College of Education
Goa, Camarines Sur
A/Y:23013-2014
Lynnie S. Boholano
BSEd-2B
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates to the beginnings of human culture. Early musical instruments may have used for ritual: such as a trumpet to signal success on the hunt, or adrum in a religious ceremony. Cultures eventually developed composition and performance of melodies for entertainment. Musical instruments evolved in step with changing applications.
The date and origin of the first device considered a musical instrument is disputed. The oldest object that some scholars refer to as a musical instrument, a simple flute, dates back as far as 67,000 years. Some consensus dates early flutes to about 37,000 years ago. However, most historians believe that determining a specific time of musical instrument invention is impossible due to the subjectivity of the definition and the relative instability of materials used to make them. Many early musical instruments were made from animal skins, bone, wood, and other non-durable materials.
Musical instruments developed independently in many populated regions of the world. However, contact among civilizations caused rapid spread and adaptation of most instruments in places far from their origin. By the Middle Ages, instruments from Mesopotamia were inMaritime Southeast Asia, and Europeans played instruments from North Africa. Development in the Americas occurred at a slower pace, but cultures of North, Central, and South America shared musical instruments. By 1400, musical instrument development slowed in many areas and was dominated by the Occident.
Musical instrument classification is a discipline in its own right, and many systems of classification have been used over the years. Instruments can be classified by their effective range, their material composition, their size, etc. However, the most common academic method, Hornbostel-Sachs, uses the means by which they produce sound. The academic study of musical instruments is called organology.
Philippine Music Instruments
Music instruments, mechanisms that produce sounds, have been used for various purposes. In earlier times they were also used as an adjunct to dance or to labor. In later civilizations, instrumental music was used for entertainment. Present day musicological studies, following the Hornbostel-Sachs classification, divide instruments into the following categories: idiophones, aerophones, chordophones, and membranophone.
Idiophones
Instruments that produce sound from the substance of the instrument itself (wood or metal) are classified as idiophones. They are further subdivided into those that are struck, scraped, plucked, shaken, or rubbed. In the Philippines there are metal and wooden (principally bamboo) idiophones. Metal idiophonse are of two categories: flat gongs and bossed gongs. Flat gongs made of bronze, brass, or iron, are found principally in the north among the Isneg, Tingguian, Kalinga, Bontok, Ibaloi, Kankanai, Gaddang, Ifugao, and Ilonggot. They are most commonly referred to as gangsa. The gongs vary in sized, the average are struck with wooden sticks, padded wooden sticks, or slapped with the palm of the hand. Gong playing among the Cordillera highlanders is an integral part of peace pact gatherings, marriages, prestige ceremonies, feasts, or rituals. In southern Philippines, gongs have a central profusion or knot, hence the term bossed gongs. They are three of types: (1) sets of graduated gongs laid in a row called the kulintang; (2) larger, deep-rimmed gongs with sides that are turned in called agung, and (3) gongs with narrower rims and less prominent bosses called gandingan. These gongs may be played alone but are often combined with other instruments to form various types of ensembles. Bamboo idiophones abound in the Philippines-xylophones, drums, quill-shaped tubes, stamping tubes, scrapers, buzzers, and clappers. The bamboo xylophone, gabbang, is found in southern Philippines among the Yakan, Sama, Tausug, and Palawan. It consists of bamboo keys of graduated lengths mounted on a trapezoidal box. The number of keys varies among the different ethnic groups, ranging from 3 to 22. In northern Luzon, among the Kalinga, individual xylophone-like blades called patatag are struck with bamboo sticks. The bamboo slit drum, such as the Bukidnon bantula is fashioned out of a bamboo tube closed at both ends with anode with a slit cut out of the tube. Found among different groups of people, its main use is to announce important events. The struck quill-shaped bamboo tubes with notches etched on the tube, are found only in southern Philippines such as the Maranao tagutok and the Maguindanao kagul. The player scrapes the notches with a bamboo stick. Among the Cordillera highlanders, bamboo buzzers are widespread. They are made from a length of bamboo closed with a node at the bottom, with its top half shaped so that two tongues face each other. The top half is struck against the palm of the hand. They are known by different names such as balingbing, pew-pew, pakkung, bilbil, bungkaka by the various groups. The Ifugao have a bamboo clapper, hanger, fashioned from a tubular section of bamboo, split from one end to approximately half of the tube. Each half of the split portion is shaped to make it narrower in the middle, thus making it more flexible when the halves are made to flap against each other. Wooden idiophones include sticks, suspended logs, and log drums. The Hanunuo kalutang consists of pair of sticks cut from forest trees. These are struck against each other and played while hiking through forest and mountain trails. The Ifugao pattung is a percussion yoke bar made from a tapered piece of wood and struck with a stick. It is used in a ceremonies for the sick, at rites which entail the offering of sacrificial pigs, or at death rituals. Suspended logs are widespread in southern Philippines where they are known by different ethnic names. The Maguindanao luntang consists of several logs of varying lengths hung in order from longest to shortest. The pointed playing ends of each log is struck by one performer creating a melody against which another performer beats drone rhythm on one of the logs. The Tagakaolo edel is a sounding board with resonator played during wedding celebrations together with a drum or gong to accompany dancers. The Bagobo and Bilaan have similar drums. Jews harps are bound all over the Philippines. They are principally made from bamboo although in Philippines some are made of metal. It is a type of mouth resonated instrument consisting of a flexible tongue fixed at one end to a surrounding frame. The player places the free end of the instrument with the hand, or in some other types by pulling a string attached to the blade. The instruments have different manes among the various ethnic groups. In the south the most common term is kubing, in the north ulibaw.
Aerophones
Philippine bamboo aerophones include various types of flutes, pan-pipes, and reed pipes. The most widespread and numerous are the flutes which are mostly end-blown with the air stream directed into the open end of the tube. The lip valley notch flute, so called because of its mouthpiece which is obliquely cut and curved at a slant to follow the contour of the player's lips, is found in northern and southern Philippines. They are known by different names among the different linguistic groups, such as the paldong in the south and the palendag in the north. They are instruments of leisure, used for serenading, courting, or merely to pass the time away. The nose flute, another type of end-blown flute, is found mostly in northern Philippines where the Kalinga call it tongali, the Bontok kaleleng, and the Ifugao ungiung. It is found sporadically in some areas of the south among the Hanunuo (lantuy), the Batak (lantoy), and the Bukidnon (bulaktob). The Cuyunin of Palawan have gigantic nose flutes with tubes much larger in diameter than those found in Luzon. Less common flutes are the ring type called suling in southern Philippines; the whistle type called thumpong (Subanun); and the reed called saunay (Tausug). Stopped pipes found in northern Philippines are the saggeypo (Kalinga) and the sagay-op (Bontok). The bamboo pipe is closed on one end by a node with the open end held against the lower lip of the player as he blows directly across the top. The pipe can be played individually by one person or in ensembles of three or more. Rarely used today is the bamboo panpipes called diwas, diwdiwas, or dew-dew. These consist of a number of bamboo pipes (5-8)strung together. Most Philippine transverse flutes are adaptations or imitation of European versions evident in the borrowed names such as flauta (Ilonggo, Sebuano, Bicol); plawta (Manobo) and palawta (Hanunuo, Waray). The Cuyunin use a transverse flute called tipanu which is also found among the Batak of Palawan. Other blown instruments are those made from shell or carabao horn. These are used for calling people or sending messages over wide distances. Shell trumpets include the budyong,lungga, taburi. Carabao horns are the tambuli (Tagalog) and kogao (Ifugao).
Chordophones
These are bamboo or wood stringed instruments that may be struck, plucked, or bowed. They included zithers, lutes, and bowed strings. Philippine zithers have resonating bodies that are made from bamboo tubes or half tubes with strings that run parallel to the length of the tube. Tube zithers are found in northern Luzon, Mindanao, and Palawan. They are of two types: polychordal zithers with several strings that run around the tube, and parallel stringed zithers which have two strings on one side of the tube. Polychordal tube zithers found in the Cordilleras, Mindanao and Palawan have strings that are etched out of the bamboo body, remaining attached at both ends. Small wooden frets are inserted beneath the string near the ends. The number of strings varies from 5 to 8 or 9 and occasionally even 11. Some names by which this zither is called are: kolitong, kollessing, kulibet, saluray, sigitan, takul, tangke, togo, and pagang. In the parallel stringed tube zithers, two bamboo strands, about 5 cm. apart, are etched out to the tube to serve as strings. At mid-point of the tube, below the strings, a small sound hole is bored and covered by a small bamboo plate clipped to the strings. When played, the strings are struck by a bamboo stick or plucked. The instrument, with slight variations, is found innorthern Luzon, Mindoro, Mindanao, and Palawan where they are known by such names as tambi, bamban,tabengbeng, kudling, tabobo, thambabok, takumbo, and patigunggung. Lutes are found only in the south, in Mindanao and Palawan. They are of the long neck variety, with two stings that run from the neck to the base of the resonating chamber. One sting plays a drone, the other a melody. Though all the lutes are fretted, the location and number of frets vary between groups. The frets of the Maranao and Maguindanao kudyapi are glued to the body of the resonating chamber, while the frets of the Bilaan fuglung, the Mansaka and Mandaya kudlong and the Palawan kusyapi are located on the neck of the instrument. One stringed bowed lutes (fiddles) of the long neck variety are found in Mindanao. They have a sounding box made from a coconut half shell covered with a leaf, or a piece of bark or animal skin. The string is make of abaca fibers, horse hair, and more recently, wire. In is called duwagey by the Manobo and Bilaan. In the later period of the Spanish regime, a favorite string ensemble called cumparsaemerged. It was anadaptation of similar instrumental groups in Mexico (murza or murga) and Spain (estudiantina). During the early years of the American regime, the cumparsa was superceded by the rondalla. The rondalla ensemble consists of plucked string instruments: the bandurria, the laud, theoctavina, the six stringed gitara and the bajo de unas or bass guitar. The bandurria is pear shaped, with a rounded back, a round sound hole and a fretted neck. It serves as the melody instrument of the ensemble. Theoctavina and bandurria are tuned an octave below the laud. They furnish the inner harmonies and contrapuntal elaboration to the melody. The gitara's main function is to supply the arpeggiated or chordal underpinnings of the ensemble. The bajo de unas is tuned like the contra-bass.
Membranophones
Single and double headed drums are found throughout the Philippines. They are variously shaped--conical, cylindrical, goblet shaped, barrel shaped. Animal skins (snake, deer, or goat) is used as head/heads of the drum. They may be beaten with sticks or by the palm portion of bare hands. Drums are seldom used alone except to announce tidings over long distances. Usually they are played with other instruments, particularly gongs, to form different kinds of ensembles. The sulibao and kimbal of the Bontok and Ibaloi are longitudinal slightly barrel shaped hollowed out logs with deer skin heads on one end. The taller drum (ca. 80 cm) is called the kimbal; the shorter (ca. 75 cm) is called the sulibaw. The drum dead is small measuring about 6 cm. in diameter. They are played with palms of two hands. The drums are combined with gongs and other instruments to form different types of ensembles. The Ifugao libbit, ludag is a conical drum with a deer or goat skin head. It is played with a gong during harvest time under the rice granary. The dabakan is a large goblet shaped drum used by the Maranao and Maguindanao in their kulintang ensembles. The forgoing listing of Philippine musical instruments has been based primarily on holding of the archives at the U.P. Center for Ethnomusicology. Drawings of the indigenous instruments are taken from a Poster Set of Instruments done by artists Cecile Dioquino-Hidalgo, Anna Arce, Jose Bienvenido Ignacio, and Leah Diaz.
18 Benefits of Playing a Musical Instrument
by on AUGUST 28, 2011 in ARTICLES, DIRECTORS, MUSIC ADVOCACY
1. Increases the capacity of your memory.
According to an article from The Telegraph online magazine, “New research suggests that regularly playing an instrument changes the shape and power of the brain and may be used in therapy to improve cognitive skills.” There is continually more evidence that musicians have organizationally and functionally different brains compared to non-musicians, especially in the areas of the brain used in processing and playing music. If you learn how to play an instrument, the parts of your brain that control motor skills (ex: using your hands, running, swimming, balancing, etc.), hearing, storing audio information, and memory actually grow and become more active. Other results show that playing an instrument can help your IQ increase by seven points. (Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/6447588/Playing-a-musical-instrument-makes-you-brainier.html)
2. Refines your time management and organizational skills.
Learning how to play an instrument requires you to really learn how to be organized and to manage your time wisely. A good musician knows that the quality of practice time is more valuable than the quantity. In order for a musician to progress quicker, he/she will learn how to organize his/her practice time and plan different challenges to work on, making efficient use of time.
3. Boosts your team skills.
Team skills are a very important aspect of being successful in life. Playing an instrument requires you to work with others to make music. In band and orchestra settings you must learn how to cooperate with the people around you. Also, in order for a group to make beautiful music, each player and section must learn how to listen to each other and play together.
4. Teaches you perseverance.
Learning to play an instrument takes time and effort, which really teaches you patience and perseverance. Most people can’t play every piece of music perfectly the first time. In fact, the majority of musicians have to work difficult sections of music multiple times in a row before they can play it correctly.
5. Enhances your coordination.
The art of playing an instrument requires a lot of hand-eye coordination. By reading musical notes on a page, your brain subconsciously must convert that note into specific motor patterns while also adding breathing and rhythm to the mix.
6. Betters your mathematical ability.
Reading music requires counting notes and rhythms and can help your math skills. Also, learning music theory includes many mathematical aspects. Studies have shown that students who play instruments or study the arts are often better in math and achieve higher grades in school than students who don’t. (Source: Friedman, B. (1959) An evaluation of the achievement in reading and arithmetic of pupils in elementary schools instrumental classes. Dissertation Abstracts International, 20, pp.s 3662-3663.)
7. Improves your reading and comprehension skills.
According to a study published in the journal Psychology of Music, “Children exposed to a multi-year program of music tuition involving training in increasingly complex rhythmic, tonal, and practical skills display superior cognitive performance in reading skills compared with their non-musically trained peers.” (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090316075843.htm)
It’s not surprising to hear results like that because music involves constant reading and comprehension. When you see black and white notes on a page, you have to recognize what the note name is and translate it to a finger/slide position. At the same time, you also have to read what rhythms the notes are arranged in and force your tongue to produce the correct pattern.
8. Increases your responsibility.
Playing an instrument comes with its responsibilities. Maintenance and care are very important in keeping an instrument in working condition. Each instrument has different procedures to keep in functioning properly, but most instruments need cleaning and some form of oiling/greasing. In addition to maintenance responsibilities, there are other aspects such as remembering music events (like rehearsals and performances) and making time to practice.
9. Exposes you to cultural history
Oftentimes music reflects the environment and times of its creation. Therefore, you learn a variety of music types such as classical traditions, folk music, medieval, and other genres. Music itself is history, and each piece usually has its own background and storyline that can further your appreciation of other cultures.
10. Sharpens your concentration.
Playing music by yourself requires you to concentrate on things like pitch, rhythm, tempo, note duration, and quality of sound. Playing music in a group involves even more concentration because you must learn to not only hear yourself, but you must listen to all the other sections and play in harmony with the rest of the group.
11. Fosters your self-expression and relieves stress
.It’s your instrument, so you can play whatever you want on it! The more advanced you become on an instrument, the greater you’ll be able to play what you want and how you want. Music is an art–just like an artist can paint his/her emotions onto a canvas, so can a musician play a piece with emotion. This has proven to relieve stress and can be a great form of therapy. In fact, music therapy has been useful in treating children and teens with autism, depression, and other disorders.
12. Creates a sense of achievement.
Overcoming musical challenges that you thought you’d never quite master can give you a great sense of pride about yourself. When you first start learning how to play an instrument, it seems like just holding out a note for a couple beats or hitting a high pitch is an amazing accomplishment. As you practice and become a more experienced musician, making beautiful sounding music pleasing not only to your ear, but others as well is a very rewarding experience.
13. Promotes your social skills.
Playing an instrument can be a great way to enhance your social skills. Some of the best people join bands and orchestras, and many times the friends you make here become like family. It’s very common for people to gain lifelong friendships through musical activities like these.
14. Boosts your listening skills.
Although it’s pretty obvious, playing an instrument requires you to listen very carefully to things. You have to learn how to hear when you’re playing a wrong note in order to correct yourself. Tuning your instrument means hearing if the pitch you’re playing is high (sharp) or low (flat). When playing in an ensemble, you have to listen for the melody and play softer if you’re the supporting part (accompaniment). There are too many examples to list every possibility here, but by playing an instrument you are guaranteed to improve your listening skills.
15. Teaches you discipline.
As previously mentioned, playing an instrument can be very challenging. One of the qualities that musicians learn is discipline. Practicing often and working on the hard parts of music and not just the easy and fun stuff requires discipline. The best musicians in the world are masters of discipline which is why they are so successful on their instrument.
16. Elevates your performance skills and reduces stage fright.
One of the goals of practicing so much on your instrument is so that you can perform for others. The more you get up in front of people and perform, the more you’ll reduce any stage fright. Playing on stage in a band or orchestra helps with stage fright because you’re not alone. Also, being prepared and really knowing how to play your part makes it much easier to get up and play for a crowd.
17. Enhances your respiratory system.
If you have a good music director/tutor, you should hear them tell you quite often to “use more air!” Air is one of the key components in making wonderful-sounding music. In order to play any piece of music correctly when playing an instrument, you’ll need to take huge breaths and learn how to expel the air properly to make the desired sound. Breathing exercises are highly recommended for musicians, and they can really strengthen your respiratory system.
18. Promotes happiness in your life and those around you.
Playing a musical instrument can be very fun and exciting. Not only is it fun to play music that you enjoy, but it feels wonderful to hear an audience applaud you for giving a great performance. It can also be very honorable and gratifying to voluntarily play in your local community and see the happiness on people’s faces because they enjoy watching you play.
Throughout history, in all cultures, music has been an integral part of human life. Archaeological evidence of musical instruments such as bone flutes and drums predates even agricultural tools.
Music researchers have found correlations between music making and some of the deepest workings of the human brain. Research has linked active music making with increased language discrimination and development, math ability, improved school grades, better-adjusted social behavior, and improvements in spatial-temporal reasoning, a cornerstone for problem solving.
Harvard psychologist Howard Gardner has theorized that humans have several different types of intelligences—logical-mathematical, linguistic, and interpersonal. He believes that music intelligence is equal in importance to all of them.
Why is music important for children?
Music helps develop children's language skills:
When young children listen to familiar words in songs, the neural transmitters in their brains are firing away, and their brains are building connections to the sounds they are hearing and the words they are singing. Singing songs and reciting poems and rhymes with children helps them develop early literacy skills.
Keeping a steady beat develops language. Clapping hands, stamping feet, and using rhythm instruments in time to music develops important pre-reading skills. Young children recognize words, sounds, rhythms, tones, and pitches long before they talk, sing, or dance. So, the more music your children have in their lives, the better they will speak and read.
Music helps develop children's self-esteem:
Music is a wonderful way to address the many needs of children because music is nonjudgmental. There is no right or wrong, it just is what it is. Listening to different types of music nurtures self-esteem and encourages creativity, self-confidence, and curiosity.
Music helps develop children's listening skills:
Music encourages the ability to listen and thus to concentrate. Songs encourage speech and auditory discrimination. Through music, children learn to hear tempos, dynamics, and melodies. Listening for loud and soft, up and down, fast and slow encourages auditory development in the brain.
Music helps develop children's math skills:
A simple song can include basic math skills such as counting, repeating patterns, and sequencing.
Music helps stimulate children's brain connections:
A recent study from the University of California found that music trains the brain for higher forms of thinking. For example, researchers believe that music affects spatial-temporal reasoning (the ability to see part-whole relationships).
Music and movement go together:
Children naturally respond to music by moving and being active. Music helps children learn about rhythm and develop motor coordination.
Group dances like the Hokey Pokey help children learn about their body parts ("you put your right foot in," "you put your left hand in…"), sense of direction (turning around, going left and right, moving back and forth), and rhythm patterns (clapping to the beat).
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Music relieves stress:
Stress can be relieved with songs, chants, finger plays, and moving to music. Singing together creates a feeling of safety and makes learning in a classroom much easier.
Music makes transitions easier:
Getting children to move from one activity to another is easy when you sing a song. For example, sing to the tune of "The Farmer in the Dell," "It's time to go to lunch," and you'll see that the children will get ready much faster. Keep making up verses. "Let's pick up the toys… Now let's wash our hands," etc.
Music encourages creativity in children:
A fun game to play with children is changing the words to familiar songs. It is a wonderful way to develop the creative process. Remember in Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll how the words of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" were changed to "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Bat?"
Choose a song that your child knows well. Some familiar songs are: "Old Macdonald," "The Wheels on the Bus," and "Skip to My Lou."
You can sing, "Old Macdonald had a supermarket," and sing about all the items in the supermarket. Make up a sound to go with the food (e.g. orange juice: slurp, slurp). |
Music is a great way to teach children with special needs:
Music is a fun way to teach all children, including children who have special learning needs. Music experiences can be an effective way to stimulate speech development, provide organization for cognitive and motor development, and create a meaningful environment for socialization.
3 tips on buying an Instruments
There are advantages to buying a used music instrument. For one, you may be able to find a good quality instrument at a lower price than buying a new one. On the other hand, there are also some risks involved when buying a used instrument. One downside is you usually don't get any warranties, unless the used instrument is fairly new.
When buying a used musical instrument there are three things you should keep in mind:
1. Who and Where
A good factor to determine an instruments' condition is to know who previously owned it. If you're buying it from a garage sale, then you might be able to meet the owner and ask him why he/she is selling it, how long it was used, etc. If you're buying it from an online shop, make sure they have a good customer satisfaction rating or better, a return policy. If you're buying it from a music store, ask the salesperson if it's possible to know the name of its previous owner, how long it's been in the store, etc.
2. Overall Condition
If possible, ask someone who knows a lot about music instruments to accompany you. Maybe you have a friend who plays the instrument you want to learn or a music teacher in your area who's willing to help you. They can help assess whether the instrument is in good condition by playing it, listening to how it sounds and how it feels while they're playing it.
3. Value for your Money
Make sure that the money you're paying for the used instrument is worth it. Research first how much the instrument costs if it's brand new; go to different shops, compare prices, compare the condition of the
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/jackie-silberg-importance-of-music/379002449/
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http://www.effectivemusicteaching.com/articles/directors/18-benefits-of-playing-a-musical- instrument
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