Sucked trumpets in prehistoric Europe and North America? : A technological, acoustical and experimental study

Proceeding volume: XIn the Hornbostel-Sachs system of musical instrument classification, the aerophones proper are presumed to be blown instruments. Several trumpets from northern Eurasia, North America and South America, however, have traditionally been played in the opposite way, by inhaling. These sucked trumpets, counting among lip-vibrated instruments, have been used for calling game, as well as playing melodies. This article presents prehistoric bone artefacts from Ajvide, Gotland, Sweden (c. 2900–2300 cal. BC) and Eva, Benton county, Tennessee (5700–4700 BC), and discusses whether they could be regarded as early examples of sucked trumpets. The tubular artefacts are made from swan (Cygnus sp.) and wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) ulnae and radii by cutting, scraping and filing the bones and fitting them together. Similar two-piece structure turns up in the traditional wing bone turkey calls used to this day by North American hunters. The copies of the artefacts produce a variety of clucking, yelping and trumpeting sounds, when played with the sucking technique. The two-piece structure could have an acoustic motive or meaning, as it enables to make the sound louder and to modify the tone colour. In der Klassifikation der Musikinstrumente nach Hornbostel-Sachs werden die Aerophone zu den Blasinstrumenten gezählt. Verschiedene Trompeten vom nördlichen Eurasien sowie Nord- und Südamerika wurden jedoch traditionell anders gespielt, nämlich durch Einziehen der Luft. Die durch Einziehen der Luft gespielten Trompeten wurden sowohl verwendet um Signale zu geben als auch um Melodien zu spielen. Dieser Beitrag behandelt prähistorische Knochenartefakte aus Ajvide, Gotland, Schweden (ca. 2900 – 2300 v. Chr.) und aus Eva, Benton County, Tennessee, USA (5700 – 4700 v. Chr.) und erörtert, ob sie als frühe Beispiele der durch Einziehen der Luft zu spielende Trompeten betrachtet werden können. Die röhrenförmigen Artefakte wurden aus Ellen und Speichen von Schwan (Cygnus sp.) und Truthahn (Meleagris gallopavo) hergestellt und zu einem Kompositgerät zusammengesetzt. Ähnliche, zweiteilige Instrumente werden bis heute von nordamerikanischen Jägern als Truthahnlockrufinstrument verwendet. Die Nachbauten dieser Aerophone ermöglichen eine Vielfalt von gluckenden, gellenden und trötenden Klängen zu erzeugen, wenn sie mit der Luft einziehenden Technik (‚sucking technique‘) gespielt werden.Peer reviewe

Pellet bells of late Iron Age Finland : local products and eastern imports

Non peer reviewe

Ancient Finnish bells and soundscapes

Tiivistelmä: Suomen rautakautiset kulkuset, kellot ja kellonmuotoiset riipukset - äänimaiseman arkeologiaaTiivistelmä: Suomen rautakautiset kulkuset, kellot ja kellonmuotoiset riipukset - äänimaiseman arkeologiaaTiivistelmä: Suomen rautakautiset kulkuset, kellot ja kellonmuotoiset riipukset - äänimaiseman arkeologiaaNon peer reviewe

Classifying iron age bells bells, pellet bells and bell pendants

Verlag Marie Leidorf,; Band 22; 978-3-89646-652-5; Arnd Adje Both, Ricardo Eichmann, Ellen Hickmann, Lars-Christian Koch (Hrsg.); Band 22; Proceeding volume: Band 22ZusammenfassungZusammenfassungZusammenfassungPeer reviewe

Introduction to the Volume : The Archaeology of Sound, Acoustics and Music

This book arose from an international symposium in Honour of Cajsa S. Lund that took place in 2016 at Linnaeus University’s Department of Music and Art, in Växjö, Sweden. The symposium was organized by Nordic music archaeologists Gjermund Kolltveit (Oslo) and Riitta Rainio (Helsinki), with Cornelius Holtorf and Karin Hallgren as local contributors at Linnaeus University. It was funded by the Swedish Research Council, the Nordic Culture Fund and Musik i Syd. The book is edited by Gjermund Kolltveit and Riitta Rainio, and published in Berlin by Ekho Verlag. The contributors are Cornelius Holtorf, Iain Morley, Catherine Homo-Lechner, Emiliano Li Castro, Rupert Till, Frances Gill, Annemies Tamboer, Graeme Lawson, Stefan Hagel, Timo Leisiö, Anders Söderberg, Dorota Popławska, Andrzej Janowski, Stanisław Mazurek, Simon Wyatt, Raquel Jiménez Pasalodos, Riitta Rainio, John Purser, Joachim Schween and Cajsa S. Lund.Non peer reviewe

Towards Cultural Echology

TB

Talking Rocks, Illusory Sounds and Projections of the Otherworld: Acoustics of Sacred Sites As a Magic Media in Shamanic Cultures

The archaeoacoustic team of the University of Helsinki has been studying how sacred sites in Northern Europe, used by shamanic cultures since prehistoric times, are home to remarkable acoustic properties. This chapter focuses on natural-site acoustics as a magic tool in ritual practices. Based on our acoustic measurements as well as experimental sound tests carried out during in situ studies of prehistoric and historic sacred sites in Finland, we discuss possible sound media (voice, instruments, noise), performing techniques and methods of sound production used at the sites. While the acoustic study of the sacred sites is at the core of our research, we also discuss the visual aspects and visual phenomena observed at the sites during our fieldwork. Our attempt to restore the sound culture of shamanism associated with the hosting sites and their sound potential profoundly rests on ethnographic research of the Finno-Ugric peoples, predominantly the Sámi and the Finns. The end result of this ethnographic and practical research study is our interpretation of the shamanic ritual practices as seen through the prism of the miraculous acoustic illusions and visual appearances created by the sacred sites.Peer reviewe

Animal Teeth in a Late Mesolithic Woman’s Grave, Reconstructed as a Rattling Ornament on a Baby Pouch

In one of the Late Mesolithic graves at Skateholm, Sweden, dating from 5500–4800 BC, were buried a woman together with a newborn baby. Altogether 32 perforated wild boar (Sus scrofa) teeth and traces of red ochre pigment were found in this grave as well. These were interpreted by us as a rattling ornament decorating a baby pouch of leather coloured with red ochre. We made an experimental reconstruction and found out that the teeth function well as a rattle when moving the carrier. The reconstruction currently is on display in the European Music Archaeology Project’s travelling exhibition on archaeological instruments.Peer reviewe

Chapter 9 Talking rocks, illusory sounds, and projections of the otherworld

This volume explores illusionism as a much larger phenomenon than optical illusion, magic shows, or special effects, as a vital part of how we perceive, process, and shape the world we live in. Considering different cultural practices characterised by illusionism, this book suggests a new approach to illusion via media theory. Each of the chapters analyses a specific kind of illusionistic practice and the concept of illusionism it entails in a given context, including philosophy, perception and cognitive theory, performance magic, occultism, optics, physiology, early cinema, cartomancy, spiritualism, architecture, shamanic rituals, and theoretical physics, to show the diversity of shapes that illusionism and illusions can take. The book provides detailed analyses of illusions within performance and ritual magic, philosophy, art history and psychology as well as a first approach to the study of illusions outside of these established fields. It aims to find ways of identifying and analysing a wider range of illusions in the humanities. This multidisciplinary and comprehensive volume will appeal to scholars and students with an interest in media and culture, theatre and performance, philosophy, sociology, politics and religion

Huilusävelmiä lampaan luusta

Keskiajalla huilut ja sen tapaiset puhallinsoittimet tehtiin pääasiassa lampaan tai vuohen luusta. Tällaisia sääri- tai jalkapöydänluusta tehtyjä soittimia on löydetty Pohjois- ja Länsi-Euroopasta kasapäin, muutamia myös Turun keskiaikaisista kaupunkikerrostumista. Marraskuussa 2014 pieni joukko musiikintutkijoita, arkeologeja ja soitinrakentajia kokoontui Helsingin yliopistoon rakentamaan kopioita suomalaisista löydöistä sekä puhaltamaan esiin kauan kadoksissa olleet sävelet ja sävelmät