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Art
& Culture Music
Musical
Instruments
The
earliest musical instruments were probably discovered when someone
blew on a blade of grass, plucked on a sinew from an animal, or
knocked two rocks together.
From
those early experiments, an amazing array of instruments was born.
Strings, keyboard, wind, percussion - all developed to accompany
the beat of the culture they fit. Some of the older forms are
still recognizable in the instruments played today, but some ancient
musical instruments fell out of use when their civilizations disappeared.
Check
out top resources to popular, unusual, and downright strange musical
instruments across time and the Web.
Yale
University Collection of Musical Instruments
- Get a college education at this site's major 1,000-piece collection
with online exhibits, detailed descriptions and a sound gallery
of the collection concert series. RealPlayer required.
Instrument
Encyclopedia
- Not the fanciest site, the information here is the star of the
show. You'll find brief descriptions, complete with photos of
instruments from around the world. The index is searchable by
category or by geography via an interactive map.
Learn
About Musical Instruments - This delightful offering provides
a kid-friendly introduction to the world of musical instruments.
Easy to follow descriptions and history of strings, woodwinds,
brass and percussion instruments. Audio clips let the sounds be
heard...
Guide
to Medieval and Renaissance Instruments - Musical forms
that are always popular, the starkly simple chants and more elaborate
melodies that amused Europeans in the "dark" days of
the Middle Ages called for instruments that could produce a wide
range of notes. An illustrated, in-depth look at over 30 instruments
including the harp, bagpipes, organetto, pipe and tabor, the recorder,
with audio files and related links.
Arab
Musical Instruments - Whether you were born into this
culture or discovered the exotic beauty of the sounds inspired
by Northern Africa's Arab nations, you'll be thrilled at the selection
of information at this site. Excellent overview of the 'ud, tablah,
qanun, nay, mijwiz, buzuq, and daff with illustrated thumbnail
histories.
China
Musical Instruments - Historical timeline, plus 26 traditional
Chinese instruments via clickable thumbnails that lead to larger
images and brief descriptions of the erhu, sheng, sanxian gong,
the souna and more.
The
Violin
- Elegantly presented background info divided into categories,
including playing techniques, its history and manufacture. From
ThinkQuest.
Classic
Guitar Homepage - One-stop browsing for facts, history
& lessons available in classic guitar including classical
& flamenco midi files, and a link directory to other classical
guitarists and related information.
Also
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