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30th January 2018 at the Edinburgh University Collection of Historic Musical Instruments, St Cecilia’s Hall, Edinburgh.
The Tom Drum or Tom-Tom is a cylindrical drum without snare wires which makes a booming, resonant sound which can vary in pitch. One or more of different depths, either mounted on a floorstand or on a rack above the Bass Drum, are part of the Drum Kit used in Jazz and Popular music. It is related to drums found in East Asia. The name echoes the Hindi Tam-Tam (with similar names in Sinhalese and Malay) and imitates the sound of the drum. The first Tom Toms were brought to the USA by Chinese and other immigrant groups in the second half of the 19 century. Then under the name “Chee Foo” Tom-Toms, they were then imported from China by American drum companies in the early 1920s (with a company logo added for US distribution). Jazz bands such as those of Fletcher Henderson and Duke Ellington used them to create an “oriental" or pseudo-African “jungle” sound. They were frequently painted colourfully, and initially had pigskin heads tacked or glued in place and thus could not be tuned. In 1922 Ludwig & Ludwig Drum Company produced the first drumset with two fully tunable Tom-Toms.and in 1930 Leedy’s introduced of the first American-made Tom-Toms. It was Gene Krupa in the 1930s who did much to popularise the Tom Drum.
This instrument was made in the middle of the twentieth century by Boosey and Hawkes in Britain.
Tom Drums are assigned the number 211.212.1 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
2 = Membranophones. Instruments where the sound is primarily produced by the vibration of a string or strings that are stretched between fixed points.
21 = Struck Membranophones. Sound is produced by hitting the drumskin with a hand or object.
211 = Directly Struck Membranophones. Instruments in which the membrane is struck directly.
211.2 = Tubular Drums. Instruments in which the body is tubular.
211.21 = Cylindrical Drums. Instruments in which the body has the same diameter at the middle and end.
211.212 = Instruments which have two usable membranes.
211.212.1 = single instruments.
24th September 2020 at Horniman Museum, London SE23.
The Triton Shell Trumpet is found across Ocenia, in Melanesia and Polynesia (and also Korea and Japan). They can be made from different species ofTriton, a very large sea snail, and can be either end-blown or side-blown (in part depending on the type of shell).
This instrument was made in the 19th century in the Admiralty Islands which are part of Papua New Guinea. It is side-blown and consists of the shell of a Giant Triton (Charonia tritonis). A circular mouth hole is cut into the side approximately half way along its length.
Triton Shell Trumpets are assigned the number 423.112 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
4 = Aerophones. Sound is primarily produced by vibrating air. The instrument itself does not vibrate, and there are no vibrating strings or membranes.
42 = Non-free aerophones. The vibrating air is contained within the instrument.
423 = Trumpets. The player's vibrating lips set the air in motion.
423.1 = There are no means of changing the pitch apart from the player's lips.
423.11 = Conches. A conch shell serves as trumpet.
423.112 = Side-blown.
30th January 2012 the Slaughtered Lamb, London EC1 (Genticorum gig).
The Stomp Box is a wooden board or box which a musican (usually guitar or banjo player) taps with their feet to enhance the rhythm. They can be solid or have an acoustic chamber. A microphone is often placed above the board/inside the box They go by a variety of other names - e.g. stomp drum, foot drum, or porch board, and were originally used by American Folk and Blues performers. They can be home made or, with more sophisticated version, manufactured for the purpose. The term Stomp Box is also sometimes applied to the Pedal Boards electric guitarist use to obtain a variety of effects.
Stomp Boxes are also a feature of Québécois music. The role of "podorhythmie" or “tapements de pieds” is usually assigned to a seated fiddler.
For this board in use see: www.flickr.com/photos/kmlivemusic/6901708577/.
Stomp Boxes are assigned the number 111.24 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
1 = Idiophones. Sound is primarily produced by the actual body of the instrument vibrating, rather than a string, membrane, or column of air.
11 = Struck Idiophones. These idiophones are set in vibration by being struck.
111 = Directly Struck Idiophones. The player himself executes the movement of striking; whether by mechanical intermediate devices, beaters, keyboards, or by pulling ropes, etc.
111.2 = Percussive idiophones. The instrument is struck either with a non-sonorous object (hand, stick, striker) or against a non-sonorous object (human body, the ground).
111.24 = Percussion vessels.
19th November 2013 at Manero’s Bar, London E8 (VAMM gig).
This instrument has many names - Låtmandola (which means fiddle tune-mandola), Nordic Mandola, Drone Mandola, etc. Ale Möller after living in Greece playing the bouzouki returned to Sweden and wanted something on which he could play the fiddle tunes of Dalarna. He settled on the Mandola (Octave Mandolin) and his first instrument was built for him by Stafen Sobell in England. In the 1980s working with luthiers Christer Ådin and Anders Ekvall in Sweden several new design features were incorporated. The five course Mandola was given an extended fretboard on the left side on the two bottom strings enabling drone notes. Frets were added so the quarter tones could be played. As were movable pin-point capos where an individual string set capo can be screwed in to create myriad tunings without having to manually tune the strings..
Mandolas are assigned the number 321.321 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating
3 = Chordophone. Instruments where the sound is primarily produced by the vibration of a string or strings that are stretched between fixed points.
32 = Composite Chordophone. Acoustic and electro-acoustic instruments which have a resonator as an integral part of the instrument, and solid-body electric chordophones.
321 = Lutes. Instruments where the plane of the strings runs parallel with the resonator’s surface.
321.3 = Handle Lutes. Instruments in which the string bearer is a plain handle.
321.32 = Necked Lutes. Instrument in which the handle is attached to, or carved from, the resonator, like a neck.
321.321 = Necked Bowl Lutes. Instrument with a resonator made from a bowl, either natural or carved.
20th May 2013 at Red Lion, Isleworth, Middlesex.
The Saxophone was invented in 1841 by Adolphe Sax from the Belgium. It consists of a single reed mouthpiece and a conical metal tube, with keys which open and close by pressing buttons with the fingers.
The Baritone Saxophone is curved and has a lower pitch than most other members of the Saxophone family (there are Bass and Contrabass instruments with lower pitches, but these are much less common).
Saxophones are assigned the number 422.212 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
4 = Aerophones. Sound is primarily produced by vibrating air. The instrument itself does not vibrate, and there are no vibrating strings or membranes.
42 = Non-free aerophones. The vibrating air is contained within the instrument.
422 = Reed Instruments. The player's breath is directed against a lamella or pair of lamellae which periodically interrupt the airflow and cause the air to be set in motion.
422.2 = Single Reed Instruments or Clarinets. The pipe has a single 'reed' consisting of a percussion lamella
422.21 = Single Clarinets [as opposed to sets of Clarinets].
422.212 = With conical bore.
16th May 2014 at Old Cranleighan Club, Thames Ditton, Surrey.
The Bouzouki was introduced to Irish traditional music in the 1960s by Johnny Moynihan, and has since spread across a variety of Anglo-Celtic folk styles. The Irish Bouzouki usually has a wider body and a flat back. It can have 8 or 10 strings. The distinction between the Irish Bouzouki and the Cittern is very blurred. Some base this on the number of strings (the Bouzouki having 8 and the Cittern 10), others the size of the body or the length of the neck.
A further development was the Guitar shaped Bouzouki. Over the years has been given many different names - Bazar, Bouzar, Bizarre (all short for bouzouki-guitar) or (the other way round) Gazouki, Goubouki and Guitzouk - although none of these has caught on. Like the traditional Greek Bouzouki this instrument has 4 courses of double strings, and is tuned GDAD
This instrument is called a Guizouki. It was made for John Doyle by Muiderman Guitars of North Dakota (they have also produced a 10-string version for him).
Irish Bouzoukis are assigned the number 321.321 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
3 = Chordophone. Instruments where the sound is primarily produced by the vibration of a string or strings that are stretched between fixed points.
32 = Composite Chordophone. Acoustic and electro-acoustic instruments which have a resonator as an integral part of the instrument, and solid-body electric chordophones.
321 = Lutes. Instruments where the plane of the strings runs parallel with the resonator’s surface.
321.3 = Handle Lutes. Instruments in which the string bearer is a plain handle.
321.32 = Necked Lutes. Instrument in which the handle is attached to, or carved from, the resonator, like a neck.
321.321 = Necked Bowl Lutes. Instrument with a resonator made from a bowl, either natural or carved.
Note: Strictly speaking the shape of this particular instrument makes it a Box Lute rather than a Bowl Lute. However I’ve decided to keep all the Bouzoukis together.
13th November 2012 at St James’s Piccadilly, London W1 (with Iro Haarla supporting Winstone / Gesing / Venier).
The Saxophone was invented in 1841 by Adolphe Sax from the Belgium. It consists of a single reed mouthpiece and a conical metal tube, with keys which open and close by pressing buttons with the fingers.
The Soprano Saxophone is usually straight and has a higher pitch than most other members of the Saxophone family (there are Sopranino and Soprillo instruments with higher pitches, but these are much less common).
Some Soprano Saxs are curved and resemble a small Alto.
Saxophones are assigned the number 422.212 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
4 = Aerophones. Sound is primarily produced by vibrating air. The instrument itself does not vibrate, and there are no vibrating strings or membranes.
42 = Non-free aerophones. The vibrating air is contained within the instrument.
422 = Reed Instruments. The player's breath is directed against a lamella or pair of lamellae which periodically interrupt the airflow and cause the air to be set in motion.
422.2 = Single Reed Instruments or Clarinets. The pipe has a single 'reed' consisting of a percussion lamella
422.21 = Single Clarinets [as opposed to sets of Clarinets].
422.212 = With conical bore.
22nd March 2013 at Jazz Café Posk, London W6 (Maria Muldaur gig).
Effects Pedals modify the sound of a musical instrument such as an Electric Guitar by means of changes like distortion, modulation, and feedback. They are often found on the floor on a pedalboard, and are operated with the feet.
The photo shows (left to right) a Boss Blues Driver BD 2, an Ibanez TD 9 Tube Screamer, a Guyatone VT-X Vintage Tremolo, plus a Boss TU 2 Chromatic Tuner.
5th August 2012 at Exhibition Road, London SW7.
A Steel Pan is a pitched percussion instrument from Trinidad and Tobago derived from an oil drum. It is struck with a pair of rubber tipped sticks. Steel Bands bring together different sized and pitched instruments.
A Tenor Pan is soprano pitched and plays the lead melody.
Steel Pans are assigned the number 111.241.1 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
1 = Idiophones. Sound is primarily produced by the actual body of the instrument vibrating, rather than a string, membrane, or column of air.
11 = Struck Idiophones. These idiophones are set in vibration by being struck.
111 = Directly Struck Idiophones. The player himself executes the movement of striking; whether by mechanical intermediate devices, beaters, keyboards, or by pulling ropes, etc.
111.2 = Percussive idiophones. The instrument is struck either with a non-sonorous object (hand, stick, striker) or against a non-sonorous object (human body, the ground).
111.24 = Percussion vessels.
111.241 = Gongs. The vibration is strongest near the vertex.
111.241.1 = Individual gongs.
This fiddle bears the label of the Helland Brothers of Cameron, Barron County, Wisconsin. Knut Helland (ca. 1880-1920) and Gunnar Helland (1889-1976) were part of the third generation of the noted Helland/Steintjønndalen family of Hardanger fiddlemakers in Bø, Telemark, Norway. The brothers came to the Chippewa Falls area in the early twentieth century and established a violin workshop.
This object is the property of the Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum, Decorah, Iowa. The image is part of the Wisconsin Decorative Arts Database, a digital archive of Wisconsin objects. For more information, see content.wisconsinhistory.org/u?/wda,2053
I've had this Yamaha Nylon String Guitar since 1985. It's my favourite guitar, and I look after it like a precious little baby.
29th October 2011 at Francis Bacon School, St Albans (BandaBéro gig).
The Accordions is a bellows driven free reed instrument. From the 1820s onwards several different free reed instruments were invented across Europe (the first to use the name Accordion was patented in Vienna in 1829). They evolved into three main types of instrument: Diatonic, Chromatic and Piano Accordions (as well as Concertinas).
The Chromatic Accordion is a type of button accordion where the right-side keyboard consists of rows of buttons arranged chromatically (in minor thirds along the length of the keyboard, and in half steps going across on the diagonal). It is unisonic producing the same note when the bellows are pushed and pulled. The chromatic accordion was created in the 1850s in Austria by F. Walter who rearranged the reeds on a 3-row Diactonic Accordion.
This instrument is made by the Italian manufacturer Pigini.
Chromatic Accordions are assigned the number 412.132 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
4 = Aerophones. Sound is primarily produced by vibrating air. The instrument itself does not vibrate, and there are no vibrating strings or membranes.
41 = Free Aerophones. The vibrating air is not contained within the instrument.
412 = Interruptive Free Aerophones. The air-stream is interrupted periodically.
412.1 = Idiophonic Interruptive Aerophones or Reeds. The air-stream is directed against a lamella, setting it in periodic vibration to interrupt the stream intermittently.
412.13 = Free Reed Instruments. Instrument features a reed which vibrates within a closely fitting slot.
412.132 = Sets of Free Reads.
17th June 2011 at Bernie Spain Gardens, London SE1 (Caporales San Simon Londres at Celebrating Sanctuary Festival).
Jingle Bells consist of a large number of small bells which are shaken. Some, like the ones in this photo, are tied round a dancer’s ankle. They are a form of peller bell consisting of hollow vessels each containg a single rattling object. Whist called bells, they are really a form of rattle.
Jingle Bells are assigned the number 112.111 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
1 = Idiophones. Sound is primarily produced by the actual body of the instrument vibrating, rather than a string, membrane, or column of air.
11 = Struck Idiophones. These idiophones are set in vibration by being struck.
112 = Indirectly Struck Idiophones. The player himself does not go through the movement of striking; percussion results indirectly through some other movement by the player.
112.1 = Shaken Idiophones. The player makes a shaking motion.
112.11 = Suspension Rattles. Perforated idiophones are mounted together, and shaken to strike against each other
112.111 = Strung Rattles. Rattling objects are strung in rows on a cord.
23rd May 2013 at the London Jewish Cultural Centre, London NW11 (Mark Nightingale gig).
The Saxophone was invented in 1841 by Adolphe Sax from the Belgium. It consists of a single reed mouthpiece and a conical metal tube, with keys which open and close by pressing buttons with the fingers.
The Baritone Saxophone is curved and has a lower pitch than most other members of the Saxophone family (there are Bass and Contrabass instruments with lower pitches, but these are much less common).
Saxophones are assigned the number 422.212 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
4 = Aerophones. Sound is primarily produced by vibrating air. The instrument itself does not vibrate, and there are no vibrating strings or membranes.
42 = Non-free aerophones. The vibrating air is contained within the instrument.
422 = Reed Instruments. The player's breath is directed against a lamella or pair of lamellae which periodically interrupt the airflow and cause the air to be set in motion.
422.2 = Single Reed Instruments or Clarinets. The pipe has a single 'reed' consisting of a percussion lamella
422.21 = Single Clarinets [as opposed to sets of Clarinets].
422.212 = With conical bore.
24th November 2013 at Queen Elizabeth Hall (Front Room), London SE1.
The Saxophone was invented in 1841 by Adolphe Sax from the Belgium. It consists of a single reed mouthpiece and a conical metal tube, with keys which open and close by pressing buttons with the fingers.
The Soprano Saxophone is usually straight and has a higher pitch than most other members of the Saxophone family (there are Sopranino and Soprillo instruments with higher pitches, but these are much less common).
Some Soprano Saxs are curved and resemble a small Alto.
Saxophones are assigned the number 422.212 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
4 = Aerophones. Sound is primarily produced by vibrating air. The instrument itself does not vibrate, and there are no vibrating strings or membranes.
42 = Non-free aerophones. The vibrating air is contained within the instrument.
422 = Reed Instruments. The player's breath is directed against a lamella or pair of lamellae which periodically interrupt the airflow and cause the air to be set in motion.
422.2 = Single Reed Instruments or Clarinets. The pipe has a single 'reed' consisting of a percussion lamella
422.21 = Single Clarinets [as opposed to sets of Clarinets].
422.212 = With conical bore.
The 20th May 2011 at the Jazz Café, London NW1 (Susana Baca gig).
The Quijada de Burro, or jawbone of a donkey, is one of the main instruments of Afro-Peruvian percussion. The jawbone is struck with a sheep or goat's rib bone (or a plastic or ivory stick). This causes the teeth to rattle in their sockets. Sound can also come through scraping the stick across the sides of the teeth.
Quijadas are assigned the number 112.122 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
1 = Idiophones. Sound is primarily produced by the actual body of the instrument vibrating, rather than a string, membrane, or column of air.
11 = Struck Idiophones. These idiophones are set in vibration by being struck.
112 = Indirectly Struck Idiophones. The player himself does not go through the movement of striking; percussion results indirectly through some other movement by the player.
112.1 = Shaken Idiophones. The player makes a shaking motion.
112.12 = Frame rattle. Rattling objects are attached to a carrier against which they strike
112.122 = Sliding rattle. Non-sonorous objects slide to and fro in the slots of the sonorous object so that the latter is made to vibrate; or sonorous objects slide to and fro in the slots of a non-sonorous object, to be set in vibration by the impacts.
24th September 2020 at Horniman Museum, London SE23.
The Khartal (or Kartal) is a wooden Indian clapper with a pair flat wooden blocks (in some parts of India the name Kartal is used for small cymbals, also known as Karatalas). The player holds a pair in each hand, the thicker piece of wood (the male khartal) gripped with the thumbs and the thinner (the female khartal) flat on the fingers. Some instruments have brass discs inserted into the wood. Played in Devotional and Folk music, Khartals are clapped together at high speeds to make complex rhythms.
Khartals are assigned the number 111.11 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
1 = Idiophones. Sound is primarily produced by the actual body of the instrument vibrating, rather than a string, membrane, or column of air.
11 = Struck Idiophones. These idiophones are set in vibration by being struck.
111 = Directly Struck Idiophones. The player himself executes the movement of striking; whether by mechanical intermediate devices, beaters, keyboards, or by pulling ropes, etc.
111.1 = Concussion Idiophones or clappers. Two or more complementary sonorous parts are struck against each other.
111.11 = Concussion sticks or stick clappers.
27th February 2014 at Union Chapel, London N1 (gig with Michael McGoldrick & John Doyle).
The Cittern was the loose family name given during the Renaissance for smallish, double- or triple-course, wire-strung fretted instruments. In more recent times following the importation of the Bouzouki into Irish music the name has been applied to a variety of instruments. Most commonly (but not exclusively) a ten string, five course instrument with a long neck and large body, which others would call a Bouzouki.
Modern Citterns are assigned the number 321.321 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
3 = Chordophone. Instruments where the sound is primarily produced by the vibration of a string or strings that are stretched between fixed points.
32 = Composite Chordophone. Acoustic and electro-acoustic instruments which have a resonator as an integral part of the instrument, and solid-body electric chordophones.
321 = Lutes. Instruments where the plane of the strings runs parallel with the resonator’s surface.
321.3 = Handle Lutes. Instruments in which the string bearer is a plain handle.
321.32 = Necked Lutes. Instrument in which the handle is attached to, or carved from, the resonator, like a neck.
321.321 = Necked Bowl Lutes. Instrument with a resonator made from a bowl, either natural or carved.
Cabinet card portrait of young man posing with baritone horn. ca1890. Photographer: Dunbar, Lenox, Iowa.
Source: State Historical Society of Iowa, Des Moines
Reproductions and permissions: www.iowaculture.gov/history/research/research-centers/cop...
10th May 2013 at Old Cranleighan Club, Thames Ditton, Surrey (Jeana Leslie & Siobhan Miller gig).
The Bouzouki was introduced to Irish traditional music in the 1960s by Johnny Moynihan, and has since spread across a variety of Anglo-Celtic folk styles. The Irish Bouzouki usually has a wider body and a flat back. It can have 8 or 10 strings. The distinction between the Irish Bouzouki and the Cittern is very blurred. Some base this on the number of strings (the Bouzouki having 8 and the Cittern 10), others the size of the body or the length of the neck.
This instrument was made by Stefan Sobell of Northumberland. Some people would call a 10-string instrument like this a Cittern.
Irish Bouzoukis are assigned the number 321.321 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
3 = Chordophone. Instruments where the sound is primarily produced by the vibration of a string or strings that are stretched between fixed points.
32 = Composite Chordophone. Acoustic and electro-acoustic instruments which have a resonator as an integral part of the instrument, and solid-body electric chordophones.
321 = Lutes. Instruments where the plane of the strings runs parallel with the resonator’s surface.
321.3 = Handle Lutes. Instruments in which the string bearer is a plain handle.
321.32 = Necked Lutes. Instrument in which the handle is attached to, or carved from, the resonator, like a neck
321.321 = Necked Bowl Lutes. Instrument with a resonator made from a bowl, either natural or carved.
I used to play, a long time ago, but not any more. Shame really, as it is such a pretty thing to look at.
13th September 2011 at the Borderline, London W1.
The Mandolin evolved from the Lute via the Mandore in 17th and 18th century Italy. It became popular in the United States in the mid 19th century, where folowing an instrument produced in 1905 by Orville H. Gibson it adopted a flat back rather than the bowl shaped one. The bodies of modern Mandolins can be either pear shaped or tear drop shaped (i.e. with a scroll carved into the headstock). They also vary in the shape and position of the sound holes which impacts on the sound of the instrument.
Tear drop shaped Mandolins usually have f-shaped sound holes (normally in pairs, one to each side of the bridge). The American Gibson company called this design of Mandolin the Florentine or F-style.
This is a 1924 Gibson F-5 (Serial No 75316, signed by sound engineer/luthier Lloyd Loar). It has been suggested that Chris Thile bought the instrument in 2007 and reputedly paid $200,000.
Mandolins are assigned the number 321.321 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
3 = Chordophone. Instruments where the sound is primarily produced by the vibration of a string or strings that are stretched between fixed points.
32 = Composite Chordophone. Acoustic and electro-acoustic instruments which have a resonator as an integral part of the instrument, and solid-body electric chordophones.
321 = Lutes. Instruments where the plane of the strings runs parallel with the resonator’s surface.
321.3 = Handle Lutes. Instruments in which the string bearer is a plain handle.
321.32 = Necked Lutes. Instrument in which the handle is attached to, or carved from, the resonator, like a neck
321.321 = Necked Bowl Lutes. Instrument with a resonator made from a bowl, either natural or carved.
23rd May 2012 at Guy’s Hospital (Atrium 2), London SE1 (Groanbox gig).
The “Freedom Boot” is the name given by the band Groanbox to an instrument of their own devising. Related instruments can be found at different times in different cultures. These include the Jingling Johnny - a rhythm stick with bells used by military bands from various European countries, the Monkey Stick played by travelling musicians in 19th century England and instruments with sea shells played by Aboriginees in Australia. One of the recent varients was the Lagerphone popularised by Bush Bands in 1950s Austrialia - a broom with bottle tops attached. The Groanbox version has a six foot long piece of pine with a leather boot on the end. Along the length are nailed 240 tops from beer bottles of the English Freedom Brewery (hence the name). Various other items are attached to the stick including Indian ghungroo percussive bells just above the boot. The instrument is either shaken/bounced against the ground or struck with tuned tin cans.
For photos of the Freedom Boot being played see: www.flickr.com/photos/kmlivemusic/sets/72157629901534490/.
All these instruments are assigned the number 112.112 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
1 = Idiophones. Sound is primarily produced by the actual body of the instrument vibrating, rather than a string, membrane, or column of air.
11 = Struck Idiophones. These idiophones are set in vibration by being struck.
112 = Indirectly Struck Idiophones. The player himself does not go through the movement of striking; percussion results indirectly through some other movement by the player.
112.1 = Shaken Idiophones. The player makes a shaking motion.
112.11 = Suspension Rattles. Perforated idiophones are mounted together, and shaken to strike against each other
112.112 = Stick Rattles. Rattling objects are strung on a bar or ring.
22nd September 2012 at St Paul’s, Covent Garden, London WC2 (Kutumba gig).
The Nepali Sarangi is a different instrument to the Indian one of the same name, lacking sympathetic strings. Traditionally played by the Gaine people, it is made from a single piece of wood with a double chambered body (the lower one covered in sheep skin), and four strings. It is played with a bow (in the past horsehair, now more likely to be nylon).
Sarangis are assigned the number 321.321-71 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
3 = Chordophone. Instruments where the sound is primarily produced by the vibration of a string or strings that are stretched between fixed points.
32 = Composite Chordophone. Acoustic and electro-acoustic instruments which have a resonator as an integral part of the instrument, and solid-body electric chordophones.
321 = Lutes. Instruments where the plane of the strings runs parallel with the resonator’s surface.
321.3 = Handle Lutes. Instruments in which the string bearer is a plain handle.
321.32 = Necked Lutes. Instrument in which the handle is attached to, or carved from, the resonator, like a neck
321.321 = Necked Bowl Lutes. Instrument with a resonator made from a bowl, either natural or carved.
321.321-71 = Instruments where the strings vibrated using a bow.
The czech pavilion is one of the most entertaining I have visited. We don't learn so much about the country, but we can play with lots of "strange" musical instruments: water organ, stone "xylophones" (I know "xylo" means wood, but I don't know how to call that^^) and so on. After all the high-tech flashy buzzy stuff there is a bit everywhere, this pavilion is calm and relaxing. And if czech people are such music lovers as to make it the central point of their pavilion, then there is no surprise there are so many good bands a bit on the experimental side there.
25th July 2014 at Bush Hall, London W12.
The Mandola is part of the Mandolin family. The instrument tuned an octave below the Mandolin is called an [Octave] Mandola in Europe and an Octave Mandolin in North America. The latter reserve the term Mandola for an instrument tuned a fifth below a Mandolin, which the former call a Tenor Mandolin.
This instrument has a guitar shaped body and was built by Fletcher Brock of Seattle, WA.
Octave Mandolins/Mandolas are assigned the number 321.321 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating:
3 = Chordophone. Instruments where the sound is primarily produced by the vibration of a string or strings that are stretched between fixed points.
32 = Composite Chordophone. Acoustic and electro-acoustic instruments which have a resonator as an integral part of the instrument, and solid-body electric chordophones.
321 = Lutes. Instruments where the plane of the strings runs parallel with the resonator’s surface.
321.3 = Handle Lutes. Instruments in which the string bearer is a plain handle.
321.32 = Necked Lutes. Instrument in which the handle is attached to, or carved from, the resonator, like a neck.
321.321 = Necked Bowl Lutes. Instrument with a resonator made from a bowl, either natural or carved.
Note: Strictly speaking the shape of this particular instrument makes it a Box Lute rather than a Bowl Lute. However I’ve decided to keep all the Mandolas/Octave Mandolins together.
17th May 2016 at Heath Street Baptist Church, London NW3 (Jon Rees & Bianca Riesner concert).
The Viola da Gamba (or Viol) is one of a family of bowed instruments popular in the Renaissance and Baroque periods. Viols differ from the Violin family in having flat rather than curved backs, sloped rather than rounded shoulders, c holes rather than f holes, and five to seven rather than four strings; the presence of frets, and by being played with an underhand rather than overhand bow grip. The family ranges from the Pardessus de Viole to the Contrabass. The Bass Viol is one of the lowest pitched and is the size of a cello with six or seven strings.
Viols are assigned the number 321.322-71 in the Hornbostel-Sachs classification of musical instruments ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbostel-Sachs ), indicating
3 = Chordophone. Instruments where the sound is primarily produced by the vibration of a string or strings that are stretched between fixed points.
32 = Composite Chordophone. Acoustic and electro acoustic instruments which have a resonator as an integral part of the instrument, and solid body electric chordophones.
321 = Lutes. Instruments where the plane of the strings runs parallel with the resonators surface.
321.3 = Handle Lutes. Instruments in which the string bearer is a plain handle.
321.32 = Necked Lutes. Instrument in which the handle is attached to, or carved from, the resonator, like a neck
321.322 = Necked Box Lutes. Instruments in which the resonator is built up from wood.
321.322-71 = Instruments where the strings vibrated using a bow.