HISTOY OF MUSIC
There is evolution and innovation in every sphere of live. Human beings take an existing idea and improve it or take an idea as a source of inspiration to make something new.
Music has also evolve thanks to musicians who have made improvements to what came before them or have composed in a different way to create new music. This has resulted in fantastic works that have gone down in history.
The history of music is divided into periods, which are normally linked to the great changes that took place in society
PREHISTORIC MUSIC
Prehistoric music (previously primitive music) is a term in the history of music for all music produced in preliterate cultures, beginning somewhere in very late geological history. Prehistoric music is followed by ancient music in different parts of the world, but still exists in isolated areas. However, it is more common to refer to the "prehistoric" music which still survives as indigenous or traditional music. Prehistoric music is studied alongside other periods within music archaeology.
Since the human being exists and has been able to communicate, there has been music. The exact origins of the music are unknown but it is certain that the human voice first and the body percussion or the elements of the environment afterwards were the first musical manifestations although they did not leave archaeological tracks.
Another possible origin of music is motherese, the vocal-gestural communication between mothers and infants. This form of communication involves melodic, rhythmic and movement patterns as well as the communication of intention and meaning, and in this sense is similar to music.
Primitives found music in nature and in their own voice, manifesting their emotions and feelings through sound. Some theories suggest that music seems to be associated with language, with syllabic repetitions and guttural effects. The first linguistic expressions and the modulation of the voice constitute primitive music.
Functions of music
Music has always been linked to human beings and associated with intellectual, biological and social functions, such as mating and collective work as well as supernatural rituals.
The preserved archaeological remains show that the music was linked to hunting (for example, luring animals), war rituals, shamanistic practice and parties in which they danced around the fire. Probably these dances imitated the rhythms and movements of the animals. Music played a role in "demonstrating fitness to mate". Music and dancing were to demonstrate the physical and psychological fitness of the singing and dancing individual to the prospective mates.
Primitive man associated life and death with movement and sound. Singing and dancing become symbols of life, while stillness and silence are symbols of death.
of songs and dances of the indigenous people that have preserved a way of life similar to our ancestors until nowadays.
Therefore, we know quite a lot about the music of primitive peoples, but have so far failed to determine exactly when and for what purpose it was originally created.
Tribal chants
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZVlbrPaccY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cATZe_jlc9g
Women dancing around a man, Cogull cave, Lérida.
At the beginning the human being discovers the sound possibilities of his voice and the different materials that surround him in nature, but little by little he begins to investigate and deliberately elaborate musical instruments.
These musical instruments can be divided into different groups: idiophones, aerophones, membranophones and chordophones
Idiophones
Musical instruments in which a resonant material such as wood, metal or stone vibrates to produce the sound. The sound is generated by striking, rubbing, plucking, or blowing the material of the instrument itself. They are the most basic instruments.
One example of this kind of instrument are the scrapers. They are typically formed by chipping the end of a flake of stone in order to create one sharp side and to keep the rest of the sides dull to facilitate grasping it.
Scrapers are very common tools and their distribution is practically worldwide. Its simplicity suggests that it is one of the first invented tools. Its function was to "scrape" bones, skins, woods, materials that when rubbed by the scraper would produce different types of sounds.
Sometimes, these scrapers had a hole in which they put a rope (made of vegetable fiber) tied and when it was turned very fast, producing a whistling sound. Depending on the intensity with which it was turned and the extension of the rope, the instrument had a different sound.
Scraper
Rattle
Rattle stick
The most important collection of ideophones of the Upper Paleolithic is the one in Mézine, Ukraine, where a number of percussion instruments were found, like a xylophone whose plates consisted of a set of mammoth bones decorated with geometric motifs and lines.
After a thorough study, the traces of having been repeatedly struck with reindeer antlers, like drumsticks, were observed. Castanets and two maracas of ivory were also found.
Aerophones
Musical instruments in which a vibrating mass of air produces sound. Withing the aerophones are flutes and whistles that appear in the Paleolithic.
In 2009, a flute made of bird bones and ivory of mammoth tusks was found in 'Geissenkloesterle' cave in southern Germany. This archaeological site is 43,000 years old and is one of the places where there have been more discoveries of musical instruments as well as personal ornaments, figurative art and mythical objects. The researchers deep studied the flute and, although they have used radiocarbon dating, they have not been able to say its exact chronology.
Aerophone instruments such as flutes and whistles from 3 to 7 holes have been found from all over Europe. They are made with the bones of birds, bear or reindeer and some of them are decorated with carved drawings.
They also used the seashells to blow for them. These instruments has a ceremonial function in many parts of the world, even today it is used for this purpose.
Neanderthal flute
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHy9FOblt7Y
Wind instruments- Neandertals
Membranophones
Musical instruments in which a stretched membrane vibrates to produce sound. This group includes drums.
The drums, which are part of the membranophones, are from the Neolithic. The remains of the skin that tanned for clothes were used to cover hollow trunks and vessels and they obtained drums. Practically there are no instruments with membranes because the materials from which they were made, being organic, decompose.
Chordophones
Musical instruments in which a stretched, vibrating string produces sound.
In the Neolithic, besides using the bows for hunting, we know that they also used them to produce sounds as they are shown in some cave paintings.
They discovered that depending on the tension of the string and the size of the bow, it emitted different sounds.
Finally, another interesting aspect to consider is the acoustic properties of the caves, which provided optimal sound conditions to hold ceremonies.
