Gammelkäring

Gammelkäring

Title: Gammelkäring

Performer(s): Myrkur Øksemorder

Culture: Nordic (Northern Denmark)

Instruments: Female voice and nyckelharpa. A nyckelharpa is a traditional Swedish musical instrument. It is a string instrument or chordophone. Its keys are attached to tangents which, when a key is depressed, serve as frets to change the pitch of the string.The nyckelharpa is similar in appearance to a fiddle or the big Sorb geige or viol. Structurally, it is more closely related to the hurdy-gurdy, both employing key-actuated tangents to change the pitch.

The nyckelharpa is a very intriguing instrument as it can be classified as a chordophone. A  chordophone can be defined as "sound produced by vibrating string" (Wade, 2013, p.39) Further more, a nyckelharpa can be considered a composite chordophone, meaning that there is more one string producing the sound. In this particular instance, instrument classification is useful because it allows the listener to be comparative to instruments in their own culture. This can help listeners to better understand the original sound source and better relate to the new sound.

Wade, B. C. (2013). Thinking musically: experiencing music, expressing culture. New York: Oxford University Press.

Adi Tala Konnakol Solo

Adi Tala Konnakol Solo

Title: Adi Tala Konnakol Solo

Performer(s): Vidushi Smt Sukkanya Ramgopal and Ensemble

Culture: South India

Instruments: Karnatic ensemble: Mridangam, Kanjira - a small tambourine, Ghatam - a clay pot, Tavil - a two headed drum played with sticks at one end and thimbles at the other, and Morsing - a mouth harp or 'Jew's' harp. 11 The melodic instruments in the Karnatic ensemble are Violin, Vina - a fretted stringed instrument, Bamboo Flute, Nagasvaram - a double-reed wind instrument. The fundamental pitch or key centre from which the ensemble tunes is the Tambura, a four stringed long necked drone instrument. 

Konnakol is a vocal expression of rhythm that has been primarily passed down through aural and oral transmission. Within the last one hundred years or so, note taking has been permitted for the memorization process but never in performance. Ethnomusicology informs us that South Indian Classical musicians have a heightened understanding of rhythm and that the transmission system (pedagogy) for konnakol creates musicians who have a deep understanding of their craft and the part they play in ensemble performance.