Aztec turtle shell drum ayotapalcatl teponaztli

A teponaztli is a type of

slit drum A slit drum, or slit gong, is a hollow percussion instrument, often made out of wood or bamboo. In spite of its often being called a drum, it is not a true drum, because it lacks a ''drumhead'', the membrane (made out of animal skin or plastic) ...

used in central Mexico by the

Aztec The Aztecs ( ) were a Mesoamerican civilization that flourished in central Mexico in the Post-Classic stage, post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different Indigenous peoples of Mexico, ethnic groups of central ...

s and related cultures.

Structure

Teponaztli are made of hollow hardwood logs, often fire-hardened. Like most slit drums, teponaztlis have two slits on their topside, cut into the shape of an "H". The resultant strips or tongues are then struck with rubber-head wood mallets, or with deer antlers. Since the tongues are of different lengths, or carved into different thicknesses, the teponaztli produces 2 different pitches, usually near a

third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', i.e., the third in a series of fractional parts in a sexagesimal number system Places * 3rd Street (di ...

or fourth apart. Teponaztli were usually decorated with relief carvings of various deities or with abstract designs, and were even carved into the shapes of creatures or humans. Some of these creatures are open-mouthed, providing increased volume through the hole at the end. On other drums, a hole was made on the drum's underside. Teponaztli from the

Mixtec The Mixtecs (), or Mixtecos, are Indigenous Mesoamerican peoples of Mexico inhabiting the region known as La Mixteca of Oaxaca and Puebla as well as La Montaña Region and Costa Chica of Guerrero, Costa Chica Regions of the state of Guerre ...

culture in what is today south-central Mexico are known for their various battle or mythological scenes carved in relief. These drums ranged in size from about 1 foot (30 cm) to 4 feet (1.2 metres) long. The larger teponaztli would be rested upon a supporting frame. The smaller ones could either be rested on a frame or carried by straps about the shoulders.

Use

Someone who plays a ''teponaztli'' is called a ''teponāzoāni '' and ''teponaztli'' were used in dances, poetry, celebrations(as shown in the Florentine Codex above) or in warfare as a means of communication. According to some sources, on important state occasions the blood of sacrificial victims was at times poured into the drum.

Motolinia Toribio of Benavente (1482, Benavente, Spain – 1565, Mexico City, New Spain), also known as Motolinía, was a Franciscan missionary who was one of the famous Twelve Apostles of Mexico who arrived in New Spain in May 1524. His published writing ...

, a Franciscan friar and chronicler of post-conquest Aztec life, stated that the teponaztli, or as he called it the ''contrabajos'' (counterbass), was often played with the huehuetl skin drum to accompany various dances. In addition to dances, teponaztlis were used to accompanied poetry readings: the notations for the sounds of the drum beats (''cuīcatlahtōl'' ) even at times appear within the poetry itself ("''totocoto tototo cototo tiquititi titiqui tiquito''"). The word ''cuīcatlahtōl'', meaning "musical note", is formed from the two words ''cuīcatl'' (song) and ''tlahtōlli'' (word). This solfege-style notation allows reconstruction the rhythms and sounds of the Aztecs.

Strokes

Each drum pattern is written using four syllables: To, Ko, Ti, Ki Pitch: *To and Ko: low tones *Ti and Ki: high tones Beat: *To and Ti: downbeats *Ko and Ki: upbeats

Notes

References

* Coe, Michael D. (2002); ''Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs'', London: Thames and Hudson. *Collier, Simon; Skidmore, Thomas E.; Blakemore, Harold (1992) ''The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Latin America and the Caribbean'', Cambridge World Encyclopedia, Cambridge University Press. *Guggenheim Museum, ''The Aztec Empire: Catalogue of the Exhibition'', Guggenheim Museum, New York. * * Motolinia, Toribio de Benavente, '' Historia de los Indios de la Nueva España'' .
Teponaztli
, in ''Dictionary of Musical Instruments'', University of Michigan School of Information, Cultural Heritage Initiative for Community Outreach, accessed April 2007. * Gabriel Pareyon "El teponaztli en la tradición musical mexica"

External links

Understanding the ''teponaztli'' rhythms, with audio files.Description and photo of an owl-shaped teponaztli at the British Museum.Description and photo of a Mixtec teponaztli at the British Museum.''Teponaztli'' audio files.
{{Tube percussion idiophones Slit drums Mesoamerican musical instruments Mexican musical instruments Guatemalan musical instruments Salvadoran musical instruments Aztec society Pre-Columbian North American musical instruments