China, Japan, and India

Music of Asia

Similarities:

• Music is tied closely to dance and drama

• Opera is important

• Instruments• The Zither

• The Lute

• The Oboe

• The Flute

• Drums

• Gongs

China and Japan

• An Stringed instrument played by plucking the strings with fingers of both hands

• Called “The Ch’in” in China

• Called “The Koto” in Japan- Larger and only has 13 strings

The Zither

• Stringed instrument similar to a guitar with 15 strings- used in many different cultures

• Predominant in Chinese and Japanese Music

The Lute

• Asian Music goes back over 3,000 years

• Many different styles of music due to the age of the countries

• Japanese dramatic music is important in Puppet theaters

Music

Made up of 3 parts played by different instruments

The Drone- Played by the Tambura

3 ½ to 5 feet tall!

The Melody- Played by the sitar, sarod, and/or flute

The Rhythm- Played by the Tabla

Music of India

With the person next to you, please answer the following questions in your packet

1) How many different parts is Indian Music made up of?

2) What is a Raga?

3) What is a Tala?

4) Which instrument plays the drone, and explain what a drone is

5) How is the tala different to western (American) rhythms?

Test your understanding so far