The ocarina is an instrument of the aerophone group.

Description of the instrument

It is an elongated earthenware container, half cylindrical and half pseudo-conical, with a flute mouth for blowing. The most common ocarinas usually have eight, nine, or ten finger holes (one or two of them at the back). As stated in Pedrell's Technical Music Dictionary, based on instruments of this type that were used previously, it was invented by Budrio, from the Italian town of Budrio.

Way of playing

The instrument is held with both hands and blows through the mouth, as in the rest of flutes.

History

As in other places in our environment, these instruments have been used in many towns and places in Euskal Herria. For example, in the music bands (one of them, that of Zumarraga) or in Oiartzun, where once it was played in bars or on the street alone. We can still hear some people in Estella playing the repertoire of the area with ocarina.

Germán Intxausti (1926-2004), a txistulari from Alegia (Gipuzkoa), played the ocarina in his youth. On Germán's death, his son Rikardo donated his instrument to the JMBA Collection. It is currently exhibited at the Soinuenea exhibition.

Ocarina played German Intxausti from Alegia (JBMA Collection. Nº 0983)

SOURCES

Bibliography

PEDRELL, Felipe. (1894). Diccionario Técnico de la Música. Serv. rep. de libros, Librerías Paris-Valencia. Facsimil. Valentzia, 1992.