Rondalla and Stringed Instruments

By Vicente Guanzon, Jr

If you think you know how to play the guitar or the bass, or one of these stringed instruments: Banduria, Laud and Octavina, then this book will tell you how much of the "basics" in playing these instruments you have missed. This ebook is for you and for those who love to play stringed instruments. The book contains general knowledge so it is applicable to any other stringed instruments or musical instruments for that matter. You are not only learning about the instruments by reading this book, but the very fundamental concepts of music as a whole.

This ebook holds vital knowledge on the fundamentals of music without the complexities of learning the actual musical theories. Its contents will surely help you advance your knowledge and skill in music. Here is the list of songs you can find in this ebook:

Filipino songs (Guitar)
Afraid for Love to Fade – Jose Marie Chan
Bakit Ba- Siakol
Oo Na Sige Na
Pare Ko – Eraserheads
Perhaps Love- Jose Marie Chan
Same Ground – Kitchy Nadal

Foreign songs (Guitar)
Collide – Howie day
I Started a Joke – Bee Gees
Is it Ok if I Call You Mine
Leaving on a Jet plane – John Denver
My Way – Frank Sinatra
One Friend – Michael Johnson
Sway – Bic Runga
When you say nothing at all - Boyzone
Zombie – Cranberries

Rondalla Songs

•Bahay Kubo
•Leron-leron Sinta
•Magtanim ay Di Biro
•Paru-parong Bukid
•Tinikling
•Ang Pipit
•Katakataka
•We Wish You a Merry Christmas
•Jingle Bells
•Joy to the World
•Winter Wonderland
•The First Noel
•Silent Night
•O Holy Night
•Rudolf The Red-Nosed Reindeer
•Jingle Bell Rock – Brenda Lee
•White Christmas
•Ang Pasko ay Sumapit
•Pasko Na Naman
•Sa Maybahay ang Aming Bati
•Mano Po, Ninong
•Himig ng Pasko
•Pasko Na Naman – Ariel Rivera
•Pasko Na, Sinta Ko – Gary Valenciano
•Tanging Yaman - Carol Banawa
•Pusong Bato – Rene dela Rosa
•One Way Ticket - Boney M.
•Paper Roses – Marie Osmond
•Sway – Michael Buble
•Titanium – David Guetta
•Let it Go – Idina Menzel
•Material Girl – Madonna
•Moon River – Andy Williams
•More Than Words - Extreme
•Note Vayas de Zamboanga
•Grow Old with You – Adam Sandler
•Dance with My Father – Luther Vandross
•Somewhere Over The Rainbow
•All of Me – John Legend
•Lupang Hinirang – Philippine National Anthem

• Language: English
• Publisher: Vicente Guanzon, Jr
• Release date: Nov 10, 2014
• ISBN: 9781310418754

Book preview

= Back Cover =

Rondalla and Stringed Instruments

By Vicente Guanzon Jr.

Published by Vicente Guanzon Jr. at Smashwords

Copyright 2014 Vicente Guanzon Jr.

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal use only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your personal use, then please return to Smashwords.com or your favorite retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Note to readers:

Due to the format requirements of smashwords to the manuscript, some of the features of this ebook have been limited to conform to the required format. These include the use of tables, picture size, links, style formatting etc. You can download a full pdf version of this ebook without the said limitations at the address link found on the last page.

Table of Contents

About this Book

Dedication

Introduction

Part I Rondalla, Instruments, & Concepts

Chapter 1

Instruments Overview

Parts and Functions

Guitar

Bass

Octavina

Laud

Banduria

Additional Percussion Instruments

Rondalla Section and Seating Arrangement

Number of Instruments in a Group

Rondalla Instruments and Role

Taking Care of the Instruments

Summary

Chapter 2

Strings Overview

Nature of Strings

Materials and Composition

String's Thickness

Factors that Affect String's Pitch

Which is Which Note, Pitch, or Tone?

Starting Notes of Strings

Sequence of Notes on a String

Summary

Chapter 3

Basics of Guitar

Introduction

Guitar Notes Placement

Guitar Tuning

Guitar Playing Positions

Reading Chords

Chords and the Chord Formations

Chord Formation Techniques

Accompaniment

How Chords are Made?

Strumming

Plucking

Reading Guitar Notes in Staff Notation

Guitar Tab (Tablature)

Summary

Chapter 4

Basics of Bass

Introduction

Bass Notes Placement

5-stringed and 6-stringed Basses

Tuning the Bass

Bass Playing Positions

Playing the Bass

Bass Melody Formation

Reading Bass Notes

Bass Tablature

Summary

Chapter 5

Basics of Octavina, Laud and Banduria

Introduction

Octavina, Laud, and Banduria Notes Placement

Tuning the Octavina, Laud, and Banduria

Octavina and Banduria Playing Positions

About the Plectrum

Fingering and Finger Assignment

Plucking the Strings

Picking Styles

Playing the Instrument

Understanding Melody

Note Set of a Key

Extracting Lyrical Melody

Transposing Notes

About Accidentals

Summary

Chapter 6

Basics of Staff Notation

Overview of the Grand Staff

Description of the Common Symbols

Other Symbols

Reading the Notes

Part II Reference

Chapter 7

Supplementary Reading

Origin of Music

Nature of Sound

Musical Standards

The Nature of Songs

Chapter 8

Popular Songs

Strumming Notation

Plucking (Arpeggio) Notation

Songs List

Filipino Songs

Foreign Songs

Rondalla Songs

Index A Tables and Figures

Index B Terms and Definitions

Index C Chord Chart

About the Chord Chart

Major Chords

Minor Chords

Dominant Seventh Chords (7)

Major Seventh Chords (M7)

Minor Seventh Chords (m7)

Diminished Seventh Chords (dim7)

Supended Fourths Chords (sus)

Seventh Suspended Fourths Chords (7sus)

Minor+Major Seventh Chords (m+M7)

Augmented Fifth Chords (aug)

Major Sixth Chords (6)

Minor Sixth Chords (m6)

Dominant Ninth Chords (9)

Major Ninth Chords (M9)

Minor Ninth Chords (m9)

References

About the Author

Connect with Me

Preface

There are probably thousands of books out there that can teach you the stuff in music. But unfortunately, most of them would also include thousands of words whose primary function is just to make the books as convincing as they can be, without even considering the eyestrain you will get by reading the bulk. This reference will introduce you to the basics of playing the stringed instruments found in the Philippine rondalla without the need of being a music genius. Concepts are presented to make you develop your own playing style in a short possible time and with minimal effort, although you need to make extra effort in practicing with your instrument to be a good musician (that's the key!). I believe music is inborn to us all and the basics are all around us. What we need are the few answers to the basic questions to make us understand stringed musical instruments better, and that's what exactly this book is all about. The only thing I can't guaranty is that you won't get sore fingers after reading few pages of this book. Have fun!

-vgg767

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About this book

This book is for aspiring musicians who want to learn about stringed instruments but cannot devote serious time to study music. The topics are briefly discussed to layout the basic concepts of stringed instruments in general. Beginners may find this book useful by easily acquiring techniques and basic ideas. Intermediate players can find information here to advance their skills in playing similar instruments. Each of the musical instruments is discussed to give the reader a fundamental knowledge, which includes techniques and practical playing. The book also contains topics on some common musical notations.

The book consists of two parts. Part I talks about Rondalla and instruments (about strings, parts of the instruments, and various playing concepts). Part II contains collection of songs and other references, including definition of terms and the chord chart.

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Dedication

I dedicate this book to all music lovers out there, to the former Rondalla boys of WMSU-JCDT, and to my father who reminded me that my great grandfather and great grand uncles, my root notes, were Rondalla boys too when they first came in Zamboanga City.

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Introduction

Rondalla is a stringed ensemble with instruments comprising mostly of the lute family (stringed instruments played with a plectrum or pick). The group is similar to Western orchestra but has normally about 30 members or less. Several percussion instruments are optionally added to the group to match a particular music or piece; some of which are local or ethnic instruments such as gongs and sticks. Modern Rondalla groups usually play lyrical or popular music, much like a choral group, where lyrical melody is played by the smaller instruments and accompaniment by the bigger ones.

The group of Rondalla was traced to originate during the latter part of the 18th century. For more than three centuries under Spanish rule, Filipinos acquired loads of Spanish social-influence. The need for entertainment during social gatherings gave birth to a musical group composed typically of stringed instruments. Guitar, laud, and Spanish bandurria formed the basic instruments introduced to the Filipinos. The birth of customized instruments- Philippine banduria, a modified version of Spanish bandurria, with 14 strings, and first observed during fiestas and similar occasions- inspired Filipino musicians to come up with such string-group. Another customized instrument octavina, resembling a small guitar, then came into use as variation to laud's function. These instruments together with guitar and bass comprised the core of modern Rondalla ensemble. The word Rondalla was probably derived from Spanish word ronda, a roaming group of young male musicians who serenade to a lady or to the public.

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Chapter 1 - Instruments Overview

Philippine rondalla group was originally composed of the musical instruments banduria, octavina, laud, classical guitar, and bajo de uñas (plucked, fretted bass). Acoustic guitar and double bass, however, were introduced as part of the ensemble in later years. Most of the instruments, especially banduria and octavina, have transformed from their plain wooden appearance to intricate design styles. The instruments are usually made from Philippine wood like lanka, narra, kamagong, yakal, and Philippine mahogany.

Parts and Functions

Head, Neck, and Body

Acoustic stringed instruments in general have 3 main parts: head, neck, and body. Head is the upper portion equipped with tuning keys and other mechanical parts to hold and fasten the strings; the neck is a long piece of wood that extends from the body to the head and contains the flat fingerboard and metal fret bars; the body or sound box is a curve, hollow, wooden box which supports most of the other minor parts.

Parts List

Tuning keys- are six or more mechanical keys attached on the head and are used to tune (tightening or loosening) the strings.

Fingerboard or fretboard- is the flat, front side part of the neck where fret bars are laid across and where strings are pressed.

Nut- is the upper boundary of the fingerboard made from plastic or ivory. It contains notches to spread the strings in proper distances and at the same time suspends the strings in proper action (heights) from the frets or fingerboard.

Fret bars- are metal bars placed in proportion across the fingerboard to stop or shortened the vibrating strings at specified length.

Frets- are the spaces in between fret bars.

Body- is the sound box and the largest part of the instrument. It amplifies the sound produced by the strings, supports the bridge, and the other minor parts.

Strings- are specialized metal steel wire or nylon cord stretched and suspended from the bridge to the nut.

Bridge- is the lower boundary where strings are rested and suspended in proper distances. Aside