Feature Art & Craft Medium — “What is an Ocarina?” 

Clay is the media.
Musical instrument is the application.

Clay has been used by cultures the world over since ancient times for both functional and artistic purposes. Whether it was used for food preparation, religious practices, decoration, or musical instruments, it has been an integral part of our history.

In this issue, we're bringing you the ocarina. We'll tell you about this fascinating musical instrument, and bit of its unique history. Watch for a follow-up article in our next newsletter on How to Make an Occarina. Enjoy!

Ocarinas

Ocarinas are not only beautiful, albeit obscure musical instruments more familiar to ancient civilizations than to modern day Westerners, but they're also works of art in and of themselves. Many are made of clay and have a beautiful glazed finish or are left unglazed to look more rustic. Ocarinas lend themselves well to exterior decoration because of their simple shape and relatively small size. The most appealing aspect of the ocarina is the ability to create simple and beautiful music, from something so small and seemingly insignificant in comparison to the larger, more popular traditional musical instruments.

What is an Ocarina?

An ocarina is a wind instrument, most often made of wood or clay, although they are sometimes made of wood, gourds, plastic, or other material. They come in many different shapes and sizes and each sound is unique depending on the material it is made of and its size. The ocarina generally comes in two main types, the "Zelda" (popularized by the Nintendo game of the same name) or "Sweet Potato" (because its shaped like a sweet potato), and pendant ocarinas (which can be worn as a necklace).

The ocarina is not only an instrument, but a work of art for many ocarina makers. The making of an ocarina is a craft in itself. While maintaining a few simple qualities to create the sound of the ocarina, it can be made into almost any design. Sometimes they are shaped like animals or teardrops. The shape of an ocarina is as creative as the artist's imagination.

Ocarinas usually have 4-5 holes, 4 on the top and one on the bottom. There is a hole to blow through and another hole for the air to escape; this is where the sound comes from. A 4-hole ocarina can play all the notes in an octave, and a 5-hole ocarina can play an octave and one extra note higher. Ocarinas are generally limited to one octave and can be made in different keys. They also range from soprano to bass. The ocarina sounds a bit like a recorder or piccolo, but with a more rich "earthy" tone to it. Generally, most ocarinas average about 2-2.5 inches across, and sometimes have a cord attached so that it may be worn as a necklace.

The History of Ocarinas

Ancient ocarina-style instruments, or "vessel flutes", made of horns, tusks, gourds, or clay have been found around the world. Ocarinas are indigenous to India, China, Africa and Central and South America. The earliest of these types of flutes made of terracotta were discovered in India and are dated over six thousand years old. A turtle-shaped ocarina was also found in the ancient Mayan civilization. The ancient Chinese made instruments shaped like eggs, called Hsuan, which were made from porcelain. The native peoples of Central and South America made clay "vessel flutes" in the shape of birds, reptiles, animals, humans, and deities. Members of tribes living in the Ulua Valley of Honduras used whistle–type ocarinas to identify others within the tribe; each person had his or her own distinctive sound.

A wave of interest in the ocarina swept Europe in 1527 after Aztecs from the New World demonstrated them in the Spanish court of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.

In 1853, Giuseppe Donati popularized the modern ocarina. He was a 17-year-old musician and baker who lived in Budrio, Italy. He is credited with making the first 10 hole ocarinas and the first pitched diatonic scale ocarinas. He called it an ocarina, which means "little goose", because of its resemblance to a small goose.

The ocarinas made in the United States were called "sweet potatoes" for their similar shape. They became very popular up until the 1940s when the harmonica replaced them as pocket-sized instruments. During World War II the US government issued "sweet potatoes" to its soldiers overseas as morale boosters.

In the 1960's, John Taylor from Great Britain created a four hole cross finger tuning for the ocarina which enabled one to play a full octave scale with just four holes. Adding a thumbhole increased the range to include an extra tone above the octave. In the 1990's, an American named David Hannauer took Taylor's work one-step further by adding a second thumbhole, further increasing the range.

Ocarinas became a more readily recognized term, and sought-after musical instrument, after Nintendo, in 1998, released their video game The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. This was one in a series of games following a young boy, Link, on his quest to save Princess Zelda. Link uses his trusty ocarina to magically time travel throughout the game. As the Nintendo marketers pitched, the ocarina as the "legendary musical instrument of power coveted by many, but hidden to all but the most worthy." Nintendo's re-introduction of the ocarina has garnered this simple instrument a lot of attention. Makers of ocarinas have also made fully functional novelty replicas of The Legend of Zelda's ocarina, which can be purchased from almost any ocarina retailer.

In conclusion, Ocarinas have changed very little since their introduction thousands of years ago. Their sound, although different with each individual instrument, is always hauntingly beautiful. For many, who take up the instrument, it is often "love at first sight". Their unique artistic designs exemplify their creator in musical and artistic talent.

Ocarinas are very affordable in comparison to other instruments. They generally range in price, anywhere from 12 to 85 dollars, depending on the size, shape and material that it's made of. Unlike many other musical instruments, ocarinas are generally not commercially mass-produced nor typically sold in traditional music stores. They are often sold by artisans who sell hand-crafted musical instruments via their studio or website.

Can anyone make one? Yes, anyone can make an ocarina, by following a few simple, but very important steps. Watch for our next article on ocarinas, which explains in detail how to make one in your own home.

Courtesy of Janny Stratichuk

Janny Stratichuk is a young artist currently enrolled at Selkirk College in Castelgar, B.C., pursuing a career in Art Therapy. She's been a student of the Kootenay School of Art and has worked in many art mediums over the past 5 years, creating works in acrylics, watercolors, gourds, felt, pottery, and mixed media. She sells her art at various local fairs in the Kootenay region as well as Idaho. She's also done the artwork for a wonderful Children's Storybook, "The We Hug" as well as some websites. You may email Janny at at janny@meanderalley.com

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