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Medieval Music

 Some of the medieval instruments were;

     1)   A Medieval drum kit

Returning crusaders from Europe brought many musical instruments with them. These nakers or small drums were modeled on the Middle Eastern naqqara, a kind of Kettledrum with a curved body. These ‘nakers’ were hung on a belt, usually in pairs and played to accompany dance music.

2)   Bagpipes                

Even though you may think the bagpipes were invented by the Scottish, they were not. They were played throughout the world. The bag was made of leather. The pipe was played with fingers. The sound came through the pipes and a musician blew into the mouthpiece, to inflate the bag.

3)   Fiddle                      

Most troubadours in France of the 13^th century were accompanied by a fiddle. It was rested on the lap, and was bigger than a violin. Only a single string could be altered on the fingerboard. The other four strings were fixed strings, that sounded continuous or drone.

4)   Flute                        

A long cylinder like instrument blown into to make a sound.

5) Lute                          

A stringed instrument shaped like a pear. Its origin was the Islamic world.

6) One man band       

The smallest part of all dance bands was the pipe and tabor. The pipe consisted of only three holes. The musician could play the flute with his left hand, while conveniently playing the tabor with his right hand.

7) Organistrum          

Monks used an organistrum in the 11^th century in Spain to teach singing at their choir schools. This was a stringed instrument that required two people to play. One person would crank the handle while the other played the keys. The organistrum later was developed into hurdy-gurdy that only required one person to play. It would mingle several sounds together so it became known as the “symphony”.

8)   Psaltery                   

A psaltery was a smaller version of the harp. It formed a small part of an orchestra. The strings were plucked with goose quills.

9) Shawn                     

The Shawn was a reed instrument with a loud, piercing sound that was played at town parades and festival

10)Violin                    

A musical instrument with four strings played with a bow.                                                                  

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