Classification of Musical Instruments Why is it important? Because it gives unique information on musical and cultural practices.. They are tangible. Collected for centuries before sound recordings. A self-contained area within Ethnomusicology – separate from playing of instruments

Why is it so important? Classifications serve the purpose of enabling members of a culture to recognise fundamental musical, social, and other relations between the instruments and to formulate new myths or theories. Gender often plays a big role and instrument classification give all sorts of insights into musical traditions.

Early Systems Ancient Chinese – based on material – gourd, skin, bamboo, wood, stone, metal, clay, silk. Pre-1880s European – back to the Greeks and separation into wind and string. Then added percussion – with Virdung 1511, Agricola 1523, Praetorius 1619, Mersenne 1630.

1880s and the Brussels Conservatiore Victor Charles Mahillon advocated a system based on materials made to sound in the first instance. Chordophones, Membraphones, Aerophones, Autophones (latter changed to Idiophones). Ideas taken up and developed by Sachs and Von Hornborstal.

Hornborstal Sachs System Mahaillon’s ideas added to the Dewey decimal system used by libraries. Each of the 4 (now 5 with electrophones) major areas – have sub areas based on the way they are made to sound. E.g. Aerophones divide into 6 major categories – Single Reed, Double Reed, Edge (whistle), Free Reed, Free Aerophones, Blow Hole; Strings divide into Zithers, Lutes, Lyres, Harps. The Dewey system allows new categories to be made. 1 = idiophones, 11 = struck idiophones, 111 = struck idiophones hit directly. A piano is

Problems with H/S Observant imposed not culture emergent. Not logical – lots of instruments fall into several major categories, ignored acoustical properties. Ignores the folk view

Proposed Systems since 1914 Shaeffner 1932 system was based on medium – gas, solids (tensil, non-tensil, flexible); Galpin’s system, Hood’s based on Labannotation. Ethno-theories – aurally transmitted, natural and indigenous. Systems based on taxonomies and paradigms that are logical and symmetrical and which are specific to a culture

Ethno Theories – indigenous taxonomies Downward/upward Based on numbers of levels/steps Symmetry Paradigms/mandola – chinese, indian, javanese E.g. the Are’are culture of Pacific – based on solo/ensemble; capacity to play a melody (equihephatonic, seconds or thirds; degree of magic; blown or beaten, all expressed in bamboo morphology – can be put together in a tree diagram or imperfect paradigm.