Part XI

Nonwestern Music

Nonwestern Music• Reflects/expresses world’s diversity

• Each culture has its music practice

• Some have all 3—folk, pop, & classical

• These musics influence western music

• Especially true in the 20th Century

• French composer Claude Debussy

• British rocker George Harrison

• Jazz artist John Coltrane

Ch. 1: Music in Nonwestern Cultures

Characteristics of Nonwestern Music

• It reflects its supporting culture• Frequently linked with religion, dance and drama

• Music notation far less important than in western culture

• Often used to communicate messages & relate traditions

Oral Tradition• Frequently transmitted by oral tradition

• Many cultures do not have a music notation• When they do, it serves as a record, not for teaching or

performance

• Improvisation is frequently basic to the music

Improvisation

• Improvisation usually based on traditional melodic phrases and rhythmic patterns

Voices

• Singing usually main way of making music

• Vocal approach, timbre, and techniques vary throughout the world• Nasal sound• Strained tone

• Throat singing• Many others

• Four types based upon sound production:Instruments

• Chordophones—stretched string• Harp-type

• Aerophones—performer’s breath• Flutes, trumpets, etc.

• Idiophones—instrument’s body is sound generator• Bells, gongs, scrapers, rattles, etc.

• Style and application within culture causes particular types of instruments to dominate

• Idiophones/membranophones: rhythmic emphasis• Aerophones aid in outdoor performance

• Geography & materials availability influences

• Strings allow great flexibility of pitch

• Religion also influences instrumentation

• Membranophones—stretched skin• Primarily drums

• Most nonwestern musics are monophonic

Melody, Rhythm, and Texture

• Some cultures use heterophony

• Intervals between tones can be larger or smaller

• Much nonwestern music has very complex rhythms

• Sometimes accompanied by a drone

• Scales in nonwestern music are frequently quite different than western musical scales

• All perform same melody with different ornamentation

• Nonwestern music has been greatly impacted by western influences due to:

Interaction between Nonwestern and Western Music

• Spread of technology

• Increased urbanization

• Some governments subsidize traditional music to preserve cultural heritage

• Almost worldwide access to recorded music

Ch. 2: Music in Sub-Saharan Africa

• Africa is divided into two parts: above and below the Sahara desert

• Above: Moslem, Arabic-speaking, music closely related to that of the Middle East

• Though Sub-Saharan music is diverse, there are some similarities:• Complex rhythms and polyrhythms• Percussive sounds• Wide variety of instrumental ensembles• Vocal music usually a soloist & responding chorus

• Below: Extremely diverse, many religions, cultures, and languages (over 700)

• Music permeates African life from religion, entertainment, & magic to rites of passage

Music in Society

• Closely associated with dancing in ceremonies, rituals, & celebrations

• Dancers frequently play and sing while dancing

• It is so interwoven into life that the abstract word “music” is not used by many peoples

• Music is a social activity—everyone joins in

• No musical notation—passed by oral tradition

Rhythm and Percussion

Elements of African Music

• The body used as an instrument

• Complex rhythms & polyrhythms predominate

• Wide variety of sounds, even within a single piece

• Percussion ostinato frequently accompanies singers

• Dancers choose to follow any of the various rhythms

Vocal Music

• Call and response extremely common

• Short musical phrases repeated to different words

• Clapping, stamping, slapping thigh/chest

Texture• Often homophonic or polyphonic

• Same melody often sung at many pitch levels

• This is unlike most nonwestern musics

Idiophones

African Instruments

• Xylophones, a favorite, come in many sizes

• Most common African instrument

• Used in many ceremonial & work-pace applications

• Drums usually played in groups—multiple players

• Most are of indefinite pitch

Membranophones

• Drum manufacture often accompanied by special rites

• Variety of shapes, sizes, and forms

• “Talking drum” w/ slit in side can produce 2-4 tones

Aerophones and Chordophones• Flutes & trumpets (of wood & horn) most common

• Chordophones plucked or struck, gourd resonators

• Reed instruments less widespread

Ch. 3: Classical Music of India• Musical traditions date back over 3,000 years

• Hindustani: secular, court music from Northern India (including now-Pakistan)

• Karnatak: temple music from South India

• Absorbed many Persian elements due to Muslim Persian rulers

• Two main types of classical music

• Developed along its own lines

Performers• Music viewed as a spiritual discipline• Oral tradition—study by apprenticeshipImprovisation• Very important, sophisticated, & developed• Guided by melodic & rhythmic formula• Must study for years before allowed improv.

• Music is based upon the human voice

Elements of Indian Classical Music

• Melodies almost always accompanied by a drone instrument

• Pitch range limited to about four octaves

• Highly embellished melody, both vocal and instrumental, is characteristic

• Melody exists within a framework called a raga—a defined pattern of notes

• Rhythm is organized into blocks or cycles, each called a tala

Melodic Structure: Raga

Rhythmic Structure: Tala

• Tala range from 3-100 beats in length• 6-16 is most common

• Vocal music most important in India

Instruments

• Sitar most popular chordophone

• Many types of instruments

• Drums of many sizes

• Many instruments associated w/ specific gods

• Long necked, lute (guitar) like instrument• 7 plucked strings, 9-13 sympathetically vibrating

• Tabla and mridangam drums most common

Listening

Maru-Bihagby Ravi Shankar

Basic Set, CD 8:62 Brief Set, CD 4:69

Note:

Raga and tala organization

Heavy reliance on stringed instruments

Extensive improvisation

Nonwestern musical form

Ch. 4: Koto Music of Japan

The Koto Godan-Ginuta, by Mitsuzaki Kengyo Listening Outline: p. 596

Brief Set, CD 8:65