Ocarina Of Time 3D
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The ocarina (otherwise known as a potato flute) is a
wind Wind is the natural movement of atmosphere of Earth, air or other gases relative to a planetary surface, planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heatin ...
musical instrument A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make Music, musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person ...
; it is a type of
vessel flute A vessel flute is a type of flute with a body which acts as a Helmholtz resonator. The body is vessel-shaped, not tube- or cone-shaped; that is, the far end is closed. Most flutes have Bore (wind instruments)#Cylindrical bore, cylindrical or Bor ...
. Variations exist, but a typical ocarina is an enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a
mouthpiece Mouthpiece may refer to: * The part of an object which comes near or in contact with one's mouth or nose during use ** Mouthpiece (smoking pipe) or cigarette holder ** Mouthpiece (telephone handset) ** Mouthpiece (woodwind), a component of a wood ...
that projects from the body. It is traditionally made from clay or
ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcela ...
, but other materials are also used, such as plastic, wood, glass, metal, or bone.


History

The ocarina belongs to a very old family of instruments, believed to date back over 12,000 years. Ocarina-type instruments have been of particular importance in
Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...
and
Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area that begins in the southern part of North America and extends to the Pacific coast of Central America, thus comprising the lands of central and southern Mexico, all of Belize, Guatemala, El S ...
n cultures. For the Chinese, the instrument played an important role in their long history of song and dance. The ocarina has features similar to the ''xun'' (塤), another important Chinese instrument (but is different in that the ocarina uses an internal duct, whereas the ''xun'' is blown across the outer edge). In Korea, the ''xun'' is known as the '' hun'' (). In Japan, the ''xun'' is known as the . Different expeditions to Mesoamerica, including the one conducted by Cortés, resulted in the introduction of the ocarina to the courts of Europe. Both the
Maya Maya may refer to: Ethnic groups * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Mayan languages, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (East Africa), a p ...
and
Aztecs The Aztecs ( ) were a Mesoamerican civilization that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the ...
produced versions of the ocarina, but it was the Aztecs who brought to Europe the song and dance that accompanied the ocarina. The ocarina went on to become popular in European communities as a toy instrument. One of the oldest ocarinas found in Europe is from
Runik Runik () is a village in the Skenderaj municipality of Kosovo. It is located in the Drenica region and has 1,585 inhabitants as of 2011. The village has a football club, KF Përparimi Runik. Runik is the site of an important Neolithic settlement ...
,
Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...
. The
Runik ocarina The Runik ocarina is the oldest ocarina found in Europe. It was found in the village of Runik, Skenderaj, Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosov ...
is a
Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...
flute-like wind instrument, and is the earliest prehistoric musical instrument ever recorded in Kosovo. The modern European ocarina dates back to the 19th century, when
Giuseppe Donati Giuseppe Donati (2 December 1836 – 14 February 1925) was an Italian musical instrument maker who invented the ocarina, a ceramic wind instrument based on the principle of a Helmholtz resonator. Donati was born in Budrio. Legend has it tha ...
from
Budrio Budrio ( Eastern Bolognese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, in Emilia-Romagna, Italy; it is east of Bologna. Budrio is the birthplace of Giuseppe Barilli, better known under his pseudonym of Quirico Filopanti, an ...
, a town near
Bologna, Italy Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...
, transformed the ocarina from a toy, which played only a few notes, into a more comprehensive instrument (known as the first "classical" ocarina). The word ''ocarina'' derives from ''ucaréṅna'', which in the
Bolognese dialect Bolognese (native name: ) is a dialect of Emilian spoken in the most part in the city of Bologna and its hinterland (except east of the Sillaro stream), but also in the district of Castelfranco Emilia in the province of Modena, and in the ...
means "little goose". The earlier form was known in Europe as a
gemshorn The gemshorn is an instrument of the ocarina family that was historically made from the horn of a chamois, goat, or other suitable animal.
, which was made from animal
horns Horns or The Horns may refer to: * Plural of Horn (anatomy) * Plural of Horn (instrument), a group of musical instruments all with a horn-shaped bells * The Horns (Colorado), a summit on Cheyenne Mountain * Horns (novel), ''Horns'' (novel), a dar ...
of the
chamois The chamois (; ) (''Rupicapra rupicapra'') or Alpine chamois is a species of Caprinae, goat-antelope native to the mountains in Southern Europe, from the Pyrenees, the Alps, the Apennines, the Dinarides, the Tatra Mountains, Tatra to the Carpa ...
(). In 1964, John Taylor, an English mathematician, developed a fingering system that allowed an ocarina to play a full chromatic octave using only four holes. This is now known as the English fingering system, and is used extensively for pendant ocarinas. It is also used in several multi-chamber ocarinas, especially in ones that are designed to play more than one note at a time. The ocarina is featured in the 1998
Nintendo 64 The (N64) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on June 23, 1996, in North America on September 29, 1996, and in Europe and Australia on March 1, 1997. As the successor to the Super Nintendo E ...
game '' The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time'', as well as its 2000 sequel, '' The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask'', which has been credited for increasing the popularity and sales of ocarinas due to the game's strong sales.


Uses

French composer Pierre Arvay (1924–1980) wrote several pieces of library music for the ocarina. One of these – ''Merry ocarina'' – became well known in the UK when it was used as a regular musical segment in the BBC children's programme ''
Vision On ''Vision On'' was a British children's television programme, shown on BBC1 from 1964 to 1976 and designed specifically for children with hearing impairment. Concept and production ''Vision On'' was conceived and developed by BBC producers Ursu ...
'', broadcast between 1964 and 1976. Hungarian-Austrian composer
György Ligeti György Sándor Ligeti (; ; 28 May 1923 – 12 June 2006) was a Hungarian-Austrian composer of contemporary classical music. He has been described as "one of the most important avant-garde music, avant-garde composers in the latter half of the ...
(1923–2006) called for four ocarinas (to be performed by woodwind players doubling their own instruments) in his
Violin Concerto A violin concerto is a concerto for solo violin (occasionally, two or more violins) and instrumental ensemble (customarily orchestra). Such works have been written since the Baroque period, when the solo concerto form was first developed, up thro ...
, completed in 1993. In 1974, the Polish composer
Krzysztof Penderecki Krzysztof Eugeniusz Penderecki (; 23 November 1933 – 29 March 2020) was a Polish composer and conductor. His best-known works include '' Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima'', Symphony No. 3, his '' St Luke Passion'', '' Polish Requiem'', '' ...
(1933–2020) incorporated 12 ocarinas in his composition ''
The Dream of Jacob ''The Dream of Jacob'', also referred to as ''The Awakening of Jacob'' (), is a composition by Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki. It is scored for large orchestra and was finished in 1974. Conception and composition The work's original Ge ...
''. Later, he incorporated 50 in the final section of his Symphony No. 8, completed in 2008, where they are meant to be played by members of the choir.


Types

There are many different styles of ocarinas varying in shape and the number of holes: * Transverse (Sweet potato) – This is the best-known style of ocarina. It has a rounded shape and is held with two hands horizontally. Depending on the number of holes, the player opens one more hole than the previous note to ascend in pitch. The two most common transverse ocarinas are 10-hole (invented by
Giuseppe Donati Giuseppe Donati (2 December 1836 – 14 February 1925) was an Italian musical instrument maker who invented the ocarina, a ceramic wind instrument based on the principle of a Helmholtz resonator. Donati was born in Budrio. Legend has it tha ...
in Italy) and 12-hole. They have a range of between an octave plus a fourth and an octave plus a minor sixth. * Pendants: ** English Pendant – These are usually very small and portable, and use the English fingering system devised by John Taylor (4–6 holes). This fingering system allows them to achieve a range of between an octave and an octave plus a major second. ** Peruvian Pendant – Dating from the time of the Incas, used as instruments for festivals, rituals, and ceremonies. They are often seen with designs of animals. They usually have 8–9 holes. * Inline – These ocarinas are usually rectangular or oval-shaped and are constructed so that the instrument points away from the musician when played. Most inline ocarinas have a similar or identical fingering system to transverse ocarinas. * Multi-chambered ocarinas (better known as "double" and "triple" ocarinas) – These ocarinas are essentially two ocarinas molded into one body, with two separate mouthpieces and two separate sets of finger holes. This construction usually either expands the range of the instrument or allows multiple notes to be played at once. Although multi-chamber ocarinas can be made in transverse, inline, or pendant style, the transverse style is the most common. A typical transverse double ocarina plays two octaves plus a
minor third In music theory, a minor third is a interval (music), musical interval that encompasses three half steps, or semitones. Staff notation represents the minor third as encompassing three staff positions (see: interval (music)#Number, interval numb ...
, and a transverse triple ocarina usually plays with a range of about two octaves plus a
minor seventh In music theory, a minor seventh is one of two musical intervals that span seven staff positions. It is ''minor'' because it is the smaller of the two sevenths, spanning ten semitones. The major seventh spans eleven. For example, the interval ...
. * Keys and slides – Beginning in the late 19th century, several makers have also produced ocarinas with keys and slides. These mechanisms either expand the instrument's range, help fingers reach holes that are widely spaced, or make it easier to play notes that are not in the native key of the instrument.


Gallery

File:Ocarina.jpg, A transverse ocarina File:Blueandwhitepatternocarinaanonymous1923.png, Meissen "Blue Onion" pattern porcelain transverse ocarina, early 20th century File:Ocarina SopranoF AltoC.jpg, Front and back view of transverse ocarinas. The double holes on front indicate a fingering system developed in 20th-century Japan. File:Ocarina 2.JPG, Metal transverse ocarina of 1875 File:Pendant4ocarina.gif, The English pendant ocarina, invented in the 1960s by John Taylor, produces a chromatic octave using just four finger holes File:Körtemuzsika2.jpg, English pendant ocarina (unstrung, with two suspension holes) held in the hand File:Mountain Warmstone G okarína.JPG, An inline ocarina File:Budriodouble.jpg, A double-chambered inline ocarina File:Ocarina a doppia voce americana.JPG, A double-chambered English pendant File:Ocarina doppia di Kurt Posch.jpg, A double-chambered transverse ocarina (mouthpiece on the side) File:FocalinkDoubleAC.jpg, An Asian double chambered ocarina. The two blow holes in the mouthpiece are clearly visible, which makes it possible for the player to play an extended range of notes (17 in total, in this case from A4 to C6) File:STL Triple Bass.jpg, A triple-chambered ocarina in the bass register File:Paolo collection.jpg, A collection of ocarinas File:STL Teacarina ocarina.jpg, Selection of novelty "teacarinas" that are also functional teacups File:Ocarina shops.jpg, Owl-shaped ocarinas on sale in a shop in Taiwan File:EpiCai Glass Bottle ocarina. 10 holes.jpg, Ocarina made from a bottle File:Pre-Columbian ceramic ocarina.jpg, A ceramic pre-Columbian ocarina, c. 1300–1500, Tairona people, Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia File:Replikat der Okarina der Zeit 20211210 HOF08320 RAW-Export 20211212000388 02.png, An ocarina design based on the titular instrument in the video game '' The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time''


Musical performance


Tone production and acoustics

How an ocarina works: # Air enters through the windway # Air strikes the labium, producing sound # Air pulses in and out of the ocarina, as the vessel resonates a specific pitch (see
Helmholtz resonator Helmholtz resonance, also known as wind throb, refers to the phenomenon of air resonance in a cavity, an effect named after the German physicist Hermann von Helmholtz. This type of resonance occurs when air is forced in and out of a cavity (the re ...
) # Covering holes lowers the pitch; uncovering holes raises the pitch # Blowing more softly lowers the pitch; blowing harder raises it. Breath force can change the pitch by several semitones, of which about a third of a semitone either way is useful. Too much or too little air will harm the tone. This is why ocarinas generally have no tuning mechanism or dynamic range, and why it is hard to learn to play one in tune. The airstream is directed on the labium by a
fipple The term fipple specifies a variety of end-blown flute that includes the flageolet, recorder, and tin whistle. The Hornbostel–Sachs system for classifying musical instruments places this group under the heading "Flutes with duct or duct flut ...
or internal duct, which is a narrowing rectangular slot in the mouthpiece, rather than relying on the player's lips as in a
transverse flute A transverse flute or side-blown flute is a flute which is held horizontally when played.Powell, A. (2001). Transverse flute. Grove Music Online. Retrieved 6 Feb. 2024 The player blows across the embouchure hole, in a direction perpendicular to ...
. Like other flutes, the airstream alternates quickly between the inner and outer face of the labium as the pressure in the ocarina chamber oscillates. At first, the sound is a broad-spectrum "noise" (i.e. "chiff"), but those frequencies that are identical with the fundamental frequency of the resonating chamber (which depends on the fingering), are selectively amplified. A Helmholtz resonating chamber is unusually selective in amplifying a single frequency. Most resonators also amplify more
overtones An overtone is any resonant frequency above the fundamental frequency of a sound. (An overtone may or may not be a harmonic) In other words, overtones are all pitches higher than the lowest pitch within an individual sound; the fundamental i ...
. As a result, ocarinas and other
vessel flute A vessel flute is a type of flute with a body which acts as a Helmholtz resonator. The body is vessel-shaped, not tube- or cone-shaped; that is, the far end is closed. Most flutes have Bore (wind instruments)#Cylindrical bore, cylindrical or Bor ...
s have a distinctive overtoneless sound. Unlike many flutes, ocarinas do not rely on pipe length to produce a particular tone. Instead, the tone is dependent on the ratio of the total surface area of opened holes to the total cubic volume enclosed by the instrument. This means that, unlike a
transverse flute A transverse flute or side-blown flute is a flute which is held horizontally when played.Powell, A. (2001). Transverse flute. Grove Music Online. Retrieved 6 Feb. 2024 The player blows across the embouchure hole, in a direction perpendicular to ...
or
recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a newsp ...
, sound is created by resonance of the entire cavity and the placement of the holes on an ocarina is largely irrelevant – their size is the most important factor. Instruments that have toneholes close to the voicing/embouchure should be avoided, however; as an ocarina is a
Helmholtz resonator Helmholtz resonance, also known as wind throb, refers to the phenomenon of air resonance in a cavity, an effect named after the German physicist Hermann von Helmholtz. This type of resonance occurs when air is forced in and out of a cavity (the re ...
, this weakens tonal production. The
resonator A resonator is a device or system that exhibits resonance or resonant behavior. That is, it naturally oscillates with greater amplitude at some frequencies, called resonant frequencies, than at other frequencies. The oscillations in a reso ...
in the ocarina can create
overtone An overtone is any resonant frequency above the fundamental frequency of a sound. (An overtone may or may not be a harmonic) In other words, overtones are all pitches higher than the lowest pitch within an individual sound; the fundamental i ...
s, but because of the common "egg" shape, these overtones are many octaves above the keynote scale. In similar Helmholtz resonator instruments with a narrow cone shape, like the
Gemshorn The gemshorn is an instrument of the ocarina family that was historically made from the horn of a chamois, goat, or other suitable animal.
or
Tonette The stub-ended Swanson tonette is a small (6" cavity), end-blown vessel flute made of plastic, which was once popular in American elementary music education. Though the tonette has been superseded by the recorder (musical instrument), recorder i ...
, some partial overtones are available. The technique of
overblowing Overblowing is the manipulation of supplied air through a wind instrument that causes the sounded pitch to jump to a higher one without a fingering change or the operation of a slide. Overblowing may involve a change in the air pressure, in the ...
to get a range of higher-pitched notes is possible with the ocarina but not widely used because the resulting note is not "clean" enough, so the range of pitches available is limited by the total area of the holes. Some ocarina makers bypass these physical limitations by creating ocarinas that have two or three resonating chambers, each with their own windway and labium. There are two main systems that dictate how these additional chambers are tuned: the Asian system and the Pacchioni system. The Asian system maximizes range by beginning each chamber one semitone higher than the highest note of the previous chamber. The Pacchioni system instead focuses on smoothing the transition between chambers by overlapping their ranges slightly, thereby making it easier to play melodies that fall in that range.


Musical notation and tablature

Ocarina music is written in three main ways. The most apparent is the use of sheet music. There are archives of
sheet music Sheet music is a handwritten or printed form of musical notation that uses musical symbols to indicate the pitches, rhythms, or chords of a song or instrumental musical piece. Like its analogs – printed Book, books or Pamphlet, pamphlets ...
either specifically written for ocarinas, or adapted from piano sheet music. Since some ocarinas are fully
chromatic Diatonic and chromatic are terms in music theory that are used to characterize scales. The terms are also applied to musical instruments, intervals, chords, notes, musical styles, and kinds of harmony. They are very often used as a pair, es ...
and can be played in
professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who work (human activity), works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the partic ...
musical situations, including classical and
folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...
, sheet music is an ideal notation for ocarinas. Second is the use of numerical tablature, which expresses the musical notes as numbers. Some makers have developed their own system of numerical
tablature Tablature (or tab for short) is a form of musical notation indicating instrument fingering or the location of the played notes rather than musical pitches. Tablature is common for fretted stringed instruments such as the guitar, lute or vihuel ...
for their ocarinas, while others follow a more universal system where numbers correspond to different notes on the scale. This method is typically used by beginners who have not learned to read sheet music. A third method uses a pictorial tablature similar to the ocarina's finger hole pattern, with blackened holes that represent holes to cover. The tablature represents the holes on the top of the ocarina, and, where necessary, the holes on the underside. This enables easy playing, particularly for beginners. The two most popular tablature systems are: * The John Taylor four-hole system (invented in 1964 by British mathematician John Taylor) * The 10 hole sweet potato system (invented by
Giuseppe Donati Giuseppe Donati (2 December 1836 – 14 February 1925) was an Italian musical instrument maker who invented the ocarina, a ceramic wind instrument based on the principle of a Helmholtz resonator. Donati was born in Budrio. Legend has it tha ...
of Budrio Italy) Depending on the artist, some may write a number or figure over the picture to depict how many beats to hold the note.


Articulation

Due to its lack of keys, the ocarina shares many articulations with the
tin whistle The tin whistle, also known as the penny whistle, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is a type of fipple flute, a class of instrument which also includes the recorder and Native American flute. A tin whistle player is called a whistl ...
, such as cuts, strikes, rolls, and slides. However, tonguing is used more often on ocarina than on tin whistle, and vibrato is always achieved through adjusting breath pressure instead of with the fingers.


Similar instruments

Other
vessel flute A vessel flute is a type of flute with a body which acts as a Helmholtz resonator. The body is vessel-shaped, not tube- or cone-shaped; that is, the far end is closed. Most flutes have Bore (wind instruments)#Cylindrical bore, cylindrical or Bor ...
s include the Chinese xun and African globe flutes. The xun (simplified Chinese: 埙; traditional: 塤; pinyin: xūn) is a Chinese vessel flute made of clay or ceramic. It is one of the oldest Chinese instruments. Shaped like an egg, it differs from the ocarina in being side-blown, like the
Western concert flute The Western concert flute can refer to the common C concert flute or to the family of transverse flute, transverse (side-blown) flutes to which the C flute belongs. Almost all are made of metal or wood, or a combination of the two. A musician w ...
, rather than having a
recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a newsp ...
-like mouthpiece (a
fipple The term fipple specifies a variety of end-blown flute that includes the flageolet, recorder, and tin whistle. The Hornbostel–Sachs system for classifying musical instruments places this group under the heading "Flutes with duct or duct flut ...
or beak). Similar instruments exist in Korea (the ''
hun A Hun is a member of the Huns, a confederation of nomadic tribes in Western Asia and Europe in late antiquity. Hun or huns may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * Hun, a British subcultural stereotype, see Hun subculture * Hun, a charac ...
'') and Japan (the ''
tsuchibue The ''hun'' () is a Korean Xun-like globular flute made of baked clay or other ceramics. Origin The ''hun'' is a close relative to the Chinese ''xun.'' It dates back to the 12th century, when it was introduced to Korea by the Song dynasty of ...
''). A related family of instruments is the closed-pipe family, which includes the
panpipes A pan flute (also known as panpipes or syrinx) is a musical instrument based on the principle of the closed tube, consisting of multiple pipes of gradually increasing length (and occasionally girth). Multiple varieties of pan flutes have been ...
and other instruments that produce their tone by vibrating a column of air within a stopped
cylinder A cylinder () has traditionally been a three-dimensional solid, one of the most basic of curvilinear geometric shapes. In elementary geometry, it is considered a prism with a circle as its base. A cylinder may also be defined as an infinite ...
. The old fashioned
jug band A jug band is a musical band, band employing a jug (instrument), jug player and a mix of conventional and homemade instruments. These homemade instruments are ordinary objects adapted to or modified for making sound, like the washtub bass, washbo ...
jug A jug is a type of container commonly used to hold and serve liquids, but not normally to drink from directly. It has an opening, sometimes narrow, from which to pour or drink, and has a handle, and usually a pouring lip. Jugs throughout histor ...
also has similar properties. The traditional German
gemshorn The gemshorn is an instrument of the ocarina family that was historically made from the horn of a chamois, goat, or other suitable animal.
works nearly the same way as an ocarina. The only difference is the material it is made from: the horn of a
chamois The chamois (; ) (''Rupicapra rupicapra'') or Alpine chamois is a species of Caprinae, goat-antelope native to the mountains in Southern Europe, from the Pyrenees, the Alps, the Apennines, the Dinarides, the Tatra Mountains, Tatra to the Carpa ...
,
goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a species of Caprinae, goat-antelope that is mostly kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the ...
, or other suitable animal. The
borrindo The ocarina (otherwise known as a potato flute) is a wind musical instrument; it is a type of vessel flute. Variations exist, but a typical ocarina is an enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouthpiece that projects from the bod ...
is a simple hollow clay ball with three to four fingering holes, one hole slightly larger than the other three, which are smaller and of equal size to one another. The holes are arranged in an isosceles triangular form. The borrindo is made out of soft alluvial clay available in plenty everywhere in the central
Indus Valley The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans- Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in the Western Tibet region of China, flows northwest through the disp ...
. Being of the simplest design, it is made even by children. Some adults make fine borrindos of larger size, put pottery designs on them, and bake them. These baked borrindos, with pottery designs, are the later evolved forms of this musical instrument, which appears to have previously been used in its simple unbaked form for a long time. The sound notes are produced by blowing somewhat horizontally into the larger hole. Finger tips are placed on smaller holes to regulate the notes. Its ease of play makes it popular among children and the youth.


See also

*
Hand flute The hand flute, or handflute, is a musical instrument made out of the player's hands. It is also called a hand ocarina or hand whistle. To produce sound, the player creates a chamber of air with their hands, into which they blow air via an openin ...


References


Further reading

* * * * * * (continual updates) *


External links


A variety of ocarina fingering charts
{{Authority control Chinese musical instruments Clay toys Early musical instruments Internal fipple flutes Dutch musical instruments German musical instruments Italian musical instruments Serbian musical instruments Traditional toys Vessel flutes Toy instruments and noisemakers