Sunday, 24 May 2015

Accordion:

                 The accordion's body consists of two wood boxes joined together by the bellows. These boxes house reed chambers for the right- and left-hand manuals, respectively. Each side has grilles in order to facilitate the transmission of air in and out of the instrument, and to allow the sound to better project. The grille for the right-hand manual is usually larger and is often shaped for decorative purposes. The right-hand manual is normally used for playing the melody and the left-hand manual for playing the accompaniment, however skilled players can reverse these roles.

The size and weight of an accordion varies depending on its type, layout and playing range, which can be as small as to have only one or two rows of basses and a single octave on the right-hand manual, to the standard 120-bass accordion and through to large and heavy 160-bass free-bass converter models.
   
        Accordion is invented by a German Akkordion in 19th century. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist. The concertina and bandoneón are related; the harmonium and American reed organ are in the same family.

The instrument is played by compressing or expanding the bellows while pressing buttons or keys, causing valves, called pallets, to open, which allow air to flow across strips of brass or steel, called reeds, that vibrate to produce sound inside the body.[notes 1] The performer normally plays the melody on buttons or keys on the right-hand manual, and the accompaniment, consisting of bass and pre-set chord buttons, on the left-hand manual.

Saturday, 23 May 2015

TABLA: 

Tabla is a pair of drums. The right hand drum is called a tabla and the left hand drum is called a dagga or baya. It is claimed that the term tabla is derived from an Arabic word, tabl, which simply means "drum.
The head of each drum has a central area of "tuning paste" called the syahi (lit. "ink"; a.k.a. shāī or gāb). This is constructed using multiple layers of a paste made from starch (rice or wheat) mixed with a black powder of various origins.

The precise construction and shaping of this area is responsible for modification of the drum's natural overtones, resulting in the clarity of pitch (see inharmonicity) and variety of tonal possibilities unique to this instrument which has a bell-like sound. The skill required for the proper construction of this area is highly refined and is the main differentiating factor in the quality of a particular instrument.

For stability while playing, each drum is positioned on a toroidal bundle called chutta or guddi, consisting of plant fiber or another malleable material wrapped in cloth.

   
 The dayan (right hand drum) is almost always made of wood.  The diameter at the membrane may run from just under five inches to over six inches.  The bayan (left hand drum) may be made of iron, aluminium, copper, steel, or clay; yet brass with a nickel or chrome plate is the most common material.

Undoubtedly the most striking characteristic of the tabla is the large black spot on each of the playing surfaces.  These black spots are a mixture of gum, soot, and iron filings.  Their function is to create the bell-like timbre that is characteristic of the instrument.

The tabla is used in some other Asian musical traditions outside of Indian subcontinent, such as in the Indonesian dangdut genre.

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Friday, 22 May 2015

Flute:
           "Playing a flute is like writing a book. You're telling what's in your heart...It's easier to play if it's right from your heart. You get the tone, and the fingers will follow."

The oldest flute ever discovered may be a fragment of the femur of a juvenile cave bear, with two to four holes, found at Divje Babe in Slovenia and dated to about 43,000 years ago. However, this has been disputed.[13][14] In 2008 another flute dated back to at least 35,000 years ago was discovered in Hohle Fels cave near Ulm, Germany.[15] The five-holed flute has a V-shaped mouthpiece and is made from a vulture wing bone. The researchers involved in the discovery officially published their findings in the journal Nature, in August 2009. The discovery was also the oldest confirmed find of any musical instrument in history, until a redating of flutes found in Geißenklösterle cave revealed them to be even older with an age of 42,000 to 43,000.

Theobald Boehm:
                               was a German inventor and musician, who perfected the modern Western concert flute and its improved fingering system (now known as the "Boehm system"). He was a Bavarian court musician, a virtuoso flautist, and a celebrated composer for the flute.

Indian flutes:
         The bamboo flute is an important instrument in Indian classical music, and developed independently of the Western flute. The Hindu God Lord Krishna is traditionally considered a master of the bamboo flute. The Indian flutes are very simple compared to the Western counterparts; they are made of bamboo and are keyless.

Two main varieties of Indian flutes are currently used. The first, the Bansuri, has six finger holes and one embouchure hole, and is used predominantly in the Hindustani music of Northern India. The second, the Venu or Pullanguzhal, has eight finger holes, and is played predominantly in the Carnatic music of Southern India. Presently, the eight-holed flute with cross-fingering technique is common among many Carnatic flutists. Prior to this, the South Indian flute had only seven finger holes, with the fingering standard developed by Sharaba Shastri, of the Palladam school, at the beginning of the 20th century

The quality of the flute's sound depends somewhat on the specific bamboo used to make it, and it is generally agreed that the best bamboo grows in the Nagercoil area in South India.

Thursday, 21 May 2015

Violin: is the best musical instrument to express any feel like happiness, sad and romance etc.
David Garrett is one of the  best person who can create extraordinary music with this ordinary instrument.

The violin, also known as a fiddle, is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which also includes the viola, and the cello. The modern word is derived from the Italian word violin
, literally 'small viola'.

Someone who plays the violin is called a violinist or a fiddler. The violinist produces sound by drawing a bow across one or more strings (which may be stopped by the fingers of the other hand to produce a full range of pitches), by plucking the strings (with either hand), or by a variety of other techniques.

About Andrea Amati

Andrea Amati was an Italian inventor who was credited with the invention of the violin. The reason he was able to do so is because he was positioned, by King Charles IX of France, at the time, to create something new and exciting for the kingdom to enjoy, musically. He would create this instrument and it would look very different then the one we are used to seeing today as they were splashed with interesting drawings as well paintings that covered the instrument from head to toe.

Wednesday, 20 May 2015

Guitar is one of the most finest musical instrumant. Amin Toofani at Harvard shows his jaw dropping skills with guitar.This guy clearly did a great job.While reading about unusual guitar techniques, I found this article on Wikipedia about something calledpolyphonic strumming. I had never heard of it before, and actually the name they use for it sounds a little bit too grandiose to be accurate in my view. I kind of doubt that some people are strummingcounterpoint on the guitar, though I'll accept that playing multiple parts can be considered polyphonic. Any ways, I'm a bit intrigued because I'm having a difficult time imagining what this would sound like. However, I can't find any specific examples of this technique and I'm wondering if it really exists and if it really deserves its own special terminology.