asian and middle eastern music
DESCRIPTION
Asian and Middle Eastern Music Unit powerpoint and video clipsTRANSCRIPT
Asian and Middle Eastern
Music
Where is it??
The Culture
“Classical” Indian Music
• Ragas- A raga, very basically, is the equivalent
to what Western music would call a scale.
However, in ragas, the actual tonal distance
between the notes may be completely different
than
"Do, Re, Mi".
Classical Indian Music
Talas- A Tala is a rhythmic pattern, generally
kept on the Indian drums known as the Tabla.
Some talas are very simple, some are extremely
complex. Talas are all cyclical, and hold down the
rhythm of the piece while the melodic
instruments improvise.
Tabla Drums
Classical Indian Music
The Sitar- Perhaps the best-known Indian classical instrument is the Sitar, which is a stringed instrument with moveable frets (allowing for tuning to different ragas).
Ravi Shankar is the best-known sitar player in the West
http://youtu.be/igDsu5QWhpo http://youtu.be/4gWCiLexilY
Sitar• Long hollow neck• ”Sympathetic” Strings• Gourd resonating chamber -
like a guitar
Filmi/Bollywood
Bollywood Films- These movies, often called masala films, are three hours long,
containing multiple melodramatic plotlines, glitzy costumes and scenery, and over-the-top
song and dance numbers.
They are primarily produced in Mumbai, India, and have become one of the most popular and
lucrative film genres around the world.
Bollywood Films• Quite melodramatic• Lyrics are beautiful and literary• Draws from classic and modern poetry
Gamelan Gamelans are tuned to specific scales, and
can be played only in that scale.
The musicians each play a specific instrument, and they play in an almost cyclical (circle) rhythm, giving the gamelan an intense and
highly active sound --- sometimes hard to listen to!
Gamelan Instruments
• Xylophones• Gongs• Bells• Drums
• Primarily percussion only. Using mostly metal sounds, except drumheads. Seldom use wooden or bamboo instruments or choral and strings sections.
Bhangra• Bhangra is believed to date back to the 14th
or 15th century, though it may be even older
• “Bhangra" eventually referred not only to the dance itself, but also the music, characterized by the intense beating of a drum called adhol.
http://youtu.be/YnqxJ8I3pqk
http://youtu.be/z-oMO6_6zYM
Tuvan Throat Singing• Tuvan “throat singers” are able to, through
shaping their throat, lips and mouth, produce a number of tones at once.
• This ability to create a range of notes, including a melody and several harmonic overtones, is used to imitate sounds of nature.
Tuvan Throat Singing
• Comes from small region in Central Asia• Traditionally use soloist• Some use percussion section and jaw harp
http://youtu.be/TVyyhHFKI8E
