HOW TO HOLD AND PLAY CASTANETS

It is important to take into account that each “shell” is a different tone.

The “shell” with the higher sound must be played with your right hand and the one with the lowest sound in your left hand.

Lesson 1

Lesson 2

Lesson 3

Some recommendations

It is very important o place the strings around your thumbs properly (not too tight, otherwise, there wouldn’t be any sound).

The right castanet is played with our little ring, middle and index finger. Besides, we have to press our middle, ring and little fingers at the same time when playing the left castanet.

It is also important to know that we must start with the right castanet and end with the left one. To get a good rythm, we have to know that the sound of the castanets is based on 5 different combinations.

- CA-RRE-TI-LLA: This element is played with your right hand. You should try not to move your wrist much. CA-RRE-TI-LLA has four beats:

- CA- With your little finger.

- RRE- With your ring finger.

- TI- With your middle finger.

- LLA- With your index finger.

- Tan: It’s know as the beat with your left hand coming after CA-RRE-TI-LLA.

PARTS OF THE CASTANETS

The main parts of the castanets are:

- The “shell” working as a loudspeaker.

- The “lips” which are beaten together to form the sound.

- The “cars” or the past which is joined by the strings.

- The “heart” or inner part of this instrument.

- There are two different tones when playing the instrument: The lowest is called “male” and the highest one “female”.

Watch it HERE

HOW TO HOLD AND PLAY THE TABALET

With this video, pupils will learn how to hold and play this instrument

(Watch a video about how to play this instrument HERE)

TABALET MATERIAL

The tabalet is madre of:

- Hollow trunk

- Wooden board

PARTS OF THE TABALET

The tabalet it’s a drum, which is usually played with two drumsticks.

It’s composed of a wooden cylinder (50cm high), wrapped in parchment which is tightened with strings and leather tants. This leather is taunted with strings and rings.

- Parchement

-Wooden cylinder

- Strings

- Drumsticks

( watch image)

HOW TO PLAY THE DOLÇAINA

With this video, the pupils will learn how this instrument is played.


Watch video HERE

PARTS

The cone tube has got three main parts:

- Pipe: It is the upper part, where the lead pipe and the pipe are fixed.

- Tube: It is the part between the lead pipe and the pipe.

- Bell: It’s the end of the instrument and works as a loudspeaker and has a hole on each

side.

MATERIALS

This music instrument is made of a very different types of wood.

In Castilla has got metal keys.

TYPE 1

TYPE 2

TYPE 3

MAINS SPANISH COMMINITIES WHERE THE “DOLÇAINA” IS PLAYED

Aragón

Is played with a drum.

In the Pyrenaic area it is Known as “trompa”.

Comunidad Valenciana

It is known as “Dolçaina” and the drum is called “Tabalet" and is specially famous at the “collas” which are groups of musicians who play this instrument in lots of cultural traditional events. (watch video HERE)

Castilla

in this region it is known as “pito” or “gaita”.

Murcia

They call it “pita” and as in most regions, it is usually played with the drums,

Cataluña

Known as “gralla” or less frequently as “Dolçaina”.

The name “Chirimia” is rarely used.

(Watch the map)

MAGDALENA'S PREVIEW

Magic night

Fire Casttle

Drinking time!

HOW TO HOLD AND PLAY THE GUITAR

By watching this videos, you can learn How to hold and play the guitar:

VIDEO 1
VIDEO 2
VIDEO 3

ENJOY!!!

TYPES OF GUITAR

There are two main types of guitar:

- The classical guitar.

- The “flamenco” guitar.

- The first type of guitar differs from the second one according to different size, wood and quality.

- The second is more percussive.

· The accustic guitar is the USA version of the Spanish one. Its strings are made of metal instead of tripe or nylor.

· The electric guitar: Also created in the USA, and whose sound is produced by electrical energy.

HISTORY OF THE GUITAR

Its origin is not clear because many similar instruments were played in the past.

There are two main hypotheses about its origin:

1- Greek-Roman culture.

2- The Muslim invasion in Spain.

(According to this , the guitar comes from the Greek-Roman culture However, many experts say that the Spanish guitar comes from the Arabic, which was introduced by Islam culture.)

Middle ages

“The Moorish” and “The Latin”.

The Moorish: oral and similar to the Arabian lute.

he Latin

The Latin: joining rings, a long neck and with a peg box similar to a violin’s.

16^thCentury

In this century, the Spanish musicians started to compose with this instrument,

17^th Century

Vicente Espinel introduced the fifth string to the instrument.

(Click here for more info)

18^th And 19^th Century

These centuries were really important for the instrument:

- Jacob Otto added a sixth string, the most significant change ever made.

- Francisco Tarrega introduced a new modern way to play the instrument.

20^th Century

Jose Ramírez and Narciso Yepes introduced four more strings. The second, played it for the first time in Berlin in 1964.

PARTS OF THE GUITAR

Parts of the guitar

The guitar has changed through the years. Apart from the number of strings, it has evolved according to the interpreter’s needs. The instrument is mainly made of wood, for example the rosewood from India or Brazil, fir or cedar from Canada, pine tree, cypress and ebony, depending on the type (classical or flamenco).

Basically, the guitar is composed of the resonance box, the neck, the bridge, the diapason the frets, the strings and the peg box. Some guitars hare got more than one diapason (up to 6 necks) or hare more than seven strings. (Whatch the guitar parts)

Box of resonance

The box of resonance is composed of the bottom, the cover and the rings. The bottom is made of rosewood whereas the cover can be made of pine tree wood, fir, cedar, or sometimes cypress. The cover has got a hole in the middle, the mouth, which is reinforced by seven thin wooden sticks, the shoots. These shoots are inside the guitar and set like a fan. The rings are two long narrow pieces made of rosewood, fire bent and attached at both upper and lower ends of the resonance box.

The neck

It is made of rosewood or cedar and it is composed of the peg box, the neck and the keel. In modern guitars, the pins are inside metal peg boxes. The peg box is in the end of the diapason. Modern peg boxes have got two vertical holes with the bones that are the small pieces around which the strings are rolled. The metallic pins are outside the peg box and are used to tune the instrument when the strings are tightened.

SPANISH GUITAR

It is string instrument, composed of a wooden box, a neck, on which the diapason and the frets are attached. The different sound of the guitar are produced in the frets. The guitar is played in numerous music stales such as “blues”, “rock” or “flamenco”. It is also played in genres such as “rancheras”, as well as in some folk styles. Similar instruments are the guitar and the bass guitar. This are is very popular in “mariachis”.

PARTS OF THE GUITAR

A LITTLE OF HISTORY

TYPES OF GUITAR

HOW TO HOLD AND PLAY THE GUITAR

CASTANETS

Castanets are a wooden instrument created by Fenicians 3000 years ago.

It was widely spread all around Europe in countries such as Yugoslavia and Croatia, but Spain has kept its use in the whole country, being as famous as other instruments like the guitar.

They are composed of two wooden pieces joined by a red string which is placed around the thumb.

PART OF THE CASTANETS

HOW TO HOLD AND PLAY

TABALET

Another instrument played in the Valencia Community is the “tabalet”.

This instrument is very light, so that the played can play it with just one hand.

Such a drum has got its origin in the middle ages and its size depends on the region where it is played. However, the sound is very similar everywhere.

In the old times, “tabalet” were decorated according to the owner’s preferences and played with a flute on religious events.

PARTS OF THE TABALET

MATERIAL

HOW TO HOLD AND PLAY

DOLÇAINA

The “Dolçaina” is one of the most typical wind instruments in some Mediterranean towns. It is similar to a flute and it’s origin comes from Mesopotamia in 3000 B.C..

This instruments was about to disappear during the Northern invasions, which introduced their own music instruments.

However, its use became common again with “El Al-Andalus”.

WHERE THE DOLÇAINA IS PLAYED?

PARTS

MATERIAL

HOW TO HOLD AND PLAY THE DOLÇAINA

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS

• Where the holidays of the magdalena are celebrated?

• Where the holidays of the sponge-cake are celebrated?

• How many days last?

• In what year they were declared, holidays of tourist interest?

• How many gaiatas are there in total?