Ney

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The ney (also nai, nye, nay) is an end-blown flute that figures prominently in Middle Eastern music. In some of these musical traditions, it is the only wind instrument used. It is a very ancient instrument, with depictions of ney players appearing in wall paintings in the Egyptian pyramids and actual neys being found in the excavations at Ur. This indicates that the ney has been played continuously for 4,500–5,000 years, making it one of the oldest musical instruments still in use. It is a forerunner of the modern flute.

The ney consists of a piece of hollow cane or reed (ney is an old Persian word for reed--the reed comes from Arundo donax plant--with five or six finger holes and one thumb hole. Some modern neys may be made of metal tubing or PVC electrical conduit. Pitch differs, depending on the region and the finger arrangement. A highly skilled ney player can reach as many as three octaves, though it is more common to have several "helper" neys to cover different pitch ranges or to facilite playing technical passages in other maqamat.

Contents 1 Etymology 2 Typology 3 Playing technique 4 References 5 See also 6 External links

[edit] Etymology

The word "ney" is a derivative of Old- and Middle Persian "nāy" meaning "flute", ^[1] and "ney" also from Old Persian "ney" meaning "reed" which is what the instrument is made of. It is also made of cane to make the ney in some cases.

[edit] Typology

The Arabic and Turkish ney has 7 holes (6 for the Iranian), one of which is on the back and usually closed with the thumb. Each hole has practically a one tone capacity of interval so that for example, if you play a D you can easily go to D# with the only movement of your lips and the strength of the air, and you can even go to E (depending on each hole) if you move the instrument and blow even stronger. The thumb hole has 4 notes usually used, if using the Doga ney then these notes would be A, Bb, B3/4, and B.

Neys are keyed instruments. In the Arabic system, there are 7 neys. The first is the Rast (roughly equivalent to the key of C (the longest), meaning that the second note from the lower register is a C (the first being a Bb). The second is the Dukah in D. The third is the Busalik in E. The fourth is the Jaharka for F. The fifth is the Nawa for G; the sixth is Hussayni for A, and the seventh is the Ajam for B.

In the Arab world, the ney is traditionally used in pastoral areas, showing a preference for smaller neys with higher pitches. In general, the pitch moves down in scholastic and religious environment.

Certain areas in the Arab world where Sufism, or musical schools exist, one would find lower registers studied and played. The Turks use even longer neys reflecting a preference for graver sounds, an imprint of the Sufi setting in which the ney was studied.

Related instruments: The Armenian "Duduk", Azerbaijani "balaban", and the Kurdish qernête are instruments used in other parts of the Middle East.

[edit] Playing technique

The Arabic and the Turkish way is the same, it involves putting the mouth on the extremity of the flute and blowing in a somewhat oblique direction to the tube of the flute. The air bounces on one inner side of the flute and produces the expected sound. The Iran incorporated another method: they adopted the Turkoman inter-dental blowing system in the late 1700s. The modern Persian ney has an altered fingering pattern and a different number of nodes. It also has a different embouchure, has only 5 fingerholes and a thumbhole placed lower than on the Arab-Turkish types. The musician puts the end of the ney between his teeth and the upper jaw and directs the air with his tongue. This method produces a quite different sound texture than that produced by the bilabial articulation used for the Arab/Turkish ney. Whatever the method, it takes a while (some say a lifetime), to perfect one’s sound. Getting the right sound, knowing how to master pure air sounds, small variations in pitches, etc., can certainly take a while.

The Iranian blowing method can certainly be used with Arabic (or Turkish) neys. This increases the different possibilities of sound textures.

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• Kaval, a similar instrument in Macedonia and Bulgaria
• Music of Turkey

[edit] External links

Iranian Musical Instruments
String Instruments (Sāzhāy-e Zehī)
Bowed instruments:	Ghazhak | Kamāncheh | Robāb
Plucked instruments:	Barbat | Chang | Dotār | Qānūn | Robāb | Sallāneh | Sāz | Setār | Tanbūr | Tār | Ūd
Struck instruments:	Santur
Woodwind instruments (Sāzhāy-e Bādī):
Exposed:	Darāy | Sornā | Karnay
End-blown:	Haft Band | Nāy (Ney) | Sheypur
Percussion instrument (Sāzhāy-e Kūbeheyī/Zarbī)
Auxiliary Percussion:	Daf | Dohol | Dāvūl | Dāyereh Zangī | Naqāreh | Tonbak (Dombak) | Kūs | Sanj