MarKamusic
Instruments
MarKamusic's
musicians are called upon to play over forty familiar and exotic
instruments to
create the unique musical textures, tonalities and colors of the many
lands and
cultures in the South American continent. These instruments are the
product of
native aboriginal musical craft traditions, which have evolved over
millennia,
as well as from African, European, and North American sources, which
fused with
the indigenous instruments to create hybrid versions of the above. Some of the less familiar instruments that you
may see and
hear over a MarKamusic
performance can be classified in three main groups:
a.Wind
instruments, b. percussion instruments and c.string instruments.
WIND
INSTRUMENTS
A
foot-long bamboo flute with a simple notched mouthpiece and seven
holes, six on
top and one under which produces a hunting, sweet and melancholic sound. The oldest quenas found in Peru predate the
Inca times as much as 3500
hundred years. Originally this instrument was made out of the leg bones
of
flamingos, human femurs and bamboo. Today is mostly built out of bamboo
or wood
and there are variations made out of wood, PVC pipe and copper pipe. During the times of the Spanish colony, the
Spanish prohibited the
Indians from playing it because they thought the Indians became
estranged by its
sound as well as provoking rebellious feelings among them. Its
beautiful and
distinctive tone can be heard today throughout the Andean regions of
South
America and it is probably the wind instrument of choice among the
indigenous
people, especially herders and peasants. A
longer, deeper toned variant is called the Quenacho, and another
variant with an
extended mouthpiece is called the Pinkuyo.
A
generic term for a family of wind instruments each consisting of a
collection of
thin bamboo tubes strapped together in a form similar to East-European
Pan-pipes. The Zampoña family ranges in
sizes from the
tiny Chuli to the six-foot
long Toyos. The Zampoña is the oldest of the South American indigenous
flutes.
It is believed that as early as 5000 years ago this instrument was used
in its
pentatonic version. It was not until the arrival of the Europeans that
the Zampoñas
acquired their tuning in G. Some
ethnomusicologists believe that the name of this family of instruments
stem from
a mispronunciation by the Indians of the word symphony (sinfonía in
Spanish). Other members of the
family, of different
sizes and tuning arrangements
are called Maltas, Bastos, Semitoyos, Sikus, Antaras, Rondadores (from
Ecuador),
and Payas. The names always varying according to their regions of
provenance. In the Andean mountains you
can often see
pairs of Zampoñeros playing
alternate notes in rapid succession resulting in a kind of "stereo"
effect. Traditionally,
two individuals divide the Zampoñas into two
separate rows of pipes so
that while one of the players is “breathing” the other player is
playing and
vice versa. A great degree of
synchronization is require of the players to successfully accomplish
this
activity..
The
Indians probably devised the instrument this way because since they
live in the
high plateaus of the Andes well over 12,000 feet of altitude and the
air is
so thin
there, they could rapidly hyperventilate by playing the instrument, and
also
because every aspect of their existence is marked by a communal
attitude towards
life.
The
Rondador is a panpipe native to Ecuador and therefore it is the most
distinctive
of the Andean peoples of this region and northern Peru.
The musical form most often connected to the
Rondador is the Ecuadorian
San Juanito. During the Inca times,
often feathers from the condor or other birds were used to adorn the
instruments
while creating their mystical spirit.Its construction resembles closely
the
Peruvian Antara and the Andean siku. To make a Rondador very thin
walled bamboo
canes are chosen to facilitate resonantly
smooth pipes. The instrument has all the tubes arranged in a single row
and it
is played by blowing simultaneously in two contiguous tubes at once
(none like
other Andean panpipes in which only one pipe is blown at a time). The pipes are tuned in a pentatonic way
interlaced from major to minor: The
essential characteristic that sets the
Rondador apart from other
panpipes is that each pipe is laid down followed by a pipe tuned on its
lower
third, thus allowing to produce a melody with a harmony in parallel
thirds.
Nowadays Rondadores exist in an assortment of tunings.
A
ceramic flute which appears in many fanciful shapes, from that of
birds, fish,
and turtles to unrecognizable lumpy shapes. Other
varieties
of this instruments have
recently been fabricated out of
wood and even plastic. It is played
all over North Central and South America. It
usually
has from four to six holes and is played by covering the holes
with the
fingers of both hands alternatively. Is used primarily to recreate
hunting
melodies as well as bird and insect sounds of various pitches.
Known
as the Pututo among the Indians of the highlands in South America, are
the
familiar bull horn and Conch shell. The
Instrument is used to this day in South and Central America to produce
loud
trumpeting sounds, often to announce the commencement of communal
gatherings,
religious events, fairs, festivals and processions.
When
made out of a conch shell the Indians use a 50 to 70 year
old
conch to which they cut the top head or axel, leaving an opening at the
top of
the conch through which they will blow, very much like a regular
trumpet. The pitch of the conch is changed
by
introducing and alternating the
depth of the hand in the sound hole (or opening of the conch). There are many variations of the Pututo, but
the most common one is the one made of the horn of an animal. Bull horns, in this case, are the most used material.
PUTUTO
BULLHORN
CONCH
PUTUTO
Is an ancient
Andean wind instrument made out of wood, which has a rectangular shape
if looked
transversally. Its length varies between 14’’ and 20’’ and its diameter
between 2’’ and 3’’. It has
a mouthpiece and six holes on the top. The
Tarka can produce a full octave and a have which allows it to create
rich and
complex melodies. In the folklore
of the Andean regions this is not very common and is rather used for
simple and
repetitive melodies. The provenance
and age of the instrument are undetermined, though it provably had
European
influence it is definitely pre-Hispanic. This
instrument
produces a hunting sound and it was mostly used for
religious
ceremonies and dances.
STRING INSTRUMENTS
- Charango [Chah-rahn-goh]:
Diminutive
high-pitched ten-string instrument played throughout the Andean region,
the
product of indigenous craftsmen inspired by the Spanish Guitar and
Vihuela. The face and neck look like a
miniature toy
guitar, and the soundbox
consists of carved wooden shell or the dried skin of lizards or
armadillos. It is most often played by
rapidly fanning or
plucking the strings. A
larger variant is called the Ronroco.
A
small, guitar-like string instrument, most often seen in Colombia. It is strung with four sets, or courses of
three strings each, and has a
distinctive nasal, high-pitched sizzling sound, much like a twelve
steel string
guitar. In later years the tiple
has gained recognition primarily by experimental musicians (Sting) and
Jazz
players (such as Pat Matheny) who use it to add its distinctive foreign
sound to
their ever-changing hungry for exotic sounds music genre.
- Venezuelan
Cuatro [Kuah-troh]:
A
tiny Venezuelan/ Colombian string instrument played by the people of
the plains
shared by the two countries. In recent years it has spread over much of
South
America. Similar to the Hawaiian ukulele, the cuatro has four strings
and is
strummed rapidly to produce a lively, percussive, bouncy sounds.
PERCUSSION
INSTRUMENTS
- Cajón Peruano [Kah-hón-
Peh-ru-ah-noh or peruvian Cajón]:
A
percussion instrument originating from the black folkloric tradition of
Peru, it
consists of a wooden box played by rhythmically slapping its thin front
surface
at various angles and heights while the player sits on its top. The
front face
is only partially fixed to the body of the box, giving a distinctive
rattling
sound when played. Often, loose
piano strings or broken reeds are attached to the rear surface of the
front face,
which vibrates against them producing a sound very similar to a snare
drum. The back face of the Cajón is a
fixed plate of wood with a
circular sound hole right in the middle. The
Peruvian
Cajón can produce a great variety of sounds and timbres in
very many
different pitches which makes it rival a whole drum kit. It makes sense
that an
instrument like this one would
develop among the African slaves in coastal Peru. The
dispossessed
slaves would also use their
cajones as a chair, as a
table and as a box where they could transport and keep their few
belongings. In recent years the Peruvian
Cajón has become quite popular among world beat andJazz musicians, who
use it
for its easy of handle and transportation while going to rehearsals.
Its small
size makes it ideal instead of a whole drum kit.
- Caña
de Agua [Kán-ya deh áh-guah]:
Known
as the Rain Stick, it mimics the sound of rushing water or drizzling
rain
depending on how you handle it. It
originated in the Pacific coast of South America, specifically in the
northern
desertic coasts of chile, where it is still made from a length of
sun-dried
cactus-branch. The thorns are pulled out while and then reinserted
point in
while the cactus branch is still green. After the cactus has dried out
one end
is sealed and the branch is filled with seashell fragments, small
pebbles or
hard seeds. Later the open end is also
sealed. It spread as far as Mexico, where
is made from lengths of
bamboo. In the desertic regions of
its provenance it was originally used in religious ceremonies destined
to end
the drought and call in the rains.
A
bottle-gourd instrument of African origin made from a long, hollow
gourd. On its surface it has indentations
that are
stroked by a flexible wooden
stick or fork-like scraper to make a rhythmic, scratching noise. The Güiro is played all over Latin America,
but it is used mostly in
Afro-Caribbean music
.
A
uniquely Andean percussion instrument known also as Chullus, it
consists of a
woven ribbon with numerous dried goat-hooves tied onto it.
When it is shaken it suggests the sound of
wind and falling rain. Chajchas can also
be found made with
seashells, stones, beads, seeds or
scraps of hardwood.
In
its most rudimentary form, this Brazilian noisemaker consists of a tin
can
partially filled with sand or very fine pebbles, which is shaken
rhythmically to
produce a variety of percussive patterns.
Originating
in Bolivia and Argentina this large two-headed slack bass drum consists
of a
hollow tree trunk with cowhide on both ends. A
common
arrangement is to have one head made
from cowhide and the
opposite head made from sheepskin with the wool intact. It is played
with either
sticks or a muffled beater. Bombos
change name and size and vary in appearance from country to country. In
Peru is
also known as Wancara. Later
versions of these instruments are made out of a thin sheet of
steam-bent/curved
plywood yet others are made out of wood cut into a cylindrical shell.
It takes
its name from the distinctively deep, muffled sound that it produces
and from
the onomatopoeia of its sound (bom-bom-bom = bombo).
This instrument derives of West African
influence since there were no
drums with hides tied on top until after the forced arrival of the
African
slaves to South America.
Better
known as Quijada or Donkey Jaw, it literally originated from a lower
donkey Jaw
which teeth have remained attached after it dried out and voided of all
flesh,
by gluing and securing the first molar, which does not permit the other
teeth to
fall out, it rattles when hit rhythmically creating a very distinctive
percussive sound. Is widely used in
the Afro-Peruvian musical traditions and also in Brazilian Music.
It
name literally means turtle. It is a hollow and dried turtle shell
turned upside
down and then hit with a mallet on both open ends to produce a
percussion sound
very similar to the modern wood blocks. In fact this instrument is the
predecessor of the wooden blocks. The
Tortuga is a Mayan instrument native to Guatemala but can be heard in
southern
Mexico, Central America and as far South as the Amazon Jungle.
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