Talk:Old Albic music

Thanks for this Jörg! Are the carans single or double reeded? I assume the caranar is like a regal and has single reeds, or am I wrong there? (If so, a lovely, raucous sounding instrument, in my opinion!) Have you worked out any scales or modes? Is the music monophonic or polyphonic, etc.? Since the siphilir almost certainly has whistle-like pipes (much like an organ's pipes *here*), is the siphil a recorder or flageolet like instrument? I notice you explicitly leave out the "brass" instruments -- horns, cornetts, trumpets, busines and the like -- is that intentional? Do the Elves have no tradition of such instruments? Elemtilas 11:56, 21 November 2012 (PST)

As for vocal music, do they have any place for very high male voices (counter tenor) or very low male voices (basso profondo)?

Have you tried writing or recording any Elvish music? Even some nice folk melody? Elemtilas 12:01, 21 November 2012 (PST)

Thank you for your appreciation! The carans are double-reeded, I think, but I am not sure yet. The music is polyphonic or homophonic. What regards the brass instruments, they are indeed missing; I think the Elves have them. The whole page is very much work in progress, and I am putting up more stuff as I find out. They may have counter tenors and basso profondo. The scales and tunings are also still unexplored. What regards writing Elvish music, I haven't written any yet. WeepingElf 12:33, 21 November 2012 (PST)

Glad to see some progress on Elvish music! I see they've got trumpets and horns now -- do these names simply signify modern orchestral trumpets and "french" horns? Or do they signify a physical type of instrument? (A 'trumpet-type' instrument is one where the tube is about 75% cylindrical and flares out only at the end; while a 'horn-type' instrument, like a bugle or flugelhorn, is conical almost all the way through.) These yield very different tone qualities.

The latter. The trumpet is a "natural" trumpet, a simple tube of bronze with a mouthpiece on one end and a funnel-like thing on the other. The horn is an actual cattle horn, as common in ancient times. I think it is clear enough that on this page, I talk about the music of the Elves around 600 BC, isn't it? So no modern brass instruments.

Well, perhaps I missed the specific time-frame... But I figured there must be a long history of Elves in Britain, so didn't feel too far wrong about asking about modern Elves as well!

On the instruments themselves, in the modern world, have the Elves adopted standard modern instruments (like Boehm system flutes with all their keys or trumpets with their valves), or have they kept more to the simplicity of the older simple system instruments and natural trumpets?

Today, the few Elves who still live among us play modern instruments. There are even Elvish rock bands. But there are also ensembles who try to recreate Old Albic music and have appropriate instruments made.

Ah, good. You'll have to create some for us! ;))

As for the flute organ, is it a floor model (positiv) or a more portable instrument (portativ)?: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBBqE98nmDM

A floor model.

Lastly (for now), as for the cranar, what is the nature of its reed pipes? It is like a trumpet stop on a pipe organ: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmZdP-DZUgc

or a free reed, like a harmonium: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYIwCbbcUyE

or more like the ancient regals: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0_WtelZ8X0

Elemtilas 21:37, 26 January 2013 (PST)

I think more like a regal. --WeepingElf 04:51, 27 January 2013 (PST)

Fantastic! Love those old regals. Elemtilas 19:20, 17 February 2013 (PST)