Man's Early Musical Instruments
Various Artists
This 1956 educational compilation was edited by famed German musicologist Curt Sachs (1881–1959). Sachs was a co–creator of the Sachs–Hornbostel system of musical instrument classification, which the album showcases using examples from previous Folkways recordings. The album begins with the most basic percussion, foot–stamping and hand–clapping. It continues with various membranophones (skin–sounders), idiophones (self–sounders), aerophones (wind instruments), and chordophones (stringed instruments), and finishes with various examples of orchestral combinations of them all. The liner notes include an introductory essay by Sachs along with photographs and a discography of the source material used.
EN ESPAÑOL
Esta compilación educativa de 1956 fue editada por el famoso musicólogo alemán Curt Sachs (1881–1959). Sachs fue un co-creador del sistema de Sachs-Hornbostel de clasificación de instrumentos musicales, que el álbum muestra usando ejemplos de anteriores grabaciones de Folkways.
El álbum comienza con la percusión, más básica, taconeo y palmas. Continúa con diversos membranófonos (resonadores), idiófonos (auto sonidos), y aerófonos (instrumentos de viento) y cordófonos (instrumentos de cuerda) y termina con varios ejemplos de combinaciones orquestales de todos ellos. Las notas incluyen un ensayo introductorio de Sachs, junto con fotografías y una discografía de la materia prima utilizada.
*Content Advisory:
This album’s title and liner notes contain dated language and concepts. We are aware that presenting Indigenous music as “primitive” is harmful to the communities that create it, their descendants, and to public discourse in general. Smithsonian Folkways has chosen to keep this album in circulation because of the value of the unique musical performances it presents. The liner notes, however, reflect a now-discredited school of thought in early-twentieth-century scholarship that assumed that communities not characterized by Western cultural patterns and processes were “pure” reflections of earlier stages of cultural evolution. We have chosen to post the album and liner notes in their original form, as they are historical documents. However, we also acknowledge that this school of thought has perpetuated racist views and policies toward the Indigenous peoples it characterizes. We encourage the reader to learn more by clicking here.
For our policy on controversial recordings, please see our Frequently Asked Questions page.
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