Handpan
Handpan is the name for a group of musical instruments that arose as a reaction to the great interest worldwide in the Hang , a hand-played brass sound instrument that the Swiss PANArt Hangbau AG , Bern, developed in 2000 and built until 2013.
While the term is used in English in the neuter , the feminine ( handpan ) predominates in German-speaking countries . However, the neuter ( the handpan ) also occurs.
history
The term handpan appeared for the first time in autumn 2007 on the website of the American steelpan maker Pantheon Steel , where he announced his own instrument that saw itself as an alternative to the hang . The name was then taken up in the Hang Music forum, which no longer exists today. The handpan.org internet forum was created in 2009 as the successor to this forum. So the expression found widespread use. A new product name for these instruments had become necessary because PANArt had registered the name Hang as a trademark for musical instruments, so that it was not available to designate instruments from other manufacturers.
The term handpan has been discussed repeatedly. PANArt, for example, expressly rejects the term used to describe its instrument Hang. A number of handpan builders and players, especially from non-English speaking countries, repeatedly expressed themselves critically. More recently, some use the term pantam , an expression that was originally a name for the slope in Israel .
The first five instruments that are counted as handpans were the Caisa from Kaisos Steel Drums (Germany, 2007), the BELLs from BEllart (Spain, 2009), the Halo from Pantheon Steel (USA, 2009), the Spacedrum from Metal Sounds (France, 2009) and the Battiloro by Battiloro Handpan (Italy, 2013). Today there are more than 150 handpan makers whose instruments differ considerably in terms of material, manufacturing process, quality and sound.
construction
Most handpans take over the basic shape from the slope, consisting of two hemispherical segments glued together, a central clay field and a ring of at least seven clay fields on the top and an opening on the bottom. These handpans differ in a number of properties not only from the original slope, but also from each other.
Different types of sheet steel, sheet thicknesses and manufacturing processes are used for the raw forms.
The number, size and shape of the clay fields as well as the techniques used to shape the clay fields also differ. As with the slope, the tone fields of most handpans have an inwardly directed vault in the middle of the tone fields, for which the term dimple (bulge) has become established in English . Again, there are significant variations in size and shape. While the Hang's central clay field, called the thing , has an outwardly curved dome, the handpans often also have central clay fields with an inwardly directed dimple analogous to the clay fields in a circle. Some handpans deviate even more clearly from the slope layout, arrange a larger number of tones differently on the top, or have additional tone fields on the bottom (bottom notes).
The round opening on the underside is called the Hang Gu and has an inward-facing neck which, together with the volume of air in the hollow body, forms a Helmholtz resonator that is excited at the dome. Handpans, on the other hand, often do without the neck in the opening. The Helmholtz resonance cannot be excited or only weakly excited, especially if the outward-facing dome is missing on the top.
As with the slope, three partials ( fundamental , octave and duodecime ) are usually tuned into the individual tone fields . The tuning of the tone fields is influenced by their shape and many other parameters. They differ from tuner to tuner. Therefore the sound character of the instruments varies significantly.
The central tone field is the lowest tone. The other notes are arranged in a circle around it. The order of the tones follows a zigzag pattern (see illustration). Like the first generation of the Hang, handpans are offered in many different scales. There are not only diatonic scales, but also scales with larger intervals, some ethnomusical, but also scales freely discovered by the respective tuner for use with his instruments.
Style of play
The handpan is placed horizontally on the lap. Alternatively, you can hold it vertically so that you can reach the Gu with one hand. Some players use multiple handpans at the same time. The second or third instrument is placed on handpan stands.
The handpan is played with the hands. The sound fields can be stimulated with fingers and thumbs, but also with blows with the balls of the thumbs. Depending on where you hit the tone field, certain partials can be emphasized. The areas between the tone fields are used to set percussive accents.
Differentiation from the steel tongue drums
Handpans are to be distinguished from steel tongue drums . This is a similar instrument to a handpan, but it is noticeably different from it. With a tongue drum, the sound fields are cut or lasered into the instrument, while with a handpan the sound field is created with a hammer. Tongue drums are made of thicker steel, smaller, but also heavier. Handpans are fuller and louder in sound, while steel tongue drums are quieter but resonate longer.
Digital handpans
In recent years there have been various initiatives to develop digital handpans based on samples, none of which have been successful so far. In June 2015 the company Ovalsound SL started a Kickstarter campaign for the “first digital handpan”. However, after delivery of the first instruments, it had to file for bankruptcy in December 2017.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Handpan Pantheonsteel.com of October 16, 2007 (English). Archived from web.archive.org. Last accessed on December 28, 2017
- ^ New hand pan development Hang-Music Forum from November 12, 2007 (English). Archived from web.archive.org. Last accessed on December 28, 2017
- ↑ Internet forum handpan.org . Last accessed on January 28, 2018
- ^ WIPO Global Brand Database . International Registration Number 969295
- ^ Announcement from PANArt - May 19, 2010 . Last accessed on April 2, 2018.
- ↑ The Hang Lexicon: Pantam
- ↑ Meet the family handpan.org (English). Last accessed on December 28th
- ↑ World map of the Handpan farmers
- ↑ What Are “Booty Taps”? - HandPan Terminology Hangdrumsandhandpans.com (English). Last accessed on December 28, 2017
- ↑ End of the year, end of the cycle Kickstarter.com (English). Last accessed on January 28, 2018