Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Instruments from around the World

Hello Music Appreciators!

This week, you'll listen to three videos that show some different styles and instruments from around the world.

Write four sentences about each style that you see (you should have a paragraph for each piece, with four sentences in each paragraph):
- One sentence that describes the texture (monophonic, homophonic, polyphonic) - 20 pts.
- One sentence that describes the instrument (timbre, type) - 20 pts.
- One sentence that describes the mood of the piece - 20 pts.
- One sentence that describes composition (improvised or composed - how can you tell?) - 20 pts.
- Good grammar and spelling, and you refer to each piece by the instrument names - 20 pts.

Make sure to have accurate information!

Please turn in by Monday, December 6 for full credit.

Here are the URL's, if the videos to the right are not working correctly:
Japanese Koto: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tczxw8bVMZM
Irish Fiddle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ndd8bhlo-9E
Northern Indian Sitar, Tabla and Tanpura: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gWCiLexilY

-Mr. Ward

15 comments:

Myles ALston said...

Koto Player
The Koto player used a small mix of homophonic textures but mainly monophonic because she played with one hand mostly. The timbre of the instrument is on the rough side because of the sound of the plucking that occurs. The mood of this piece is a solmne one because it sounds calm. I think this musician is using sheet music because she keeps changing the pages.


Irish Fiddle
The texture of this piece was homophonic because he added chords every now and then. The timbre of the violin or fiddle is a gentle sound. The mood of the music that was played was festive in my opinion. The musician looks to be improving around a central melody or theme, but I would consider it a type of theme and variation.

Ravi Shankar Playing Sitar India

The texture of the this piece is polyphonic because it has a lot going on melody wise and the women also playing with him. The timbre of the instrument was kind of harsh but in a good way because of its unique sounds. The mood of this piece was celebratory, because they were given the opportunity to perform on live television in America. The musicians seem to be improvising their works and the drummer was following the lead player.

Fanita Robins said...

For the Koto Player the texture is homophonic. This instrument have a bright timbre. This instrument has a happy, exciting mood. I think this is a improvised composition.
For the Irish Fiddle the texture is polyphonic. This instrument has a bright and warm timbre. The instrument has a calm mood. I thnk this is a composed composition.
For the Sitar the texture s polyphonic. This instrument has focused and dark timbre. The instrument has a happy mood. I think this is a improvised composition.

Ayries Grays said...

Ravi Shankar playing the sitar has a polyphonic texture. This song has a light timbre. I believe that this song is improvised because each instrument has its on pattern when playing and they all come iin at different times. The mood on this piece can be described as happy.

The Irish fiddle being played has a monophonic texture. This song has a light timbre. I believe that this song was composed because it fits together and it looks like the man is looking off a music sheet. The mood of this piece can be described as being joyful and happy.

Koto Player has a monophonic texture. This song has a light timbre. This song was composed because the person playing the instrument is reading the music off a sheet of music. Like the other two, this song can be described as having a happy mood but also a sad or mournful mood.

Nathan Barnett-Bishop said...

The koto player's timbre is sort of klangy and high but it leaves an echoe. I would say the texture is monophonic, I only hear one melody. The mood is a sort of peaceful feeling to it. I would say this was composed because throughout the song and at the ending it sounded like a dramatic ending.

The irish fiddle's timbre was a smooth and sort of scratchy. I would call the texture monophonic because there was only one melody. It could've been polyphonic because the beat was like a melody. The mood was sort of happy like a party feeling mood or an extra hyper feeling. This seems to be improvised because the pitch changes alot through out the piece.

The Ravi Shankar's sitar's timbre was vibrating and very klangy. This piece was polyphonic because I hear different melodies throughout the piece. The mood was sort of funny, it reminded me of my hyper sister. I think they made this song because every thing is in synch.

Anonymous said...

Koto player texture is polyphonic. The timbre of this piece is clear. The mood of this piece is sad. The composition of this piece is improvised because the lady kept stoping when she read the notes. The texture of the irish fiddle is monophonic. The timbre of this piece is focussed. The mood is happy.This composition is composed. The texture of the ravi shankar is homophonic. The timbre of this piece is unfoccused. The mood is very excited. this piece is composed. -Tevin King

Simone Fields said...

Koto player-
The texture sounds monophonic. The instrumnt looks as if its like a harp, except its played by laying on its side. The mood of this piece sounds major. This song seems to be composed becasue it is a religous piece.

Irish Fiddle-
The texture sounds homophonic. The instrument looks like a violn but its does not sound like one. The mood of this piece could be major, because it sounded upbeat. The song could have been improvised.

Ravi Shankar-
The texture of this piece was polyphonic. The instruments of this piece had a twang in them. This song also had a slight upbeat feel to it so I say that the mood is major. The song sounds as though it was composed, because it seems like a religous song.

asante neron said...

Hello, the first video's texture was monophonic. The timbre for the instrument was light. The mood was joyful. It was improvised.
The second video's texture was homophonic. The timbre was light. The mood was happy. It was composed.
The third video's texture was polyphonic. The timbre for the instrument was thick. The mood was joyful. It was improvised.

Unknown said...

The texture of the Koto Player's song is monophonic. The instrument is soft, yet a little harsh. The mood is peaceful. The composition was composed because she went according to the sheet.

The texture of the Irish fiddle music is homophonic. The instrument is a little piercing. The mood is joyful. The composition is improvised because the fiddle player slightly got off rhythm while he was playing.

The texture of the Sitar music is polyphonic. The instrument is piercing and it has a twang. The mood is happy. The composition is improvised because there doesn't seem to be a set melody, and the sitar player seems to be playing off the top of his head.

shay said...

The Koto Player piece is monophonic because i heard 1 melody. I think the instrument used had a type oy scratchy melody. The mood was peaceful. I believe it was composed because it sounded well rehearsed and the notes all fitted together perfectly.

shay said...

The Irish Fiddle was homophonic because Aidan would change the tone from high to low. The timbre was bright. The piece was composed I believe because Aidan was reading off not sheet. The mood joyful

shay said...

I change my answer of if the piece was improvised or not. The piece was improvised because he was playing to the beat of someone clapping.

shay said...

The sitar piece I believe was polyphonic because there were 3 different instruments playing different notes and tones. The timbre was bright but kinda harsh.

shay said...

In Silent Night what makes this song more enjoyable is the fullness in Kathleen's voice. Also the jazz type of section of the instruments. The mood of it being spiritual and holy also added to its joyful mood. Plus how long the singer held her note. The trumpet like instrument was imitating the melody of the singer into the instruments tone.

shay said...

In Holy Night what I liked was that it was set in a church. This song was of either gospel or r&b. I like the musical structure of it. Plus that there was a strong beat. Jennifer would rise the pitch of her voice that made the mood in a proud manner to the lord.

shay said...

In 12 Days of Christmas all the men were singing all together. Then they would branch off and make the song polyphonic. They would changing the notes of the song. Also the piece was funny which made me want to listen to what else they would sing or do.

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