Hang (instrument)
Percussion instrument | |
---|---|
Hornbostel–Sachs classification | 111.24 (Percussion vessels) |
Inventor(s) | Felix Rohner, Sabina Schärer |
Developed | 2000 |
The Hang (German pronunciation: [haŋ];[1] plural form: Hanghang)[2] is a type of musical instrument called a handpan, fitting into the idiophone class and based on the Caribbean steelpan instrument. It was created by Felix Rohner and Sabina Schärer in Bern, Switzerland. The name of their company is PANArt Hangbau AG.[3] The Hang is sometimes referred to as a hang drum, but the inventors consider this a misnomer and strongly discourage its use.[4]
The instrument is constructed from two half-shells of
glued together at the rim leaving the inside hollow and creating the shape of a convex lens. The top ("Ding") side has a center 'note' hammered into it and seven or eight 'tone fields' hammered around the center. The bottom ("Gu") is a plain surface that has a rolled hole in the center with a tuned note that can be created when the rim is struck.The Hang uses some of the same basic physical principles as a
The name Hang comes from a Bernese German word that has a double-meaning, one of which is hand and the other hillside[9] referring to its convex shape. It is a registered trademark and property of PANArt Hangbau AG.[10]
Growth of a worldwide interest in the Hang created a group of similar instruments that are referred to as handpans, a term coined in 2007 by the American steelpan producer Pantheon Steel.
Playing the Hang
The Hang is typically played resting on the player's lap. The Hang is generally played with the hands and fingers instead of mallets. This lighter means of playing produces a sound that could be considered[by whom?] softer and warmer than the bright sound of a mallet-based traditional steelpan.
The top (Ding) side of the Hang, depending on how it is played, can sound like a harp, bells, or harmonically tuned
The bottom side of the Hang has a round opening, the Gu, producing together with the air in the cavity a
Sound examples
Creation and development
The Hang was developed in 2000 and introduced at the
First generation
From 2001 to 2005 the first generation Hang was offered in multiple scales ranging up to 45 different sound models. The Hang makers took their initial inspiration from
Second generation
In the spring of 2006 the Hang makers presented a new generation of Hang. The new generation instruments (often referred to as second generation) have a surface coating of
Integral Hang
In the spring of 2008 the Hang makers announced a new version, the Integral Hang. Numbers began again with an H in front (H1, H2, etc.) and with the first Integral Hang dated in November 2007. Several changes marked the Integral Hang. There was only one scale with seven tone fields in the cycle (D3 Ding, A3, B♭3, C4, D4, E4, F4, A4) and no other sound models offered. The Gu hole was adjusted to a subtly oval shape to improve the tuning of the three partials D5, F5 and an F♯5 of the Gu neck. Significant changes were made to the Ding (center note on the top). A circular indentation in the dome was made and has a texture of brass applied, annealed, and then lacquered. Also changes to the shoulder area between the flattened area of the Ding and the notes in the tone circle were implemented so that the transition was more gradual than in the 2nd generation Hanghang. The PANArt logo, serial number, date of finalization, and signatures of the Hang makers were placed on Gu side of the Hang near the equator where the two shells meet.[14]
By developing the Integral Hang, Rohner and Schärer distanced themselves from the idea of building an instrument for the needs of professional musicians.[15] Their aims and ambitions were published in a 'Letter from the Hangbauhaus':
Our concepts, developments and implementations are far from the musical norms of modern times that require study, practice and performance. Playing with this Hang can lead to a form of freedom, an intimate conversation that can only unfold without pressure and coercion. If individuals are aware of this concept, they will be strengthened by this Hang. Thoughtless use can weaken a person.[4]
Free Integral Hang
This model has been available since April 2010. Compared to its predecessor, the Free Integral Hang features a few construction changes. First of all, there is no longer a brass ring around the seam connecting the ding and gu shells. Furthermore, the dome of the ding is not brass-coated anymore and is characterized by a double offset (a triple dome).[16] The Free Integral Hanghang are tuned without the use of tuning devices. The pitch of the Ding differs from one instrument to another and varies around the tone D3. The tones in the tone circle relative to the Ding correspond to those of the Integral Hang.[17]
In the free tuning of a Hang, the focus is not about the precise mathematical frequency ratios of the partials of a tone field, but on the impact of the entire sound.[18] Trinidad's steelpan tuners already slightly detuned partial tones to attain the characteristic sound of their own instruments. In an acoustic-mathematical analysis, Anthony Achong substantiated that this detuning is the most important parameter in influencing the structure of a steelpan tone: the duration of the partials as well as the amplitude and frequency modulations.[19][self-published source]
Termination of Hang manufacturing and development of new Pang instruments
As of December 2013 PANArt announced[20] that the Hang would no longer be made, as the PANArt tuners were completely concentrated on a new different instrument, the Gubal.[21] In the following years PANArt developed a number of other instruments called Hang Gudu, Hang Urgu, Hang Bal and Hang Gede as well as a number of string instruments and created a collective improvised music form played with these Pang instruments.[22][23]
See also
Notes
- ^ Duden Aussprachewörterbuch (6 ed.). Mannheim: Bibliographisches Institut & F.A. Brockhaus AG. 2006.
- ^ PANArt Hang Bookl008 p. 8
- ^ David Wessel, Andrew Morrison, Thomas Rossing: Sound of the Hang. Paper for the 155. Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, Paris 2008, pp. 6257-6262 (PDF file; 1,5 MB).
- ^ a b "Letter from the Hangbauhaus November 2009". Hangblog.org. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
- ^ Felix Rohner, Sabina Schärer: History, Development and Tuning of the Hang. pp. 1f
- ^ Lukas Vogelsang: Die Welt ist Blech. Über einen neu gefundenen Klang. In: ensuite – kulturmagazin. Bern, issue no. 4, April 2004, pp. 4-5 (PDF file; 2,8 MB). (German)
- .
- ^ PANArt Hang Booklet 2008 pp. 4ff
- ^ "The Origins of Handpans: The Hang from PANArt | Sylvain Paslier - Handpan Artist". Sylvain Paslier - Handpan Artist. Retrieved 7 November 2018.
- ^ WIPO Global Brand Database. International Registration Number 969295
- ^ "Bewitching musical hearts across the world". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 20 September 2010.
- ^ Michael Paschko: Hang Sound Models.
- ^ "Letter from Hangbauhaus – Bern, End of March, 2007". Hangblog.org. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
- ^ Michael Paschko: Das Hanglexikon. Keywords: Integrales Hang, Gu, Ding, Seriennummer and Signatur (German)
- ^ Felix Rohner, Sabina Schärer: The Integral Hang 2009.
- ^ "Das Freie Integrale Hang im Bild". Hangblog.org. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
- ^ Michael Paschko: Das Hanglexikon. Keyword: Freies Integrales Hang (German)
- ^ Felix Rohner, Sabina Schärer: The call of iron.
- ^ Anthony Achong: Detuning and tonal structure of steelpan notes. In Anthony Achong (ed.): Proceedings of the International Conference on the Science and Technology of the Steelpan. St. Augustine, Trinidad 2002, pp. 41–52. See also Anthony Achong: Secrets of the Steelpan. Xlibris 2013, pp. 862–889.
- ^ PANArt Hang Manufacturing Ltd.: News: Hang (17 December 2013) Accessed 25 April 2015
- ^ PANArt Hang Manufacturing Ltd.: From the Hang to the Gubal
- ^ PANArt Hang Manufacturing Ltd.: Instruments
- ^ PANArt Hang Manufacturing Ltd.: Pang music – the new art form from PANArt
External links
- PANArt website
- Hang Library
- Morrison, Andrew; Rossing, Thomas D. (March 2009). "The extraordinary Sound of the Hang". Physics Today. 62 (3): 66–67. .
- HANG - a discreet revolution on YouTube. Documentary about the first generation Hang by Thibaut Castan and Véronice Pagnon, France 2006.