Begin forwarded message:
> From: bill <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Date: Gio ago 12, 2004 19:18:25 Europe/Rome > To: lute society < [EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: charango history > > dear all - > > in addition to the information posted earlier by rt, here is an > article written in english that gives a general historical outline of > the charango: > > "The Andean charango has nothing to do with the Cuban charanga, except > perhaps in the origin of the names long ago. Charanga is a style of > music and the related instrumentation, characterized by the leading > role of a flute and strings in playing music such as danzon and > cha-cha. The charango, on the other hand, is a single instrument, > modest in the projection of its sound but uncannily able to convey the > feel of the high and airy vastness of the Andean altiplano. > > Its beginnings go back to colonial Bolivia in Potosi, a mountain once > fabulously rich in minerals as well as the city that prospered around > it before the earth was stripped of its wealth. The name became part > of the Spanish expression "todo un Potosi" (an entire Potosi), used to > indicate something of immense value. In the 1600's Potosi was a city > of 160,000 inhabitants, huge for its time and certainly for its place. > Such a metropolis drew adventurers and fortune-seekers in large > numbers, and with them musicians and entertainers who sought the > favors of its wealthy audiences. In the streets and plazas they played > the popular Spanish guitars of the time, the vihuelas and bandurrias. > The latter made their way to the creoles, the mestizos, and ultimately > to the native americans, who contributed to theplaying of the charango > their traditional melodies and musical vocabulary. The charango thus > was born as the local version of the Spanish stringed instruments. > From Potosi, its popularity extended to the surroundings valleys and > other cities. Eventually it became a typical instrument of what are > now Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru', and part of northern Chile and Argentina. > > The first charangos no doubt were made of wood in the style of a > vihuela. But the Andes, while rich in minerals, are poor in forests. > Over time, the charango came to be made from the shells of the > quirquincho, the abundant Bolivian relative of the armadillo, or, in > the valleys, carved from solid wood. Although charangos are made in a > variety of sizes, the instrument best known today is small enough to > be cradled in the musician's arms. It carries five double strings, the > third, or middle, of which includes the base string and its octave, an > arrangement that at least one author traces to 1780. > > The same author, Campos Iglesias, traces the name to the quechua > charaancu (dried tendon) and the aymara chara ancu (leg tendon), and > relates it also to the quechua words chajhuancu (noisy) and chajhuncu > (joyful). The charango is strummed with the middle finger or plucked, > for different effects--accompanying a lead musician or carrying the > melody. It is often played together with andean flutes (the quena, or > wooden flute, and the pan-pipe made from reeds, the zampona--or, in > Ecuador, rondador), guitar, large drum (bombo), and small percussion > such as chajchas, a rattle made from goat hooves. A charango is highly > portable, however, and is also played by itself. One of the most > striking memories of this writer's long-ago travel in Peru is from the > Inca fortress of Sacsayhuaman, near Cuzco. Lying among the boulders of > the old construction, an elderly man, wrapped in woven cloth and > protected by his ear-flap hat, sang to himself in quechua, accompanied > by his charango and the ever-present winds of the altiplano. Clearly, > the Spanish origin of the charango did not keep the indigenous andean > peoples from making the instrument their own." > > i think the citole should also be given consideration as an original > source of the instrument. but as stated in an earlier letter (for > those who have read this far) the real crux of the matter - regarding > its suitability for early music - rests with your acceptance of the > instrument itself and not just its name. > > in an effort to maintain verisimilitude, two of the three charangos i > commissioned were made with wooden tuning pegs; roses are also an > option. there are some extremely ugly (to me) variations of the basic > design but mine are all - what can be termed - "classic" in shape with > a two bout, figure "8" configuration. > > i've altered the tuning on mine slightly from gg-cc-eE-aa-ee to > gg-bb-eE-aa-dd. it sounds a bit like a treble lute and something from > the mandolin family. > > i can send http site information to those who would like it but i'd > prefer to do so directly as spam sent inadvertently sometimes causes > me to be dropped from the list and i end up weeping at wayne's > doorstep. there's one site in particular illustrating the basic, > historic designs of the charango which are directly related to > documented drawings of the citole. > > and in conclusion...may i say... simply... > > it's fun. > > sincerely - bill
