Download Instrumentation Lyrics orLanguage Tempo Dynamics Melody Rhythm

Instrumentation
The combination of instruments used by musicians who play a certain style
of music, i.e., a common instrumentation in a modern gospel choir is
organ, piano, electric bass, drums, and vocals. The instruments that
normally play the melody and take solos are often referred to as the lead
instruments. The underlying rhythm and chord instruments are often called
backup instruments. Instrumentation can be used to identify a certain
musical style. By listening to the timbre and tone color of individual
instruments and ensembles, we can also compare and contrast traditional
musical styles.
Lyrics orLanguage
Each language has its own rhythms, which contribute to how music
sounds. The lyrics often tell stories; language (e.g., English, French,
Vietnamese) tells us about the culture and the way people choose to
communicate with members of their folk groups. The rhythm of the melody
is often determined by the rhythm of the words. Periods of sound or silence
in a melody are influenced by lyrics and language.
Tempo
The speed of the beat. Tempo guides how fast the piece of music will be
played and is often constant throughout a piece of music. The tempo is
usually set by the group leader or drummer and maintained by everyone in
the ensemble. Tempo is one element of music that can be used to enhance
the expressive qualities of music.
Dynamics
The degree of intensity (sound quality and expressiveness) and loudness.
Dynamics often change within a piece of music. Musicians use dynamics to
enhance the expressive qualities of music and get the desired response
from the listener. The deliberate use of silent intervals is also an important
component of dynamics.
Melody
The pattern of pitches and rhythm that creates a tune or song. In folk
music styles, the lead instrument or vocalist most often plays the melody.
Others often play or sing complementary lines or chords called harmony.
Rhythm
The metered pattern of notes. In a single piece of music, there may be
many different rhythmic patterns. Rhythm seems similar to tempo, but
tempo generally remains constant throughout a selection while rhythm
may change within a piece of music. Rhythm deals with the steady beat of
the music, usually moving in groups of two or three and how patterns of
notes vary in relation to the steady beat, as in syncopation.
The Russian balalaika is perhaps the most well-known Russian musical instrument.
Constructed of spruce or birch (Russiaʼs national tree), the balalaika is a three-sided and,
typically, three-stringed chordophone. According to organologists, or musical instrument
specialists, the balalaikaʼs predecessor is the early two- or three-stringed lute widespread
among the late nineteenth-century Russian peasantry as a solo instrument or a dance
accompaniment.
Vasily Andreyev (1861–1918), a Russian nobleman and violinist, is associated with the
balalaikaʼs rise to prominence. Andreyevʼs work in late nineteenth-century Russia may be seen
as following the onset of a nationalistic movement that swept across Europe prior to World
War I. Nationalism is an intense feeling of patriotic pride for oneʼs homeland. Andreyev
assisted the instrument makers who developed the balalaika in a range of sizes with
standardized tunings during the 1880s. The balalaika expanded to an entire family of
instruments, with a range of seven different registers. From the highest pitched to the lowest,
these balalaikas include: the prima, the second, the alto, the bass, and the contrabass/double
bass. Subsequent innovation resulted in a new musical ensemble: a giant balalaika orchestra.
Public concerts of the orchestra, discussed below, increased the exposure of the balalaika
within Russia and abroad.
The Great Russian Imperial Orchestra, founded in 1897 with Andreyev as conductor,
subsequently included other Russian folk instruments such as the domra, gusli, svirl, and
zhaleika. This large ensemble, composed of both peasants and professionals, toured Russia,
the rest of Europe, and beyond from 1912 to 1918, bringing an eclectic mix of folk music to a
wider audience. Andreyev enjoyed phenomenal success with audiences, leading performances
of lushly harmonized folk tunes in lavish settings. Government-sponsored performances of
Russian folk music bolstered patriotism, building national pride in a country populated with
diverse ethnic groups. Soon, balalaika orchestras came to symbolize the Soviet Union, whose
centralized government promoted them in all the republics. Andreyev was both celebrated
and criticized for this work.
Due to Andreyevʼs efforts, the balalaika, a folk instrument, was introduced into the orchestra
and thereby became a serious instrument for study, leading to further refinements, playing
techniques, and musical repertoire. Russian composer Tchaikovsky composed
instrumentation for the balalaika, and “The Birch Tree” folk song is found within one of his
orchestral compositions. An immense musical repertoire exists for the balalaika today.
While Andreyev was credited for bringing “folk music” to the masses and folk-like music to
the conservatory, his efforts were condemned by some. Political commentators, especially the
right wing, despised the cultural exaltation of the peasant ethos. Members of the cultural elite
detested the rendering of the classics on “primitive village instruments.” They disparaged the
standardization of Russian culture, which had long been exalted in the conservatory model
that often promoted the Westernized performance canon and musical ensembles.
Artistic outcomes of this conflict remain in play today. Partially inspired by Andreyevʼs
example, balalaika orchestras sprung up in other parts of the world, many composed of
Russian émigrés. The popularization of Russian musical and material culture is evidenced by
the existence of modern-day balalaika orchestras. There are currently more than ten balalaika
orchestras in the United States, one of which is based in Tucson, Arizona. Now a Russian
icon, the balalaika exemplifies a case in which history and culture can be examined through
the study of a folk musical instrument.