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Masenqo
The Masenqo ( am, ማሲንቆ; Tigrinya: ጭራ-ዋጣ (ዋጣ) is a single-stringed bowed lute commonly found in the musical traditions of Ethiopia. As with the krar, this instrument is used by Ethiopian minstrels called '' azmaris'' ("singer" in Amharic) . Although it functions in a purely accompaniment capacity in songs, the masenqo requires considerable virtuosity, as azmaris accompany themselves while singing. Construction and design The square or diamond-shaped resonator is made of four small wooden boards glued together, then covered with a stretched parchment or rawhide. The single string is typically made of horse hair, and passes over a bridge. The instrument is tuned by means of a large tuning peg A variety of methods are used to tune different stringed instruments. Most change the pitch produced when the string is played by adjusting the tension of the strings. A tuning peg in a pegbox is perhaps the most common system. A peg has a ... to fit the range ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Music Of Ethiopia
Ethiopian music is a term that can mean any music of Ethiopian origin, however, often it is applied to a genre, a distinct modal system that is pentatonic, with characteristically long intervals between some notes. The music of the Ethiopian Highlands uses a fundamental modal system called ''qenet'', of which there are four main modes: , , , and . Three additional modes are variations on the above: tezeta minor, bati major, and bati minor.Abatte Barihun, liner notes of the album Ras Deshen, 200. Some songs take the name of their qenet, such as tizita, a song of reminiscence. When played on traditional instruments, these modes are generally not tempered (that is, the pitches may deviate slightly from the Western-tempered tuning system), but when played on Western instruments such as pianos and guitars, they are played using the Western-tempered tuning system. Music in the Ethiopian highlands is generally monophonic or heterophonic. In certain southern areas, some music is polyp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ethiopian Musical Instruments
Ethiopian music is a term that can mean any music of Ethiopian origin, however, often it is applied to a genre, a distinct modal system that is pentatonic, with characteristically long intervals between some notes. The music of the Ethiopian Highlands uses a fundamental modal system called '' qenet'', of which there are four main modes: , , , and . Three additional modes are variations on the above: tezeta minor, bati major, and bati minor. Abatte Barihun, liner notes of the album Ras Deshen, 200. Some songs take the name of their qenet, such as tizita, a song of reminiscence. When played on traditional instruments, these modes are generally not tempered (that is, the pitches may deviate slightly from the Western-tempered tuning system), but when played on Western instruments such as pianos and guitars, they are played using the Western-tempered tuning system. Music in the Ethiopian highlands is generally monophonic or heterophonic. In certain southern areas, some music is pol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Azmari
An Azmari (Amharic: አዝማሪ) is an entertainer who sings and plays traditional string instruments of the Ethiopian Highlands. Its comparable to medieval European minstrels or bard or West African griots. ''Azmari'', who may be either male or female, are skilled at singing extemporized verses, accompanying themselves on either a ''masenqo'' (one-stringed fiddle) or '' krar'' (lyre). Etymology Azmari means (''to sing'' or ''singer'') in Amharic. Amharas tend to call all musicians Azmari simply because there's no other word in the language denoting a person who plays a musical instrument. History The earliest documented mention of the ''Azmaris'' goes back to the mid-15th century, and they presumably go back much further. Role in society ''Azmaris'' once played an important role as social critics by improvising sophisticated texts of praise or criticism. ''Azmaris'' would mock people in high places, and even Emperors were not spared if they were found to be unpopular ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Krar
Krar (Amharic: ክራር) is a five-or-six stringed bowl-shaped lyre from Ethiopia and Eritrea. It is tuned to a pentatonic scale. A modern ''Krar'' may be amplified, much in the same way as an electric guitar or violin. The ''Krar'', along with ''Masenqo'' and the ''Washint'', is one of the most widespread musical instruments of the Amhara ethnic group. Role in Amhara society Historical In Amhara society the ''krar'' was viewed as an instrument inspired by the Devil and was therefore inferior, whereas the ''Begena'' was for praising God and seen as sacred. The ''krar'' was used to adulate feminine beauty, to create sexual arousal and to eulogize carnal love. The instrument has been associated with brigands, outlaws and wanderers. Wanderers played the ''krar'' to solicit food, and outlaws played it to sing an Amhara war song called ''Fano''. Contemporary Today, the ''krar'' which used to be the plaything of the Amharas, has become one of the most popular Ethiopian strin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Music Of Eritrea
The music of Eritrea, is a diverse mix of traditional and popular styles originating from ancient to modern times. The nine major ethnic groups of Eritrea—Afar, Bilen, Hedareb, Kunama, Nara, Rashaida, Saho, Tigre and Tigrinya—celebrate autonomous music-making expressed through a rich heritage of vocalists, instrumentalists and activities within the country and throughout the international diaspora. The country’s music is informed by a range of ethnolinguistic group dynamics in the region, by its shared pre-colonial history with and revolutionized independence from Ethiopia, and by its exposure to globalized American music in the mid-twentieth century. Notable musicians Notable Eritrean musicians were Edris Wad Amir, Ibrahim Wad Goret, Edris M. Ali, Zainab Bashir, Fatima Ibrahim, Engineer Asgedom Woldemichael, Wad Asheikh, Yemane Baria, Osman Abderrehim, Alamin Abdeletif and Atowe Birhan Segid. Yemane Baria wrote one political song, and he was in jail. Also of note is Bere ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lute
A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lute" can refer to an instrument from the family of European lutes. The term also refers generally to any string instrument having the strings running in a plane parallel to the sound table (in the Hornbostel–Sachs system). The strings are attached to pegs or posts at the end of the neck, which have some type of turning mechanism to enable the player to tighten the tension on the string or loosen the tension before playing (which respectively raise or lower the pitch of a string), so that each string is tuned to a specific pitch (or note). The lute is plucked or strummed with one hand while the other hand "frets" (presses down) the strings on the neck's fingerboard. By pressing the strings on different places of the fingerboard, the player can shor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rawhide (textile)
Rawhide is a hide or animal skin that has not been exposed to tanning. It is similar to parchment, much lighter in color than leather made by traditional vegetable tanning. Rawhide is more susceptible to water than leather, and it quickly softens and stretches if left wet unless well waterproofed. "Rawhide" laces often sold for boots or baseball gloves are made of normal tanned leather rather than actual rawhide. Rawhide is not pliable when dry and would be unsuitable for that use. Process The skin from buffalo, deer, elk or cattle from which most rawhide originates is prepared by removing all fur, meat and fat. The hide is then usually stretched over a frame before being dried. The resulting material is hard and translucent. It can be shaped by rewetting and forming before being allowed to thoroughly re-dry. It can be rendered more pliable by 'working', i.e. bending repeatedly in multiple directions, often by rubbing it over a post, sometimes traditionally by chewing. I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bowed String Instruments
Bowed string instruments are a subcategory of string instruments that are played by a bow (music), bow rubbing the string (music), strings. The bow rubbing the string causes vibration which the instrument emits as sound. Despite the numerous specialist studies devoted to the origin of the bowing the problem of the origin of the bowing is unresolved Some say that the bow was introduced to Europe from the Middle East while others say the bow was not introduced from the Middle East but the other way round and that that the bow may have had its origin from a more frequent intercourse with North Europe and Western Europe List of bowed string instruments Violin family * Pochette (musical instrument), Pochette * Violin (violino) * Viola (altviol, bratsche) * Cello (violoncello) * Double bass (contrabasso) ;Variants on the standard members of the violin family include: * Tenor violin * Five string violin * Cello da spalla * Baroque violin * Kontra * Kit violin * Sardino * Stro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eritrean Musical Instruments
Eritrean may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopi ... * A person from Eritrea, or of Eritrean descent. For information about the Eritrean people, see Demographics of Eritrea and Culture of Eritrea. For specific persons, see List of Eritreans. * Languages of Eritrea, several, but none called "Eritrean" * Eritrean cuisine, a fusion of Eritrea's native culinary traditions and social interchanges with other regions * Eritrean coastal desert, ecoregion is a harsh sand and gravel strip along the southern part of the coast of Eritrea and the Red Sea coast of Djibouti * Eritrean literature, works in Tigrinya language See also * * Eritrea (other) {{disambiguation Language and nationality disam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tuning Peg
A variety of methods are used to tune different stringed instruments. Most change the pitch produced when the string is played by adjusting the tension of the strings. A tuning peg in a pegbox is perhaps the most common system. A peg has a grip or knob on it to allow it to be turned. A tuning pin is a tuning peg with a detachable grip, called a tuning lever. The socket on the tuning lever fits over the pin and allows it to be turned. Tuning pins are used on instruments where there is no space for a knob on each string, such as pianos and harps. Turning the peg or pin tightens or loosens the string. Some tuning pegs and pins are tapered, some threaded. Some tuning pegs are ornamented with shell, metal, or plastic inlays, beads (pips) or rings. Other tuning systems include screw-and-lever tuners, geared tuners, and the konso friction tuning system (using braided leather rings). Pegbox A pegbox is the part of certain stringed musical instruments (violin, viola, cello, doub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amharic Language
Amharic ( or ; (Amharic: ), ', ) is an Ethiopian Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amharas, and also serves as a lingua franca for all other populations residing in major cities and towns of Ethiopia. The language serves as the official working language of the Ethiopian federal government, and is also the official or working language of several of Ethiopia's federal regions. It has over 31,800,000 mother-tongue speakers, with more than 25,100,000 second language speakers. Amharic is the most widely spoken language in Ethiopia, and the second most spoken mother-tongue in Ethiopia (after Oromo). Amharic is also the second largest Semitic language in the world (after Arabic). Amharic is written left-to-right using a system that grew out of the Geʽez script. The segmental writing system in which consonant-vowel sequences are written as units is called an ''abugida'' () ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Parchment
Parchment is a writing material made from specially prepared untanned skins of animals—primarily sheep, calves, and goats. It has been used as a writing medium for over two millennia. Vellum is a finer quality parchment made from the skins of young animals such as lambs and young calves. It may be called animal membrane by libraries and museums that wish to avoid distinguishing between ''parchment'' and the more-restricted term ''vellum'' (see below). Parchment and vellum Today the term ''parchment'' is often used in non-technical contexts to refer to any animal skin, particularly goat, sheep or cow, that has been scraped or dried under tension. The term originally referred only to the skin of sheep and, occasionally, goats. The equivalent material made from calfskin, which was of finer quality, was known as '' vellum'' (from the Old French or , and ultimately from the Latin , meaning a calf); while the finest of all was ''uterine vellum'', taken from a calf foetus or sti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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