Aboriginal Australian Musical Trip
Enjoy the adventure as we learn about the distinctive Aboriginal Australian Music! I have read a handful of books about the Aboriginal people, which piqued my interest in this musical trip.
As said by Hans Telford, the aboriginal traditional music is an integral part of the aboriginal people and holds a lot of meaning as well. He also states that "music is used throughout an aboriginal's life to teach what must be known about their culture, about their place in it, and about its place in the world of nature and supernature." They are taught at a very age to sing and dance about everyday tasks. The music is passed down from generation to generation verbally and not written down and learned as the way we learn in western culture.
The music composed by the aboriginals is very important to their culture. The songs composed for sacred ceremonies are only to be shared with their tribe and no one is to record these ceremonies. Outsiders are not allowed to attend these ceremonies as well. Non-sacred ceremonies can allow outsiders to observe and record.
The aboriginals use an instrument called the didgeridoo, which is made from the eucalyptus tree. This instrument is one of the oldest instruments and is in the category of aerophone. This wind instrument is played by blowing into the tube, almost like a trumpet.
Dance during Aboriginal Initiation Ceremony, Northern Australia
Recorded April 10, 2010.
Beat
The song starts off with the clapsticks with a slow and steady beat. They start singing in their language and the beat increases to a faster beat for about 30 seconds. Following that, the beat increases, I believe there is more than one song in this video. This reminds me of our own traditional Yup'ik songs, but we a drum instead of clapsticks.Lyrics
The lyrics are sung in their Australian language. Although I don't understand the words, they are welcoming and calming. They start singing slow and increase as they sing along.
Amazing Didgeridoo by Mick Ambyrum
Recorded in 1995, posted Sept. 28, 2013
Timbre
The timber changes throughout the song and doesn't stay the same. He starts off with slow and slightly increases, and flows smoothly as the timbre changes.
Rhythm
This song has a variety of rhythm played throughout the song and that is what makes the music so unique. The rhythm changes from slow to fast, with a smooth change. It continues to change throughout the song and doesn't stay the same.
Australian music is very unique, just like the Alaskan native music. Although they are clear across the globe from here, they enjoy composing and dancing to their native music just as we do. When I came across the ceremonial dance, it reminded me of the ceremonial dances that we have. Their music also holds as much meaning as our music in my native culture. Music is integral to everyone no matter where you come from! This class has been a total eye-opener for me in exploring music. I enjoyed this musical trip and enjoyed learning more about Australian Aboriginal music! Enjoy!
Hi Hazel! Did you mean tempo instead of timbre for the "Amazing Didgeridoo," song? Either way, this song definitely has a unique timbre. It also has an interesting melody even though it seems to have a relatively small range. I agree with your analysis overall, and I learned a couple of things too. For example, I didn't know that the didgeridoo instrument exists. This is a great post, thanks for sharing what you learned!
ReplyDeleteI have heard of the didgeridoo but I have never heard it by watching a video. I have only seen pictures with a sound recording example. It was so interesting seeing and hearing it played. Imagine walking at night and hearing that echoing through the woods. Gives me shivers just thinking about it. The didgeridoo has such a low, vibrating, and exotic sound to it. And to think it is made from a hollowed out eucalyptus tree!
ReplyDeleteI was also fascinated by the Australian dance numbers being performed in the first recording. The clap sticks and the chanting and singing drew me in. I wonder what they are saying...
The timbre of the voices and the clap sticks was quite the combination. Very mysterious. Thank you for sharing your research!
I have enjoyed reading your blog about Australian instruments and music. At the end of the blog I loved how compared the Australian music and our yupik music. Both are unique in many ways, both of the native culture has alot of heritage in them. The instruments that you chose with the culture does fit in, just like how yupik drums are made. The tempo of the song does start out slow and increases to make the song interesting, its amazing how he is making a lot of beats with his voice. Everything on this post was spot on and I agree with the timbre and rhythm.
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