A fun challenge that you can enjoy with your children is to develop musical instruments from materials found in nature. For example, certain pieces of slate have musical qualities when struck while suspended. Plants with a tube like stem can be assembled in a Pan Pipe arrangement. Sticks, and rocks can be put together to make wind chimes. A hollow log may have a drum like sound. You may find that one piece of wood, rather than another makes a better mallet for striking. Experiment with different materials and use your creativity to produce a variety of sounds.
There is a new and growing part of archeology that is studying prehistoric music. This subject is difficult to study because most of the instruments came from hunter gathering societies that moved around. These ancient people used natural materials for instruments so they disintegrate easily.
Graeme Lawson who heads an organization known as Cambridge Music- Archeological research believes that some of the artifacts that are displayed in museums are mistakenly labeled. He has studied a medieval garment clasp and after analyzing wear patterns and holes he found them to resemble a child’s toy that makes sounds when whirled around the head. His belief is that many flint artifacts doubled as chimes and were used for musical sounds.
There are two sites in Europe, Isturitz and Geibenklosterle that were found made from bird bones. A 30,000 year old bird bone flute was found in this early Aurignacian culture that existed in Europe and southwest Asia between 32,000 and 26,000 BC. There were also paintings and sculptures found that show people playing musical instruments. It is supposed that about 100,000 years ago in Africa there was an artistic revolution that was then imported to Europe. A pipe made of mammoth ivory, and pan pipes made from varying length tubes were found in ancient Greece, Rome, and pre-Columbian America. In China, lithophones, engraved stones also make a musical tone when struck.
Prehistoric people were inventive and our children can be too. Why not plan a trip in a natural environment to make musical instruments? It is helpful to take a small saw, hammer, and string along so you can change the size of a piece of wood, or hang the artifact from a branch to make a wind chime. However, these modern day tools are not necessary and you can make do by and make your own cord from the plants that surround you.
Information for this article was taken from the Sept./October edition of Archeology magazine.
