Music Evolution

Many of the elaborate melody patterns of India, called ragas, are believed to have magical or curative powers. Ragas are traditionally played at specific hours or during specific seasons; it is believed that to depart from this timetable would be harmful to the performer and audience. In some tribal societies, music appears to serve as a special form of communication with supernatural beings, and the prominent use of music in modern Christian and Jewish services may be a remnant of such a purpose. Music has always held an important role in religious rituals.

III. Voice and Musical Instrument

Before mass media made it possible to share music worldwide, most musical cultures could be identified through several practices. These included the instruments used in musical performance, the structural components of the music such as scales, and recognizable performance practices such as bending notes in a certain way. The many technological developments in musical recording and delivery systems during the 20th century have helped to blur the boundaries between these cultures.

The voice is the most important element in the music of some cultures, while instrumental sounds are more important in others. According to some historians, Western music has steadily changed in this regard. Before the 17th century, vocal music was the predominant performance medium. Vocal and instrumental music coexisted on essentially an equal basis during the next century. Instrumental music has predominated during the 19th and 20th centuries.

A. Percussion
Instruments of the percussion family are undoubtedly found in the greatest number of musical cultures. Percussion instruments are referred to as membranophones if they produce sound through the vibrations of a stretched skin or other membrane. They are called idiophones if they produce sound through their natural resonance when struck, rubbed, plucked, or shaken. Drums are membranophones; hollowed logs, bells, gongs, xylophones, and pianos are examples of idiophones.


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