Philip Thornton

This is Philip Thornton's second talk in this series. He will show and describe the functions of modern components of an orchestra such as the bassoon, oboe, clarinet, and flute. Instruments such as these have a long history, and their evolution can be traced by a survey of musical instruments of the past and also those of the present day, some of them weird to Western ears, that are still used in different parts of the world. Viewers will also see and hear examples of early flutes; the ophicleide; the zurba, which comes from Turkey; the gajas which comes from Bessarabia; the Bulgarian duduk and kaval; the bansri, which comes from India; and the agwaal, an instrument that is to be found in the Atlas Mountains.