Suona
Suona ( Chinese 唢呐 , pinyin suǒ nà ) is a conical double-reed instrument that is played in Chinese music .
Design
The suona consists of a conical wooden tube like the oboe , but has a mouthpiece and a removable bell , each made of copper or brass. A double reed behind the mouthpiece provides the characteristic high, penetrating sound.
The instrument exists in several sizes. Since the beginning of the 20th century, modern versions have been developed in China that come closer to the western oboe and, for example, allow the playing of chromatic notes. Examples of this are the zhongyin- , the cizhongyin- and the diyin-suona , which are used in particular in the woodwind groups of modern Chinese large orchestras, while most folk music groups continue to use the traditional version.
Style of play
The suona is an important instrument in northern Chinese folk music; It is traditionally particularly popular in Shandong Province . Together with the mouth organ sheng , drums, gongs and other instruments, the suona belongs to the Chuida or Guchui ensemble, which plays particularly at weddings and funerals. The instrument also plays a certain role in military music.
In addition, the suona is also used outside of China to a limited extent. Immigrants brought it to Cuba , for example , where it is still used today as corneta china, an integral part of the conga music of the carnival, which is otherwise made exclusively from percussion instruments in comparsa groups , and which has its stronghold in Santiago de Cuba . The American jazz musician Dewey Redman also occasionally used suona for his performances .
Origin and Distribution
The suona is not originally a Chinese instrument, but was adopted from the music of Central Asia. It belongs to the oboe type surnai , which originated in the Persian region and from which the name is derived. These instruments have spread widely in Asia with the spread of Islam. The suona is therefore related to the Indian shehnai and the hne of the southern neighboring country Myanmar. Comparable wind instruments are known from Korea ( taepyeongso ) and Vietnam ( kèn bầu ).
An instrument similar to the suona is depicted on a religious monument from the 3rd to 5th centuries on the Silk Road in Xinjiang . In other illustrations from this period, for example in Shandong Province , the suona appears as an instrument of military music; it is often played by riders. In Chinese literature , however, the instrument did not appear before the Ming period (1368–1644).
literature
- Arthur Christopher Moule: A List of the Musical and Other Sound-Producing Instruments of the Chinese. (Shanghai 1908) ( Source Materials in Ethnomusicology, Vol. 3) Frits Knuf Publishers, Buren 1989, pp. 87f
- Alan R. Thrasher: Suona. In: Grove Music Online, 2001
- Min Wang: The Musical and Cultural Meanings of Shandong Guchuiyue from the People's Republic of China . (Dissertation) Kent State University, 2001
