Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Medieval Instruments: Three Things You Ought To Know About the Dark Ages

By Douglas Etri


Got nothing to do? I can count a number of fun things to do this holiday. Trouble is, most of us would often prefer to lie or sit in front of the tv and watch TV shows that have various titles but all looks the same. Do not waste the time doing idling things. Life is short and the world has a lot of things to offer. Studying how to play medieval instruments for example.

You may say that these unique medieval instruments are of no way fascinating in this day and times. You are right, these "geriatric" stuff seem to be too out-of-place and rather not special in the time where electronic instruments and voice digital editing seem to be prevalent. If you are following the same line of thought then you are definitely wrong. Even today, there are still several instruments dating back from the medieval times that are played along with the modern instruments. Drums for example, the fiddle and the tambourine. Or the bagpipes, the wind instrument for the poorest people back then.

Learning how to play these old-timer musical instruments would also be more fun if you can learn some little-known tidbits concerning the dark ages. This would not only increase your understanding about the medieval history, but to allow the natural curiosity of the Dark ages to grow inside you. Through this, music appreciation and the advocacy to spread the magic of the medieval music even to these modern times will be realized.

Interesting fact number one: The oldest known record share us this information-the world's oldest medieval instrument is none other than the human voice. When our European forebears seem to be very occupied with agriculture and pasturing, do you think they would have enough time to mold instruments? Much less think of making music? According to found annals, Christian monks used the human voice as a tool to promulgate their religion, and it is in this fashion that Gregorian chants and hymns were propagated all through the Christendom.

Fun tidbit number two: Have you ever wondered if the romantic tales of the court and the gallant tales of knight were genuine? If not, who might have the creativity to weave them so captivatingly? They are called the troubadours and the minstrels. The troubadours are well-known to recite Occitan lyric poetry. Their female counterparts are called trobairitz. The minstrels on the other hand are performers on the court or palaces. Their tongues are the bearer of riveting tales about dragons, knights and courtly love, which might have happened in real life or just pure imagination.

Interesting fact number three: The oldest church organ is said to be used to as back as the 8th century. We should not forget the fact that the symphonies and the melodies we now have evolved from the basic hymns plucked or stroked from these medieval instruments. Paying tribute to these "pioneers" need not only call for our devote appreciation, but in making sure they will last through time as well. So if you are interested in learning how to play one of these instruments, you can choose to buy them online or from a novelty store.




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