Ratchet (instrument)
Classification | Idiophone |
---|---|
Hornbostel–Sachs classification | 112.24 (Scraped wheels – cog rattles or Ratchet) |
Related instruments | |
Derkach |
A ratchet or rattle, more specifically, cog rattle
Method of playing
The player holds the handle and swings the whole mechanism around. The momentum makes the board click against the gearwheel, producing a clicking and rattling noise. A popular design consists of a thick wooden cog wheel attached to a handle and two wooden flanges that alternately hit the teeth of the cog when the handle turns. Alternatively, smaller ratchets are sometimes held still or mounted and the handle turned rapidly by the player. The mounted ratchets allow for greater control of the duration and timing of the sound. This allows the ratchet to be used like a snare drum, placing sustained rolls in precise durations of time. Dynamics are controlled by the rate at which the ratchet is rotated.[2]
Uses
In Jewish tradition
In Judaism, the gragger (also grogger or gregger; from
Music
The rattle is used in such compositions as Richard Strauss's Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks and Arnold Schoenberg's Gurre-Lieder.
Sport
Up until the early 1970s, this type of rattle was commonly used by fans at
Warning/signaling device
In the 18th and 19th centuries, a policeman's rattle was used by British
Variants
Raganella
The raganella (Italian for "tree frog") is a percussion instrument common in the
Rapach
The rapach (Ukrainian: Рапач) is a larger version of the derkach, a ratchet. Rapachs are used by churches in the Prešov region of Slovakia by ethnic Ukrainians instead of bells during Easter.
Uses in music
Gallery
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Ratchet used for poison gas warning in World War II
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Raspel
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In some European churches, a ratchet known as a crotalum is used instead of bells during theEaster Day[11]
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A Purim gragger, a kind of ratchet used in Judaism
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A plastic version of the gragger
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14th century French ratchet
See also
References
- ^ "Cog rattle | musical instrument". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 2023-02-18.
- ^ Karl Peinkofer and Fritz Tannigel, Handbook of Percussion Instruments, (Mainz, Germany: Schott, 1976), 152-153.
- ISBN 978-0-8074-0434-8
- ISBN 978-0-8160-5457-2
- ^ https://www.mapmyvisit.com/object/viewobject/61977/en/56C1753638224986FB57FB922C56B16A Retrieved at 17.36 on Sunday 5/3/23.
- ^ Cross, David (2011-02-17). "On the Beat in Birmingham - Rules and regulations". BBC. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
Police whistles came much later; the early Victorian constable would have carried a small wooden rattle.
- ^ "Evolution of the Victoria Police uniform". The Australian. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
Police rattle from the late 19th century. Used by early police officers in Melbourne, to call for assistance or sound warnings... Later replaced by a whistles.
- ^ Taylor, J. (2003). "The Victorian Police Rattle Mystery". The Constabulary. Archived from the original on 2010-02-18.
- ^ jtalarico (2015-08-26). "8 Objects Used By Air Raid Wardens During The Blitz". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
- ^ "Gas Rattle". www.iwm.org.uk. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
- ^ "The Fascinating Story Behind the Rarest of Liturgical Devices: the Crotalus". ChurchPOP. March 23, 2016.
Sources for Rapach
- Humeniuk, A. Ukrainski narodni muzychni instrumenty, Kyiv: Naukova dumka, 1967 (in Ukrainian)
- Mizynec, V. Ukrainian Folk Instruments, Melbourne: Bayda books, 1984 (in Ukrainian)
- Cherkaskyi, L. Ukrainski narodni muzychni instrumenty, Tekhnika, Kyiv, Ukraine, 2003 - 262 pages. ISBN 966-575-111-5(in Ukrainian)