Tarka (flute)
The Tarka ( Quechua, Aymara: tharqa " rough, hoarse voice ") is a Aerophon, which belongs to the group of true woodwind instruments, which in turn is assigned to the family of flutes. Nowadays, the Tarka is usually produced from wood. The Tarka is played (Spanish for troops Tropas ) of up to 40 Tarkas usually in ensembles. Relatives of the Tarka are Quena, pan flute and recorder.
Construction
The Tarka is similar to the recorder, both consisting of a mouthpiece and a sound tube (middle and bottom nozzles ), but these are not separable in the Tarka. The parts form a tube, the bore of the head to the foot piece is cylindrical. Compared to the modern recorders, Tarka is built rectangular and usually features six equidistant finger-holes. In the mouth piece of the Tarka are as in the recorder, a labium, a Anblaskante and a beak to meet, with the last at the Tarka has a curved shape and is not grown but the fact of the square mouthpiece or tube.
Families and mood
There is a wide variety of Tarkas, which are divided into families and include two or more measures of length. The length measurements are in centimeters. calculated, so that the instrument maker can specify the length of the main instrument in the Tropa. The families differ in material ( rosewood, mahogany, etc.), design engineering, drilling, origin and timbre.
The 5 major families are:
- Ullara
- Kurahuara
- Salinas
- Potosina
- Wall Para
The length or size of the Tarkas is in each family, but the proportion between the different lengths remains. Today, we know three lengths:
- Taika 1 X
- Mala 2/3 X
- Ch'ili 1/2 X
The Taika is twice as long as the Ch'ili and thus struck down one octave, the length of the Mala is equivalent to two -thirds of the Taika, so it sounds a perfect fifth higher. The most common tunings are A, C, and D sharp.
However, the length measurements are only approximate, it also results in a slightly different mood. So there are not two identical flutes. Since each Tarka has a small deviation in cent range, and each Tarka produces a characteristic single tone, which contributes to the expansion of tonality a Tropa. This is true for this reason not always coincide with the equal- tempered scale standardized in the West.
Tonality
The Tarka you can play with some restrictions on a diatonic scale, in practice, but only uses a pentatonic scale, so do not come to some handle combinations.
The major tonality of the pentatonic scale a Tarka is derived from playing with open finger holes, the minor tonality closed from playing with the first two finger holes. With a tuned in C-Dur/a-Moll Tarka example, the sounds CDEGA be played.
Origin and function
The Tarka is particularly common in the Andean region of Peru and Bolivia, the exact origin is disputed. The oldest known evidence of Knochentarkas are about 7000 years old.
The Tarka was and is used for large festivals, rituals and ceremonies of large Tropas, also the Tarka is attributed to a mystical function, namely that of means of communication between the human world ( Kay Pacha ) and the gods ( Hannaq Pacha ).