World Music Final

controversial music (islam)

"art" or "entertainment"; non-islamic sacred music

sikuri ensemble (peru)

"carousel" sound; siku; interlocking melody (hocketing); bombos and camas drums; parallel polyphony; hand pipes; festivals, friendly competitions, community cohesion

hindustani raga

"dreamy" aura; "boing" drums; melody - sarod, rhythm - tabla, drone - tambura

arabic modal improvisation

"dreamy" improvisation; ud and buzuq; makam - "composition kit", taqsim; free rhythm; 24 pitches to the octave; islamic attitudes towards music: legitimate, illegitimate, non-music, and controversial music

amazonian indian chant

"eagle's cry" followed by pulsating chant; unison group chant; falling melodic contour; all male choir; no (or few) instruments; simple melodic contour similar to hawaiian chant; music common to ritual events; spirits of the rainforest; shamans; set up in circles with elder males in the middle, males outside that, and young females outside that; music is an integral part of these ceremonies; part of a 5-stage ritual; connected to animism and totemism

tibetan buddhist ritual

"fog horn" trumpets; gutteral chants; overlapping trumpets; punctuating percussion; death w/o dying (transcendence); trumpet symbolism; reincarnation

tango (argentina)

"moody" accordion; bandoneon; tango rhythm; "off-balance" moods; contrasting themes; gauchos; compadritos; immigrants - italy, spain, eastern europe, etc; arrabales (slums); dance of passion; ballroom tango; tango nuevo; newer forms - tango rokero, tango jazz

carnatic (south india)

"purer"; dravidian; mridangam; highly ornamented; composed

hawaian drum-dance chant

"wavy" chant and "earthy" drums; kilo and pahu; vocal vibrato; open-ended words; sliding of pitch - portamento; kahuna (priest), mele (poetry), hula (dance); pahu drums are considered sacred (mana)

trading triangle

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south asia (india, bangledesh, nepal) background information

1.4 billion people; ethnic, linguistic, and religious diversity; strong british colonial influence

koto (japan)

13-string zither (evolved from qin from china)

maqam scale (arabic)

24 pitches to the octave (2x western scale)

oceania background information

25,000 island; 1,200 different languages; animism, totemism, christianity; primarily vocal music

tabla (india)

a pair of hand drums, smaller drum tuned to central pitch. baya is larger drum

kiribati (hawaii)

accapella, mixed choir; shifting texture; unison/harmony; uniform rhythm; handclaps

sachs-hornbostle organology system

aerophones, chordophones, membranophones, idiophones

nigeria background information

africa's most populous country; gained independence from britain in 1960; 250 ethnic groups; yoruba is dominant ethnic group

raga melodic form (india)

alap - free rhythm, all improvised; ascending melodic range; increasing rhythmic density (jor-jhala) gat - metered composition with improv.; drum enters; similar rising range and increasing density

peru background information

andes mountains; ancient inca; roman catholicism

australia background information

anthem land, northern territory; aborigines - 40,000 year old culture, nomadic lifestyle

carnatic classical song (south india)

aural "incense"; melismatic vocalist with imitating fiddle; melody-vocal, imitation-violin, rhythm-mridangam, drone-sruti box

shamisen (japan)

banjo-like 3-string lute

bata drums (cuba)

baptised; ana (spiritual power); double-headed hourglass shaped drums

mana (hawaii)

believed to hold spiritual power, and allows the player to speak to god

rokudan

blind koto player and composer; 6 sections or columns; suite of songs; changed tunings; pentatonic scale

amazon background information

brazilian rainforest; environmental awareness; modern amazonians

ha (japan)

breaking apart, tempo builds

argentina background information

buenos aires, portenos; immigrants, las pampas, guachos; eva peron

south india background information

carnatic culture - more ancient and "pure" predominantly hindu (less muslim influence)

sizhu (silk and bamboo) ensemble

clear melodic line with "flowing" feel; bayin organological system; heterophonic structure; clear beat

timbre

color of a sound; wave forms

african beliefs

community is a primary focus - includes those who are living and deceased; animism is prevalent - the idea that spirits inhabit everything, even things that aren't living; music is believed to have the ability to communicate with spirits

bhajan devotional song

congregational worship; harmonium, tabla, kartal; antiphonal vocals; duple meter

bulgaria background information

crossroads of europe and asia; the ottomans - turkish conquering armies controlled bulgaria 14th-19th centuries; communist control; 1878 aristocrats had control of this area - when ottomans left, british aristocratic families in control; at end of world war II, russian communists took control

ghana background information

democracy, economically successful; akan and other indigenous languages; west africa most familiar with outsiders; kente cloth

monophony

describes the thinnest and simplest type of texture: a single line of music, such as a melody, without accompaniment

similarities between hindustani and carnatic

drones, tambura, sruti box

bols (india)

drum language - different syllables to indicate different strokes

trumpet symbolism (tibet)

dung chen - elephant power dung kar - conch shell "the sea" far away kang dung - human thigh bone represents morality

balinese gamelon gong kebyar

dynamic shifts of mood and volume; starts and stops; sectional solos; "superhuman" speed; "shimmer effect" - instruments are a bit out of tune; hindu; offering to deities; dynamics; shadow puppets

palm wine "highlife" song (ghana)

easygoing guitar; polyrhythmic melody and percussion - interlocking guitar motives; call and harmony response; social commentary

illegitimate music (islam)

entertainment; sensual music; western, etc

legitimate music (islam)

family and celebratory music; occupational music (caravan, shepherd, work songs); military music

sub-saharan africa background information

farming is the primary occupation; cultural/ecological zones: pan-arabic (desert), sahel (savanna), sub-saharan; nearly 3000 separate ethnic groups; european languages common; 1800 known spoken languages; borders drawn by europeans without regard to different ethnic groups - purposefully mixed ethnic groups and separated them to weaken them

afro-beat (nigeria)

fela kuti (1938-1997); highlife, jazz, traditional, and folk

mariachi: son mexicano

festive atmosphere; european instruments - vihuela and guitarron; operatic voice; clear melodic lines; major keys; jalisco and regional music; mariachi and the movies

sarod (india)

fretless plucked lute; 3 sets of strings - melodic, sympathetic strings; calfskin resonator face

tambura (india)

fretless plucked lute; 4 strings - "pillar" pitch tuning; aural "incense"; played by shishya (musical apprentice), or vocalist; used to provide the drone element in indian classical music

kriti (south india)

hindu devotional poetry set to music; composed skeletal melody - increased ornamentation; raga and tala systems more complex

extra-musical associations

history, religion, other art forms, etc

north india background information

independent from british in 1947; world's largest democracy: caste system; disparity of wealth; recent rapid economic growth; religious pluralism

clave

instrument and time-line; pattern consists of a 2-stroke measure and a 3-stroke measure either of which can come first

son jalicense (mexico)

jalisco, and neighboring areas of nayarit, michoacan, and sinaloa; violins, harp, guitarra de golpe, vihuela

shakuhachi (japan)

japanese flute

non-music (islam)

koranic chant; adhan - call to prayer; pilgrimage chants (hajj); eulogy chants and chanted poetry

papau new guinea background information

largest island of melanesia; more than 700 indigenous languages (english is official language)

aboriginal music (australia)

low rumble and bursts; dijeridu - circular breathing, slapsticks, vocal storyteller

rag (india)

melody

"talking" drums (ghana)

mimicking drum; surrogate speech; tonal contour of language; speech rhythm; high/lo drums or one drum with multiple tones; drums give words more power; praise drumming; "proverb" performance

phonic structure

monophony, polyphony, homophony, independent polyphony

polymeter

more than one meter being expressed simultaneously

susap (papa new guinea)

mouth harp; electronic timbre; mouth is a resonator; manipulation of overtones; susap has a distinctive twangy timbre acts as a "speech surrogate", disguises speech common to courting rituals - believed to possess love controlling magic

hindustani (north india)

muslim; indo-european; tabla; more emphasis on improvisation; sitar

hawaii background information

northernmost islands of polynesia; king kamehemaha converted to christianity and many hawaian tribe traditions were lost

islamic "call to prayer"

not considered music by muslims; heightened speech; melismatic male voice; "allah" god is great; muhammed, koran; muslim music; mosque - mihrab, mecca, the ka'ba, hajj, minaret; muezzin, adhan

dhrupad (india)

oldest surviving form of north indian classical music; usually vocal

haiti background information

one of the largest sugar producing countries in the world; first successful slave revolution; slaves established their own republic; western region of hispaniola; first independent caribbean nation in 1804; economic hardships

african music principles

oral tradition; focus on group; polyrhythm/polymeter; call and response; dance

tokugava (edo) period 1600-1867 (japan)

peace and stability; social order was based on traditional confucian order: samurai (scholar/official), peasant/farmer, artisan/craftsman, merchant; isolationism breaking down; displaced samurai; rising merchant class

iran background information

persian, not arabic; predominantly shi'a muslim; theocracy since 1979

cuba background information

plantations (sugar, coffee, etc.) large number of slaves were brought into cuba; 1898 independence from spain and us domination; havana casinos and nightlife

mbira dza vadzimu (zimbabwe)

polyrhythmic music box; resultant patterns; hosho and voice; "called" to play mbira; music is protected property; bira - spirit possession ceremony; CHIWONISA

tal (india)

rhythm

tala (india)

rhythmic cycle; drummer and audience "keep the tal"; drummer "stretches" the beat; organizes raga performance

polyrhythmic ensemble (ghana)

rhythmic kaleidoscope; drums, rattles, bells; polyrhythm - overall sound is rhythmically dense; time-line patterns - simple individual patterns, complex combined whole, density referent; call and response; instrument relationships, not meter; recreational bands; formal and informal contexts; master drummers

vodou ritual (haiti)

rhythmically dense "african sound"; rada drums with polyrhythmic percussion; call and response; vaksin - bamboo instruments; loa/orisha - animistic deities, roman catholic syncretism; spirit possession; function of music

kyu (japan)

rushing to climax before slowing at the end

sargam (india)

sa-re-ga-ma-pa-dha-ni-sa

dastgah (iran)

santur and voice; melancholy melisma

rumba (cuba)

secular dance; congas (3 sizes); 3 dances - guaguanco, columbia, yambu; 3 sections - diana, canto, rumba

son jarocho (mexico)

state of veracruz; african influence - timelines, call and response refrains, etc

bayin organological system

stone, metal, silk, wood, skin, clay, gourd, bamboo

akadinda (uganda)

super dense "rush hour" rhythm; akadinda - triple interlocking patterns; amadinda - double interlocking patterns; starter, mixer, binder

gagaku (japan)

suspension of time; long, sustained tones; "elegant" music; confucian ceremonial music; ritualistic movement

juju (nigeria)

talking drum used; pedal steel instrument; king sunny ade "the chairman"; yoruba people influence, also influenced by highlife music

tibet background information

tantric buddhism - use of symbols, ritual objects, and yoga in quest for enlightenment; dalai lama - spiritual and political leader, had to leave tibet when china took over; 1959 - china asserts hegemony; tibetan diasporas

enthrocentrism

the assumption that one's own cultural patterns and understandings are normative and that those that differ are strange, exotic, or abnormal

polyphony

the style of simultaneously combining a number of parts, each forming an individual melody and harmonizing with each other

indian classical music

theoretical texts dating back thousands of years; improvised music; learned through study with guru; north=hindustani (pronounced muslim influence); south=carnatic ("purer" hindu traditions)

pedal steel (hawaii)

this grew out of playing techniques developed in hawaii; portamentos; spurred technological innovations in country music

caribbean background information

tropical islands; linguistic diversity due to colonization; slave trade - indentured workers (chinese, indonesians, east indians); trading triangle; cross-cultural creations "caribbean crucible"; cimarrones/marroons - slave communities; small countries, big voices

independent polyphony

two more lines of music expressing independent musical ideas; predominantly european and african music

homophony

two or more parts move together, chordal homophony, chordal texture, homorhythm- sameness of rhythm in all parts, melody with accompaniment; predominantly european and european-influenced music

woman's chorus (bulgaria)

unsettling harmonies; bellowing - sliding into drone pitch: crying out - jumping up an octave; "ring like a bell" - dissonant harmonies; ottoman influence peasant music

tegotonomo (japanese chamber music)

uses koto, shamisem, and shakuhachi

zimbabwe background information

victoria falls; former british colony; shona ethnic group

musical change in bulgaria

village music; "official" folklore during communist era; wedding bands, gypsy musicians, western influence, growth of private sector

middle east background information

west asia and north africa; islam, christianity, judaism; ancient civilizations; influence on europe; arabic, turkish and persian; share musical practices and common instruments

santeria (cuba)

yoruban derived religion influenced by roman catholicism; orishas combined with saints from catholic church; bata and conga drums