# Ask me about music and musical instruments



## Ailith (May 6, 2012)

Ask away about music theory, music history, musical instruments, and anything else music-related you can think of!

I have done a lot of research on Medieval and Renaissance history, music, and instruments and I hope that I can benefit someone who wants to have a musical element in their story. 

*Ask me about:*

Medieval melodic and rhythmic modes (handy if you need to know what meter to write song lyrics in)
Medieval and Renaissance instruments (hurdy gurdy, lute, crumhorn, rackett, chalumeau, bowed psaltery, serpents, cornamuse, sackbut - and yes, those are all real instruments)
The lives of troubadours and composers
Musical terms and definitions (for describing music in your story)
The difference between motets, madrigals, chansons, and masses
The Medieval concept of the Music of the Spheres
Ancient music theory (ala Plato’s Republic)
Meters and names of courtly dances
English folk tunes and composers
Anything else you can think of!


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## studentofrhythm (May 7, 2012)

Can you recommend some good examples of music that prominently features crumhorns and sackbuts?  I checked out a Naxos CD called _Tugend und Untugend_ that had some good stuff, and I'm working my way through results of a youtube search, but I wonder what I'm missing.

The reason I'm asking is that in my world there is a specific genre of music (sociologically similar to rock and roll) that uses crumhorns, sackbuts and drums as the principal instruments, and I have a pretty good idea of how it sounds (a lot like the stuff on _T&U_), but I'd like to refine my concept of it.

Thanks!


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## SeverinR (May 7, 2012)

hurdy gurdy-Interesting instrument

hurdy gurdy - Bing Videos
String instrumnet with a spinning wheel?

Thanks for the names of the instruments, I like the Chalumeau's sound.  
chalumeau - Bing Videos


Hummelchen; is this basically a miniture bagpipe or is just similar? Hard to see in this video?

gemshorn - Bing Videos

My favorite instrument is the gemshorn.


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## SeverinR (May 7, 2012)

Do you play any of these instruments, or just study them?


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## Ailith (May 7, 2012)

studentofrhythm said:


> Can you recommend some good examples of music that prominently features crumhorns and sackbuts?  I checked out a Naxos CD called _Tugend und Untugend_ that had some good stuff, and I'm working my way through results of a youtube search, but I wonder what I'm missing.
> 
> The reason I'm asking is that in my world there is a specific genre of music (sociologically similar to rock and roll) that uses crumhorns, sackbuts and drums as the principal instruments, and I have a pretty good idea of how it sounds (a lot like the stuff on _T&U_), but I'd like to refine my concept of it.
> 
> Thanks!


I can’t recommend anything exclusively crumhorn and sackbut, but for cds that include all the instruments listed in my original post I highly recommend: 
The Glory of Early Music (for a good mix of many different instruments)
David Munrow’s Two Renaissance Dance Bands - Monteverdi's Contemporaries (for Susato’s super fun dance tunes)
David Munrow’s The Art of the Recorder (disc one is just recorder, and includes lots of great modern music, but disc two includes many Renaissance instruments and tunes)
At the Sign of the Crumhorn (this has been on my wish list for a while, but I don’t own it)

Ever heard anything by the group Gryphon?


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## Ailith (May 7, 2012)

SeverinR said:


> Do you play any of these instruments, or just study them?


Sadly, I don’t play most of these. 

I do play: clarinet, alto sax, mandolin, recorder (from sopranino to bass), fife, guitar, ukulele, melodica, penny whistle, bamboo flute, and nose flute.


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## studentofrhythm (May 8, 2012)

Thanks for the recommendations.  Someone else mentioned Gryphon to me once but I still haven't gotten round to hearing them.


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## Aravelle (May 8, 2012)

Question: Any idea what kind of instruments were around during Feudal times in China?


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## Ailith (May 8, 2012)

Aravelle said:


> Question: Any idea what kind of instruments were around during Feudal times in China?


You’ll have to help me out with my Chinese history... is the Feudal Period somewhere around the Zhou and Qin dynasties? 

The Chinese instruments that I’m most familiar with are the konghou and the erhu. 

*Erhus* (a two stringed vertically-played violin-type instrument) are awesome and sound amazing, but I don’t think they are old enough to be considered a feudal instrument (assuming that Feudal is Zhou/Qin).

The *konghou* is a type of harp. Modern konghou have long strings folded over a piece of wood to make two ranks. It has a different timbre than regular harps and allows players to pitch bend. The ancient version of the konghou set up a little differently. I’m not familiar with the particulars that differ, but it may be worth a little researching if you're interested in this type of instrument.

Pretty much every ancient culture had simple flutes, so those are a safe bet. I believe this type of flute in China is called a *xiao*. 

A *guqin* is dulcimer-type instrument that is very ancient - but other than that, I don’t know a lot about it. (I just know it from Jet Li’s Hero - it is played during one of the fights)

Hope this helps!


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## SeverinR (May 9, 2012)

I guess you missed my question.

Hummelchen; is this basically a miniture bagpipe or is just similar?


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## Ailith (May 9, 2012)

SeverinR said:


> I guess you missed my question.
> 
> Hummelchen; is this basically a miniture bagpipe or is just similar?


Sorry about that! 

Yes, they are bagpipes. Hummelchen style bagpipes are small with two drones. They’re good for playing indoors or with other instruments like recorder or crumhorn consort. This particular style is German, but other countries have their own versions of smallpipes as well.


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## Aravelle (May 9, 2012)

Ailith said:


> You’ll have to help me out with my Chinese history... is the Feudal Period somewhere around the Zhou and Qin dynasties?
> 
> The Chinese instruments that I’m most familiar with are the konghou and the erhu.
> 
> ...



If I wanted to be picky, it's Qing, but yes, you are correct.

Trust me, you've been veeeeery helpful. Thank you.


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## Kit (May 9, 2012)

Ailith said:


> Pretty much every ancient culture had simple flutes, so those are a safe bet. I believe this type of flute in China is called a xiao
> /QUOTE]
> 
> I have also been researching Chinese instruments for my WIP... they had bamboo-type flutes as well as these egg-shaped clay ones:
> Xun (instrument) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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## Ailith (May 9, 2012)

> I have also been researching Chinese instruments for my WIP... they had bamboo-type flutes as well as these egg-shaped clay ones:
> Xun (instrument) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Cool! They look a lot like ocarinas! Thanks for sharing, Kit


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## SeverinR (May 10, 2012)

Ailith said:


> Sorry about that!
> 
> Yes, they are bagpipes. Hummelchen style bagpipes are small with two drones. They’re good for playing indoors or with other instruments like recorder or crumhorn consort. This particular style is German, but other countries have their own versions of smallpipes as well.



Perfect, I was trying to find a bagpipe type instrument that could be played inside(practice or someplace a full bagpipe might blast a person out.) I wanted the bagpipes because they are so loud. Just hard to practice in a cave with such a loud instrument. (The bagpipe will be played to inspire the military in battle, where a flute or gemshorn would never even be heard..)


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