piano (or pianoforte to
give it its proper name) is a
musical instrument with
a keyboard. A normal piano has
88 keys. Pianos use the keys to
move hammers that hit strings
inside, making a sound. Pianos
come in two basic shapes: grand
pianos and upright pianos. The
piano has been an extremely
popular instrument in
Western classical music since
the late 18th century. A person
who plays the piano is called
a pianist.
 History
 The piano was invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori of Padua, Italy. He made his first piano in 1709.
It developed from the clavichord which looks like a piano but the strings of a clavichord are hit by
a small blade of metal called a “tangent”. In the piano the strings are hit by a hammer. The early
keyboarded instruments, such as the clavichords,harpsichords and organs that were used at that
time, had a much shorter keyboard than they do today. Gradually the keyboard became longer
until it had the 88 notes (7octaves plus three notes) of the modern piano.
 At first the instrument was called the “fortepiano”. This means “loud-soft” in Italian. It was given
this name because it could be played either loudly or softly, depending on how hard the note was
hit (the harpsichord could not do this, and the clavichord could only make a tiny difference
between louder and softer). Later this name changed to “pianoforte”. This is normally shortened
to “piano”. The word “fortepiano” is sometimes used to describe the pianos of the late 18th and
early 19th centuries. In some languages, such as Russian, “fortepiano” is the normal word for a
piano.
 Although the piano was invented at the beginning of the 18th century, it was not until 50 years
later that it started to become popular. The first time the piano was played in a public concert
in London was in 1768 when it was played by Johann Christian Bach.[2] The upright piano was
invented in 1800 by John Isaac Hawkings. Seven years later T. Southwell invented “overstringing”.
This means that the strings for the low notes go diagonally across the soundboard so that they can
be longer and make a much bigger sound.
 The early pianos had strings that were fastened to a frame made of wood. They were not very
heavy, but they were not very strong or loud, so they could not be heard very well in a big concert
hall. In 1825 the cast-iron frame was invented in America. This made the piano much stronger so
that it could make a bigger sound and the strings were not likely to break.
 Piano parts
 A piano has a keyboard with white keys and black keys. When a key is pressed down,
the damper comes off the string and a hammer hits the string. It hits it very quickly and
bounces off so that the string is free to vibrate and make a sound. When the player
takes his finger off the key the damper falls back onto the string and the sound stops.
The strings are stretched very tightly across the frame, passing over a bridge on the way.
The bridge touches the soundboard. This means that the vibrations are sent to the
soundboard. The soundboard is a very important part of the piano. If it is damaged the
piano will not make a sound.
 The mechanism which makes the hammer bounce off the string very quickly is called
the “escapement”. In 1821 Sebastian Erard invented a kind of double escapement. This
made it possible to repeat the note very quickly. The hammer only touches the string
for about one thousandth of a second. The hammers are covered with felt which is a
mixture of wool, silk and hair.
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The piano has two pedals. Larger pianos have three.
The damper pedal - this pedal is on the right. When a pianist presses it down with his right foot, any
notes he plays will keep on sounding even when he takes his finger(s) off the note(s). This is because
there are dampers (they look a bit like the hammers) that rest on all the strings. When the pianist
holds the right pedal down all the dampers come off the strings so that the strings are free to vibrate.
When a note is played, that note will continue to sound. Some other strings will also vibrate very
lightly (this is called “sympathetic vibration”). It will make the sound smoother and richer. Pianists
have to learn how to use the pedal well. This will depend on such things as the style of the music, the
size of the piano, the size of the room and whether there is a lot of furnishing there.
The soft pedal - the soft pedal is on the left. When a pianist presses it down with his left foot, the
notes sound quieter. On a grand piano the whole keyboard and action shift a bit to the left so that the
hammers only hit two strings instead of three. Also the parts of the felt which hit the string are softer
because they have not become hard with lots of use. The soft pedal is normally kept down for the
whole of a piece or the whole of a section of a piece. This pedal is sometimes called the una
corda pedal. Una corda means:one string. This is because in the early pianos it was possible to press
the pedal a little way so that the hammers hit two strings, then press it further so that they hit only
one string. This is why the sign to tell a pianist to use the left pedal is “una corda”. To cancel the left
pedal the composer writes “tre corde” (“three strings”) in the music.
The middle pedal is called the sostenuto pedal. Like the right pedal, it keeps the sound going, but it
only affects notes that are already being played at the moment when the middle pedal is pressed
down. This makes it possible to keep one chord going while playing other notes that will not carry on.
All concert grand pianos have a sostenuto pedal, and some modern upright pianos do as well. Some
upright pianos have a middle pedal that is not a sostenuto pedal at all, but a practice pedal. It places a
piece of cloth in front of the strings, that makes the sound very quiet indeed so that a pianist can
practise without disturbing other people. The sound of a piano with a practice piano is very limited
and different. The practice pedal can usually be pressed down and put in a slot so that it will stay in
place.
 Playing the piano
 The piano has been a very popular instrument ever since the mid 18th century
when it soon replaced the clavichord and the harpsichord. By the early 19th
century the sound that the piano made was big enough to fill large concert halls.
Smaller pianos were made for use in people’s homes. At first these included square
pianos and giraffe pianos, later on the upright pianos became popular for home
use. Pianos are not often used in orchestras (if they are, they are part of
the percussion section). They may, however, be used for piano concertos (pieces
for solo pianist accompanied by orchestra). There is a vast amount of music
written for piano solo. The piano can also be used together with other
instruments, in jazz groups, and for accompanying singing.
 Music for the piano is normally written on two staves: the upper stave is for the
right hand, the lower stave for the left hand. Much of the time the right hand
music is written in the treble clef, the left hand music in the bass clef.
 Pianists have to learn many things. It is important to sit comfortably with a
straight back so that hands can reach all the keys. The hands should be shaped like
a ball so that the fingers are curved. They should be able to control the sound they
make with the weight of the arm and fingers. Lots of practice is needed to become
a good pianist. Some people can play the piano very well “by ear”, but learning to
read music helps a person to become a better pianist and musician. Playing the
piano helps people to understand harmonybecause the piano can play chords.
 Pianos need to be tuned regularly. A piano tuner is a person whose job it is to tune
pianos.
Thank you for
watching!