AA 100 Midterm

Dastgah, "apparatus"

12 systems including melody type of structures based on a mode of 7-note scale. (iran)

Mandala

A Mandala is a spiritual and ritual symbol in Hinduism and Buddhism, representing the universe. Characteristically, a mandala is a sacred shape consisting of the intersection of a circle and a square. (india)

Idiophones

A class of musical instruments whose sound is generated by striking resulting in the instrument vibrating. (africa)

Chador

A large piece of cloth worn by Muslim women that are wrapped around the head and upper body leaving only the face exposed. (iran)

The Lost Wax Process

A metalworking technique in which an original carving is done in wax. This is then incased to create a mold and the wax is melted away to create a cavity into which molten metal is then poured to create an object such as an Ife royal portrait (africa)

Marimba

A percussion instrument that is made of wooden keys and resonating gourds or pipes that graduate in size to represent pitches similar to a keyboard. (africa)

Falsetto

A register usually in the male voice that is higher than average due to the longitudinal adduction of the vocal folds and is sometimes airy as a result of slight glottal opening in the vocal folds. Falsetto often sounds like a woman singing, due to the higher range, with a little less ring to it. (china)

Muchongoyo

A repetitious, spiritual South African dance where indigenous men and women commemorate, witness or celebrate special events. (africa)

Pentatonic Scale

A scale containing five pitches in the following pattern of steps and skips: whole-whole-minor third-whole. (china)

Serdab or Sardab

A serdab, Literally means "cold water" in Persian, became a loanword in Arabic for "cellar." In an ancient Egyptian tomb structure, serdab served as the above-ground chamber where a statue of the deceased would receive offerings. (africa)

Melismatic

A series of pitches on a single syllable that moves melodic through multiple beats. (china)

Taans

A succession of notes sung quickly in one or multiple octaves. Similar to melisma or vocal runs. (india)

Expanded Painting

A term developed by Kazuo Shiraga that denotes a work that is not confined to the traditional site of the canvas or the wall but can exist in nature or on the ground and can be created from materials like dirt and water through the use of the body rather than a brush or a chisel. (japan)

Kakuzo Okakura

A twentieth-century Asian art expert who wrote The Book of Tea. (japan)

Rasa

Aesthetics. 9 emotional effects of art on which ragas are based. (india)

Artist's Workshop

Also known as an atelier, is the private studio of an artist in which a principle master works with a number of assistants and apprentices to produce works of art. These artworks are then released under the artist's name or supervision. (africa)

Abstract Expressionism

An artistic movement, which emerged in the early 1940s, that was stylistically diverse and included artists like Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Mark Rothko, Adolph Gottlieb and Barnett Newman. These artists privileged formal invention over significant content and created large-scale works that took up entire walls of the galleries and museums where they were exhibited. (japan)

Koron

An important element of Persian art music that indicates ¾ interval distance from a whole tone which can be represented by a flag image notated in the music. (iran)

Reza Shah Pahlavi

An officer in the Persian Cossack Brigade that rose to power through a military coup that took place during World War I. (iran)

Bianzhong

Ancient Chinese instrument that is an assembly of different sized bells. (china)

Pharaohs

Ancient Egyptian Kings

Abstraction

Art that does not attempt to represent an accurate depiction of visual reality. Instead, it uses shapes, colors, forms, and gesture to achieve effects.

Ragas

Basis for melody. (india)

Talas

Basis for rhythm (india)

Kamanche, "bow"

Bowed instrument almost completely replaced by the violin in modern Iran. (iran)

Wanis

Bush spirits that live in the rainforest and are associated with wildness and chaos. These masked men signal to the community when it is time for the malagan to begin. (oceania)

Marae

Ceremonial center of the Maori community where the meeting house is located. (oceania)

Conceptual Art

Conceptual art - Art in which the idea or concept is more important than the visual object. (japan)

Polyrhythm

Contrasting rhythms occurring simultaneously within music. (africa)

Tatanua

Crested helmet masks worn by initiates while dancing in the malagan. Initiates dance in imitation of the mating dances of local birds and hope to be named a superior dancer. (oceania)

Gusheh-ha

Embody the most characteristic aspects of dastgah. Played in different octaves, low-mid-high in order to raise excitement. Notes are played in between that are non-harmonic and used as passing tones to meander and lead to the corners of the next dastgah-ha (singular). (iran)

Falsetto melodies

Feld refers to these in conjunction with bird sounds that have the timbre of a young boy or an older male voice in his falsetto range. Falsetto singing occurs in a male changed voice when the vocal folds are stretched thin and the glottis is slightly open producing a high, light and airy sound.(oceania)

Noa

Female cleansing energy able to temporarily suspend tapu restrictions. (oceania)

nirvana

In the Buddhist context, it refers to the realization of non-self and emptiness, marking the end of rebirth by stilling the fires that keep the process of rebirth going (india)

Adε

Indicates the caregiver/dependent relationship between sister and brother.(oceania)

Mana

Inherited ancestral life energy. (oceania)

Hypostyle Hall

Large interior spaces characterized by their use of a large number of pillars or columns to support the roof. (iran)

Sabi

Literally means "rust" and is a Shinto term used in the context of weathering or aging. This element is often seen in traditional Japanese design through asymmetrical design. (japan)

Chanoyu

Literally translated means "hot water for tea." We use this term to denote the Japanese tea ceremony largely speaking, however, tea ceremonies developed through multiple tea schools in Japan and are performed differently in each. (japan)

Terracotta

Literally translates as "baked earth." This material is created by firing clay to create a harder and longer lasting material. (china)

Wabi

Literally translates as "desolate" or "lonely". Today, it stands for simple, rustic taste found in manmade objects although the concept originally came from the simple lifestyle of Zen Buddhists. (japan)

Mbira

Metal strips as "key" on a wooden board that are played (africa)

Muqarnas

Muqarnas is a form of ornamented vaulting in Persian Islamic architecture. Muqarnas is a way of subdividing a squinch and is used especially when a domical roof needs to cover a cross-plan interior space. (india)

Fermata

Music symbol that represents holding a note for an undetermined amount of time. (oceania)

Gisalo

One of six basic song forms used by the Kaluli people. The form has four parts which includes singing from a caller and responses from additional singers. Performed in ceremony or séances and restricted to performance in the dark. (oceania)

Wharenui

One of the names for the Maori meeting house. (oceania)

Mastaba (Arabic: bench)

Rectangular superstructure of ancient Egyptian tombs, built of mud brick or, later, stone, with a flat roof . A deep shaft descended to the underground burial chamber. (africa)

Tapu

Restrictions placed on objects and people to protect their mana. (oceania)

Ayatollah Rohullah Khomeini

The Islamic Fundamentalist who returned to Iran following 14 years of exile in Iraq and France for opposing the Shah's regime. He rose to power in 1979 through promises of social and economic reform. (iran)

Apadana

The audience hall and throne room commissioned by Darius I at Persepolis. (iran)

Punitive Expedition of 1897

The expedition that was launched in retaliation of an attack on British men, resulted in the looting of brass objects from the capital of the Kingdom of Benin. This expedition is the reason why so many Benin objects exist in museums today. (africa)

Gutai

The name for a Japanese art movement founded in 1954 near Osaka, Japan by Jiro Yoshihara. The term comes from the word gu- meaning "tool" or "way of doing something" and -tai meaning "body". Conceptualized the term Gutai to mean "embodiment" or "concreteness". (japan)

Malagan

The name for the funeral ritual, artwork, and masks that are used in New Ireland funerals/initiation ceremonies. (oceania)

Warring States Period

The period of time before the Qin dynasty in which several territories fought for control of (china)

Radif

The repertoire of traditional material on which all Persian art music is based. (iran)

Iranian Revolution of 1979

The result of the Shah's extravagant festival and authoritarian policies that alienated religious leaders. (iran)

Opercula

The shell of a sea snail native to New Ireland. It is used as the final activating element for malagan sculpture, often representing eyes.(oceania)

Matcha

The special type of green tea typically used in Japanese tea ceremonies. (japan)

Lamassu

These creatures are depicted with the body of a bull or lion, bird's wings, and a bearded human head. They are protective figures that are frequently placed at entryways to intimidate viewers. (iran)

Minka

This are traditional Japanese wooden folk houses. (japan)

Gagaku Orchestra

This is a Japanese Imperial Orchestra. (japan)

Wattle and Duab

This is a composite building material and construction technique that historically was used to build houses for more than 3000 years. The wattle is made by woven lattice of wooden strips, and duab is usually created from a mixture of wet soil, clay, sand, animal dung and straw (japan)

Shoji

This is a door, window, or a room divider made of translucent paper over a frame of wood, used both for interior and exterior walls in traditional Japanese architecture. (japan)

Jo-ha-kyu

This is a form of a piece of music performed by a gagaku orchestra. (japan)

Tatami

This is a rice-straw woven mat used as a flooring material in traditional Japanese rooms. Roughly three by six feet, tatami is also the modular unit used in Japanese architecture. (japan)

Pentatonic Scale

This is a scale based on five pitches with the pattern of major 2nd, major 2nd, minor 3rd, major second. (japan)

Huangdi

Title given to Emperor Qin upon his unification of China. This title represented his divine right to rule as the "Son of Heaven." (china)

Oba/Oni

Titles for the leaders of the Benin and Ife cultures. Several royal portraits made of various metals remain depicting individuals who ruled over these cultures. (africa)

Tokonoma

Tokonoma (literally means floor/bed + space) is a recess or alcove typically with a raised floor for displaying treasures, artwork, or other ornaments in a Japanese house. (japan)

Ta Moko

Traditional male facial tattooing. (oceania)

Mallets

Used to strike keys on percussion instruments such as the marimba. (africa)

Hieratic scale

When the artist uses size to denote a figure's importance within a work of art. (africa)

Vedic Hymns

Written truths of existence by Indian sages in the sung form of chant. (india)

caste system

a form of social stratification, that divides Hindus into four main categories - Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and the Shudras (india)

mandapa

an entry porch or assembly hall (india)

bodhisattva

one who is enlightened, but who delays Buddha-hood in order to help others achieve it (india)