Clap

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Clapping is a sound gesture in which the palms of the hands are clapped together. By clapping can his applause express (approval, applause), by a rhythmic clapping the clock with pieces of music or a dance specify and emphasize.

Info about the audio file
Clap: Sound recording of applause in a medium-sized theater.

Applause

"Well" while clapping the well

There are four types of clapping:

  • Flat hand clapping : The fingers of the slapping hand are struck straight into the palm of the other hand.
  • Palm clapping : a bowl is formed with both hands and these two bowls are hit against each other.
  • Backhand clapping : The fingers of the slapping hand are stretched and, turned around, slapped into the palm of the other hand.
  • Fountain clapping : The hand receiving the blow forms a "fountain", the blow is performed with the palm of the hand.

The ethology of clapping deals with the question of what roots clapping as an applause has in human phylogeny . The phylogenetic development of clapping as a demonstration of approval has hardly been studied.

Simple applause and rhythmic clapping have one thing in common: It is usually performed at the same time, creating a sense of community. Clapping applause can turn into rhythmic clapping. The line between applause and enjoying the common rhythm can then become blurred.

music

Women in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu clap the Kummi folk dance .

The most original rhythmic means of expression of humans are hitting with the hands or stamping with the feet. The hands can be clapped together or hit against the body. This was the starting point for the manufacture of percussion instruments. The rhythmic clapping of hands gave rise to the idiophone counter-strike ( rattling ) and the use of the entire body resulted in idiophones ( e.g. slit drums , bells ). Clapping hands and their replacement by clapping have always marked the rhythm of dances and are also used to drive away evil spirits with loud noises. In Shukla Yajurveda ("White Yajurveda"), an ancient Indian text written in Sanskrit , which may have been written towards the end of the 2nd millennium BC. BC, hand claps ( panighna ) are mentioned as a separate division of musicians in a large orchestra (Sanskrit talava ).

Today's percussive music includes not only the use of percussion instruments such as drums , drums or tambourines, but also rhythmic foot stomping, snapping fingers , beating the chest or clapping hands, which is collectively referred to as body percussion . (See also: handclap )

A special effect is created by clapping your flat or curved hands on a water surface. What children bathing everywhere try, adults in some regions of the South Pacific and in Africa have developed into a musical form. The water drum emerged from the water clapping . The rhythmic clapping on water is called ciblon in Indonesia . From this the name of a certain drumming technique and the shape of a drum ( kendang ciblon ) were derived, which is used in the classical orchestra ( gamelan ) on Java .

pop music

Clapping was a popular alternative to drums, especially in the 1960s and 1970s . In the time of the hippie movement, discreet clapping was preferred to dull and loud drums in many rock or folk songs, or at least served to complement them ( The Beatles : I Want to Hold Your Hand ). On the one hand, the sound of clapping matched the mood of the songs better and, on the other hand, rhythmic clapping animated the audience to join in ( The Beach Boys : Barbara Ann or John Lennon : Give Peace a Chance ). This creates a very special and peaceful atmosphere ( Herman's Hermits : I'm into something good ). In some cases, a clap mimicked with the drums has also been used to achieve the same effect on his audience ( The Knack : My Sharona ). An exception is the beginning of the piece of music We Will Rock You by the British band Queen . This creates a feeling of strength and energy, which is mainly generated by the mass of rhythmically clapping people. Rasta music originally consisted of singing, clapping hands and, for example, the rattle or the rhumba box.

Since the mid-1970s, rhythmic clapping in pop music has continued to decline. Very few examples can be found in the current music scene. An exception are the mood songs, which are often referred to as summer hits or party hits , which want to create an exuberant atmosphere among their listeners through the special rhythm (e.g. Sheryl Crow : All I Wanna Do ).

The sound of a pair of clapping hands (very rarely several) is a basic component of the instruments of a drum computer .

Gospel

The rhythm of church gospel was made clear by clapping hands due to the lack of rhythm instruments. The clapping of hands in gospel was more for worship than applause. The emphasis on the rhythm is achieved through percussive elements such as clapping hands and stamping feet. The best example is the world hit Oh Happy Day by the Edwin Hawkins Singers.

Alpine folk music

When Paschen , one in the volksmusik occurring style element, a combination of flat and hollow hand clap hands clapping is targeted.

Clapping games

In many cultures, gossip games - like Mary Mack , Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, baker's man, and Stella Ella Ola - form a fundamental part of children's folklore .

See also

literature

  1. Heinrich Zimmer : Old Indian life: The culture of the Vedic Aryans according to the Samḣitā. Weidmannsche Buchhandlung, Berlin 1879, p. 290 ( at Internet Archive )
  2. ^ Jaap Art : Music in Java. Its History, its Theory and its Technique. (2nd edition 1949) 3rd edition edited by Ernst L. Heins. Volume 1. Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague 1973, p. 294
  3. Udo Vieth / Michael Zimmermann, Rastas and Jamaica , 1981, p. 136
  4. cf. Article House
  5. ^ Hendrik F. Stander: The Clapping of Hands in The Early Church . In: Studia patristica , Vol. 26, 1993, pp. 75-80
  6. ^ Thérèse Smith, Let the Church Sing! , 2004, p. 94

Web links

Commons : Clapping  - collection of images, videos and audio files
Wiktionary: clap  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations
Wiktionary: Clap  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations