Gong
A gong is a premium - Idiophone, so a direct whipped, even -toned sound that serves as music or instrument signal. It consists of a circular metal plate which is hung vertically or horizontally swinging freely at the edge lies on the edges on a rack. The relevant for the tone vibrations take to the center. In contrast to this, the vibrations in the lower edge region is greatest for a suspended at the apex of the bell.
Etymology
According to the common etymology is gong onomatopoetisches a word from the Javanese language. This assessment seems a bit tight used because gong is also found in most other Austronesian languages. You also contradicts that Indonesians have a keen sense of a onomatopoeic language use and the syllable go- ng does not reflect the typical floating echo of a Javanese gongs hump. It is probably a later transfer to the Javanese. In another potentially as locally patriotic colored derivation is gong back to Thai khong. In a Chinese chronicle of 517 BC from the Zhou Dynasty gong meant the tone of the seven-point scale.
In the altjavanischen literature is not gong but Gubar for a Metallidiophon unknown form. It must have been for the war effort, so with appropriately loud sound a hanging gong. An actual onomatopoeia is the Balinese word girr for the sound of a gong; as a gong with a corresponding additional Balinese call their various gamelan ensembles.
The ancient Chinese characters gu ( " short sounding " ) of the Sui ( 581-618 ) and Tang Dynasty ( 618-907 ) designated skin drums in general, but no Idiophone. Tong Together with the sign ( "long sounding " ) was tong -gu for long lingering large skin drums with a metal body. Presumably meant the type of naqqaras boiler drums. From tong -gu, the Javanese word could have originated onomatopoeic transformed over -ng gu: gu would be the short putt on the skin drum and ng the metallic aftertaste.
Classification
Gongs come in various shapes and sizes, the two main categories are flat gongs and humpback gongs. The former consist of a flat, slightly curved or corrugated plate which is bent at the edge. Strongly curved, bowl or vessel- shaped plates are to metal drums, roughly U -shaped container of hot boiler gongs. The most important are as widespread in much of Southeast Asia hump gongs, it characterizes a distinct bulge in the middle. Humpback gongs are dependent on the diameter and in contrast to flat gongs produced in a certain pitch.
For Western orchestra is one of usually a large flat gong with an average of 100 inches in diameter, a bent narrow edge and indefinite pitch. The player beats him in the middle or something outside. Humpback gongs that belong in Southeast Asia to the melody leading instruments are struck in the middle. The head of the mallet is made of felt, wood, metal or plastic. Most gongs are rolled from a bronze alloy and hammered.
A gong gongs game combines several different pitches together in a frame structure. Cymbals Gongs resemble flat, but do not have a bent rim and only be beaten at the outer edge of or in pairs against each other.
History
The multi- emerging in the Old Testament instrument names selslim and meziltajim related well on cymbals. In the Song of Songs it is said in the NASB " I become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal " (1 Corinthians 13, 1 ), in other translations at this point " ore " with " Gong " is played. There were probably at least a gong -like percussion instrument in Ancient Greece. The Romans had hand bells, gongs and metal discs that hung on a line drawn through a central hole cord and served as signal instruments. In the 1st or 2nd century AD a 1877-1882 dated in the county of Wiltshire in southwest England excavated Roman Gong.
From pre-Christian times, the oldest Chinese kettle gongs come. An early grave find of a flat gongs from the Guangxi region is in the Han period (206 BC -220 AD) dated. It measures in the flat middle 22 inches in diameter and including the sloping edge 32 inches. At three drawn by the edge rings the bell was hung. Whether there was a relationship between the older kettle gongs and other types Gong, is not known. Other Chinese gongs were since the beginning of the 6th century in use and should, according to the Encyclopedia Tongdian ( completed 801) have been introduced from Central Asia. In Chinese sources emerge from the 9th century gongs under the collective term luo on a prefix characterizes a certain type Gong ( shaluo, zhengluo ) or refers to the region of origin. The prevalent in today's Chinese music flat gongs with narrow margins are already mapped shu in the treatise Yue ( 1100 ) and bear the names there zheng, tongzheng or tongluo.
The chime can be a complementary part of the drums in popular music, in the classical orchestra a hanging gong is played mostly modeled after the Chinese fanfare. Percussion ensembles generate effects with him. Flat gongs are concert or therapeutically used in the New Age music to produce a sustained tone carpet. Melodic or rhythmic music is not intended here.
In the Japanese ceremonial court music gagaku of the bowl-shaped gong Shoko is struck with two wooden sticks. He is related to the Chinese Gong zhenggu and remained as a descendant of the medieval Chinese gongs.
In northern China, there is the already mentioned in the 16th century, bowl-shaped gong Dangdang with 15 centimeters in diameter, which is played in villages of Hebei Province and suspended in a small frame with legs. Ten or more such gongs diatonic in a portable frame hot yunluo ( "cloud - gong "). Another small gong from southern China is on a string with hand-held, nine inches wide jiaoluo ( "call - gong " ), still less the Xiangzhan ( six inches, " resonance - cup " ) in Fujian Province.
Special curved gongs with a flat center to produce a stop after changing pitch. In the Peking Opera and other Chinese opera styles of Xiaoluo is a small gong of 22 centimeters in diameter, held with the fingertips on the edge and played with a wooden mallet, which increases the sound after the beating. The 30 centimeters slightly larger Gong Daluo hanging on a cord, his tone lowers after the beating. The two were in the 16-17. Century, first in the Kunqu opera in use.
For the Indian music flat gongs are typical, which are usually beaten in popular religious music, but no mogul gongs. This includes for example the plate-shaped Gong jagate ( kannada ) made of brass or iron with a wide, bent at right angles edge. It is used in Yakshagana dance theater in Karnataka. The diameter of the jagate is just under 20 inches, he is hanging on a string held by hand and beaten with a mallet ( kolu ), which consists of a wooden stick and a thick cotton head. Smaller versions are also called gant. A preform Indian flat gongs was the thick circular disc made of cast bronze percussion, which is known as semakkalam. Ghari ( Sanskrit) could also have referred to such a disc or have been for percussion instruments of all kinds, a functional concept. More Today's name for Indian flat gongs are ghariyaval ( hindi ), segandi ( tamil ) or seganta ( telugu ).
In the extreme north -east India hump gongs, cup -shaped gongs with scalloped edge and flat gongs are distributed with a beveled edge, the latter on the Mizo ( which gave its name to the state of Mizoram ) and the Garo of Meghalaya. The Garo use six different sizes, rang -called flat and convex gongs with diameters of 11-32 centimeters for making music and religious rituals. Possession of ranking is considered a sign of prosperity. All wrestled be held in the hand and struck with a mallet, they serve as a companion for the tube then drums, junk or natik. A low tone produces the ranking Agong, a high tone, the ranking bisa.
A rare flat gong in the Yemeni music, which consists of a copper plate, the sahn nuhasi. A similar flat plate ( Indonesian dulang ) in an embossed otherwise of humpback gongs musical environment use the Minangkabau of Sumatra in seat dances.
As signal instruments are gongs among others in the school ( indicator of teaching beginning or end ), the boxing match (display of round beginning or end ), before loudspeaker announcements in train stations or as a time signal on radio and television for use. In the Catholic liturgy they are a sign of attention to the elevation in the celebration.
Humpback gongs
The main application area for humpback gongs located in Southeast Asia. Individual gong or gong games that consist of several adjacent or hanging gongs and are used as melody instruments, are characteristic of the Hsaing - waing ensembles in the Burmese music, for the Thai Piphat Orchestra, the Cambodian Pinpeat and Mohori Orchestra, for some Indonesian islands such as Sumatra and Kalimantan, especially for the Javanese and Balinese gamelan music and the style kulintang the Philippine Islands. The western boundary of this largely cohesive zone extends over Myanmar addition to the Tibeto-Burman language groups of northeastern India. There are cross-border of Manipur and Mizoram to Myanmar and in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of large single Gong dahpi and a set of three gongs spread Dapu. The Thado ( Thadou ) of Manipur such gongs are a part of the bride price.
Maung generally hot hump gongs in the Burmese music. Royal representation instruments were formerly ngwe - maung (silver gong) and shwe - maung (Golden Gong ). A circle with 21 tuned gongs hump called kyi kyi waing or naung. Another Burmese gong circle, maung zaing, consists of 18 or 19 gongs divided into five separate wooden frame, one above the other.
For Thai Piphat Orchestra, the circular Gong game khong wong yai is one of 16 humpback gongs, whose diameter increases from 12 to 16 centimeters and the slightly higher pitched gong circle wonk lek khong from 18 smaller hump gongs. The player takes both times in the center square, it uses two mallets with disc-shaped heads. The diameters are 125 centimeters in the former and about 102 centimeters with the smaller instrument. Outside of classical music there are in Thailand as the individual gongs pan ( ปาน ) or phan ( พาน ) from Northern Thailand, which has a smaller impact hump ( pentju ). He played along with drums and pair pool during funerals and temple festivals. In the northeastern part of the country Isaan is the name of Gong phang has ( พัง ฮา ด ). It measures about 40 inches in diameter and is struck with a padded mallet. The gong mong ( ฆ้อง โมง ) is a large gong, which is played during funeral ceremonies. A gong circle in with the Thai related music of Laos ( khlong vong ) has at least eleven humpback gongs.
In the Southeast Asian mainland, the area of distribution of the humpback gongs enough to the east to Thailand, Laos and Cambodia to the minority peoples of Vietnam's highlands. The nordvietnamesichen Muong make gongs represents the most valuable dowry of the bride and correspond to the exchange value of a water buffalo or a cow. Gongs come in approximately the same area as houses on stilts, while the Vietnamese and the Chinese majority population traditionally built brick houses on the ground.
The music of the Malay Peninsula in the south is dominated by Thai, Indonesian and influences of Muslim immigrants from the countries of the Near and Middle East. Gongs mark in most traditional ensembles the clock. The largest Malay Gong is the pairwise perpendicular suspended tawak (also tetawak ). The Gong series of six horizontally suspended gongs hump canang Wayang Kulit accompanied theatrical performances. Even in dances of the Islamic culture as the Zapin comes a gong before.
In the Indonesian Gamelan, classical music on Java, Bali and Lombok, including rows of horizontal hump gongs along with metallophonic the leading melody instruments. The Javanese Bonang is a frame of a double row hump gongs suspended on two ropes in a wooden frame. The counterpart in the Balinese music is called Reyong. In the older Balinese Gamelan Gong Gede a Reyong comes with four to six gongs in a double row used in today known Gamelan Gong Kebyar has the same instrument twelve gongs. A similar double row hump gongs Minangkabau in Sumatra, called talempong or caklempong also consists of twelve gongs mounted in a table frame in contrast to the other Indonesian Gong series and not sitting on the ground, but are played while standing. In folk theater Randai play a talempong, a bamboo flute longitudinal Saluang and a questionable celled drum Gandang katindik together. The simpler form calempung ( penyelalu ), consisting of five humpback gongs, which rest on two, stretched over a wooden box cords, play two on the bottom sitting opposite musicians in the province of Riau. The repertoire is the same as when there xylophone Gambang with five wood panels.
Agung referred to in various parts of the Philippines, Indonesia, on Kalimantan and the Malaysian peninsula of different sizes, vertically suspended gongs hump with wide margins and with up to 60 centimeters in diameter. The smallest Agung with 27 centimeters in diameter and 4 inches border has the Tiruay ethnic group in Mindanao. The gong ageng marked in the Javanese and Balinese music and in the music of Lombok beginning and end of the musical units.
The kempur is one of two strings in a wooden frame hanging hump Gong from 25 to 45 centimeters in diameter, Balinese Gamelan, its counterpart on Java and Lombok means kempul.
Kulintang refers to a series of deep hump-gong (or kettle gongs) whose distribution area is located in the same orchestra, in the southern Philippines.
Kettle gongs
Southeast Asian bronze gong can have a ritual meaning and represent a symbol of wealth. They are in this respect in a relationship with the East Asian kettle gongs of the Dong Son culture from about the middle of the first millennium BC, which are also called " bronze drums " because of its external form. The term " bronze drums " translated for the first time JJM de Groot 1898 from the Chinese, it is an unfortunate choice, since it does not concern Membranophones the kettle gongs according to the Hornbostel -Sachs classification. Curt Sachs therefore led, in 1915, instead, the term " boiler Gong " one. Robert von Heine-Geldern wanted to stay for the 1932 occurring from Indonesia to Mongolia cult objects by name " metal drums " as they have of the external shape of a resemblance to skin drums. Instead of the eardrum is located on the body, a usually decorated with ornate engravings bronze plate. From a star in the center of the plate go from geometric patterns, in between, there are representations of Seelenschiffchen (with whom the deceased go to the afterlife ), houses, mammals, fish and humans.
Similar bronze drums are among the Karen in the Thai- Myanmar border region today under the name hPa si ( " frog drum " ) in use. They have the magic ability for making rain. On the outer edge like sitting at the Dong Son drums, a number of frog figures, they generally mean that the drum is thought of as "male", in contrast to the "female" drum without frogs. In its function as ritual objects, they also include hourglass bronze drums moko ostindonesischen the island of Alor. Even in the remote mountainous areas in the North West of Vietnam hold minority peoples still bronze drums in honor. The largest collection of Vietnamese bronze drums houses the Ha Giang Museum of History in Hanoi.
Chinese kettle gongs ( tong gu ) of bronze are among some minority peoples such as the Miao, Yao and Zhuang widespread in the south of the country. Their diameter is usually between 50 and 100 centimeters. At the opposite edges of two handles are attached to secure a strap thereto. For decoration of the plate also usually include a zwölfstrahliger star in the center and geometric patterns in several concentric circles. Four to six small frogs are distributed symmetrically around the edge. The oldest boiler Gong in southern China dates back to the 6th century BC and was found in the province of Yunnan. It is decorated with an eight -pointed star, but bears no attached figures in the margin. A particularly small boiler drum was discovered in 1961 in northern Thailand, its height is 29 inches, with a top diameter of 44 centimeters.
The first bronze drum brought the naturalist Georg Eberhard Rumpf in 1682 to Europe and gave them to Cosimo III. de ' Medici, the Grand Duke of Tuscany. Hull also described the first " Moon of Pejeng ", the largest known bronze drum. It is named after its place of installation in a small building in the Tempelhof district of Pejeng in Gianyar, Bali. Their diameter is 1.6 meters and its height 1.86 meters.
A borderline case between a idiophones (even sounding ) Boiler Gong and, excited by a vibrating diaphragm drum is the large circular copper kettle mizhavu from South India, which stretched over a tiny opening fur is beaten with the hands.