Turkish crescent
Encyclopedia
A Turkish crescent, is an elaborate percussion instrument traditionally used by military band
s. It was once quite common, but is seldom seen today.
The instrument, usually six to eight feet long, consists of an upright wooden pole topped with a conical brass ornament and having crescent shaped crosspieces, also of brass. Numerous bells are attached to the crosspieces and elsewhere on the instrument. Often two horsetail plumes of different colors are suspended from one of the crescents; occasionally they are red-tipped, symbolic of the battlefield. There is no standard configuration for the instrument, and of the many preserved in museums, hardly two are alike.
The instrument is held vertically and when played is either shaken up and down or twisted. Sometimes there is a geared crank mechanism for rotating it.
Today the instrument is prominent in the marching bands of the German Bundeswehr
, the French Foreign Legion
, and in Ottoman military band
s. Some folk music
features similar instruments based on a wooden staff with jingling attachments.
famously captured one at the Battle of Salamanca
in 1812. It became an object of pride and veneration at the regiment's ceremonial parades.
This aspect survives today in the use of Turkish crescents as mostly symbolic objects in military marching bands. This can be clearly seen in the videos in the External links section at the end of this article.
n shaman staffs. Similar instruments occur in ancient Chinese music, probably diffused from the same Central Asian sources.
Europeans knew of it in the 16th century. In the 18th century, it was part of the Turkish Janissary
bands that were the source of much interest in Europe, and in the 19th century, it was widely used in European military bands. It was abandoned by the British in the mid-19th century but survives today, in an altered form, in Germany. It is also found in the military bands of the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Chile, Bolivia and Brazil (only in the Marching Band of the Brazilian Marine Corps and the Band of the 1st Guards Cavalry Regiment "Independence Dragoons"). The reason why the bands in Chile and Bolivia carry it is due to the Prussian military influences which arrived in these countries during the late 19th to early 20th centuries.
Its heyday in Europe was from the mid-18th to mid-19th century, when it was commonly played by elaborately dressed black Africans, who made all manner of contortions while playing. Some of these gestures survive today, in the stick twirling by bass and tenor drummers. An aspect of the elaborate costumes survives in the leopard skin apron worn by bass drummers in British military bands.
In 1881, the German Emperor William I
presented a Turkish crescent to King David Kalākaua
on the occasion of the King's visit to Berlin during his trip around the world bearing the inscription „no ka hoomanao ana ia Berlin“ (to commemorate Berlin), which was then used by the Royal Hawaiian Band
.
In the mid-19th century this instrument was replaced in most bands by the glockenspiel
, which was carried similarly but could be played musically.
Military band
A military band originally was a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the title of Bandmaster or Director of Music...
s. It was once quite common, but is seldom seen today.
The instrument, usually six to eight feet long, consists of an upright wooden pole topped with a conical brass ornament and having crescent shaped crosspieces, also of brass. Numerous bells are attached to the crosspieces and elsewhere on the instrument. Often two horsetail plumes of different colors are suspended from one of the crescents; occasionally they are red-tipped, symbolic of the battlefield. There is no standard configuration for the instrument, and of the many preserved in museums, hardly two are alike.
The instrument is held vertically and when played is either shaken up and down or twisted. Sometimes there is a geared crank mechanism for rotating it.
Today the instrument is prominent in the marching bands of the German Bundeswehr
Bundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
, the French Foreign Legion
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion is a unique military service wing of the French Army established in 1831. The foreign legion was exclusively created for foreign nationals willing to serve in the French Armed Forces...
, and in Ottoman military band
Ottoman military band
Ottoman military bands are thought to be the oldest variety of military marching band in the world. Though they are often known by the Persian-derived word mahtar in the West, that word, properly speaking, refers only to a single musician in the band...
s. Some folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
features similar instruments based on a wooden staff with jingling attachments.
Non-musical aspects
Turkish crescents had symbolic value for the military units that used them. The 88th Regiment of Foot (Connaught Rangers)88th Regiment of Foot (Connaught Rangers)
The 88th Regiment of Foot was an Irish Regiment of the British Army, one of eight Irish regiments raised and garrisoned in Ireland. As part of the Cardwell-Childers reforms of the British army, the regiment amalgamated with the 94th Foot, to form the Connaught Rangers on 1 July 1881...
famously captured one at the Battle of Salamanca
Battle of Salamanca
The Battle of Salamanca saw Anglo-Portuguese and Spanish armies under the Duke of Wellington defeat Marshal Auguste Marmont's French forces among the hills around Arapiles south of Salamanca, Spain on July 22, 1812 during the Peninsular War....
in 1812. It became an object of pride and veneration at the regiment's ceremonial parades.
This aspect survives today in the use of Turkish crescents as mostly symbolic objects in military marching bands. This can be clearly seen in the videos in the External links section at the end of this article.
History
The instrument possibly has antecedents in Central AsiaCentral Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
n shaman staffs. Similar instruments occur in ancient Chinese music, probably diffused from the same Central Asian sources.
Europeans knew of it in the 16th century. In the 18th century, it was part of the Turkish Janissary
Janissary
The Janissaries were infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan's household troops and bodyguards...
bands that were the source of much interest in Europe, and in the 19th century, it was widely used in European military bands. It was abandoned by the British in the mid-19th century but survives today, in an altered form, in Germany. It is also found in the military bands of the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Chile, Bolivia and Brazil (only in the Marching Band of the Brazilian Marine Corps and the Band of the 1st Guards Cavalry Regiment "Independence Dragoons"). The reason why the bands in Chile and Bolivia carry it is due to the Prussian military influences which arrived in these countries during the late 19th to early 20th centuries.
Its heyday in Europe was from the mid-18th to mid-19th century, when it was commonly played by elaborately dressed black Africans, who made all manner of contortions while playing. Some of these gestures survive today, in the stick twirling by bass and tenor drummers. An aspect of the elaborate costumes survives in the leopard skin apron worn by bass drummers in British military bands.
In 1881, the German Emperor William I
William I, German Emperor
William I, also known as Wilhelm I , of the House of Hohenzollern was the King of Prussia and the first German Emperor .Under the leadership of William and his Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, Prussia achieved the unification of Germany and the...
presented a Turkish crescent to King David Kalākaua
Kalakaua
Kalākaua, born David Laamea Kamanakapuu Mahinulani Nalaiaehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua and sometimes called The Merrie Monarch , was the last reigning king of the Kingdom of Hawaii...
on the occasion of the King's visit to Berlin during his trip around the world bearing the inscription „no ka hoomanao ana ia Berlin“ (to commemorate Berlin), which was then used by the Royal Hawaiian Band
Royal Hawaiian Band
The Royal Hawaiian Band is the oldest and only full-time municipal band in the United States. At present a body of the City & County of Honolulu, the Royal Hawaiian Band has been entertaining Honolulu residents and visitors since its inception in 1836 by Kamehameha III...
.
In the mid-19th century this instrument was replaced in most bands by the glockenspiel
Glockenspiel
A glockenspiel is a percussion instrument composed of a set of tuned keys arranged in the fashion of the keyboard of a piano. In this way, it is similar to the xylophone; however, the xylophone's bars are made of wood, while the glockenspiel's are metal plates or tubes, and making it a metallophone...
, which was carried similarly but could be played musically.
Use in specific musical works
- The Turkish crescent was used by the composerComposerA composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
Joseph HaydnJoseph HaydnFranz Joseph Haydn , known as Joseph Haydn , was an Austrian composer, one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these forms...
in his Symphony No. 100Symphony No. 100 (Haydn)The Symphony No. 100 in G major, Hoboken I/100, is the eighth of the twelve so-called London Symphonies written by Joseph Haydn and completed in 1793 or 1794. It is popularly known as the Military Symphony.-Nickname :...
(1794).
- Beethoven made use of the Jingling Johnny or Turkish crescent in the finale to his Ninth Symphony.
- Hector BerliozHector BerliozHector Berlioz was a French Romantic composer, best known for his compositions Symphonie fantastique and Grande messe des morts . Berlioz made significant contributions to the modern orchestra with his Treatise on Instrumentation. He specified huge orchestral forces for some of his works; as a...
used it in his massive piece for military wind band with optional choir and organ Grande symphonie funèbre et triomphaleGrande symphonie funèbre et triomphaleGrande symphonie funèbre et triomphale , Op. 15, is the fourth and last symphony by the French composer Hector Berlioz, first performed on 28 July 1840 in Paris...
(1840). His "dream ensemble" of 467 instrumentalists included four pavillons chinois among its 53 percussion instruments. He said about the instrument: "The Pavillon Chinois, with its numerous little bells, serves to give brilliancy to lively pieces, and pompous marches in military music. It can only shake its sonorous locks, at somewhat lengthened intervals; that is to say, about twice in a bar, in a movement of moderate time".
- John Philip SousaJohn Philip SousaJohn Philip Sousa was an American composer and conductor of the late Romantic era, known particularly for American military and patriotic marches. Because of his mastery of march composition, he is known as "The March King" or the "American March King" due to his British counterpart Kenneth J....
's Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (1923) also called for the use of the Turkish crescent.
See also
- Banner of the Mongols
- BumbassBumbassThe bladder fiddle is a folk instrument used throughout Europe. The instrument was a simple large monochord made with a long stick, a thick gut string, and a pig's bladder. It is bowed with either a notched stick or a horsehair bow...
- Ceremonial maceCeremonial maceThe ceremonial mace is a highly ornamented staff of metal or wood, carried before a sovereign or other high official in civic ceremonies by a mace-bearer, intended to represent the official's authority. The mace, as used today, derives from the original mace used as a weapon...
- Monkey stickMonkey stickThe mendoza, mendozer, monkey stick or lagerphone, is a traditional English percussion instrument, widely used in folk music. The origins of the name are not known but it is believed to stem from an association with one of the many Gypsy, Spanish and Italian buskers who were popular in London in...
- Pogo celloPogo celloThe pogo cello is a percussion instrument in the idiophone family. This instrument can be heard in the skiffle bands of England, jug bands from the United States, as well as some blues, bluegrass, folk and rock bands...
- SistrumSistrumA sistrum is a musical instrument of the percussion family, chiefly associated with ancient Iraq and Egypt. It consists of a handle and a U-shaped metal frame, made of brass or bronze and between 76 and 30 cm in width...
- Soyombo symbolSoyombo symbolThe Soyombo symbol is a special character out of the Mongolian Soyombo script. It serves as a national symbol of Mongolia, to be found on the Flag of Mongolia, the Coat of arms of Mongolia, and on many other official documents....
Sources
- Bells and Their Music - Chaghana
- Chappell, Mike. Wellington's Peninsula Regiments. Osprey Publishing, 2003.
External links
- Short video clip (0:25) of Legion music with a clear shot of chapeau chinois at 0:12
- Long video (12:00) of Legion music. Chapeau chinois is featured as an honored object from 1:06-1:30 and especially from 7:30-10:25.
- Video (2:18) of a German marching band, showing Schellenbaum as an honored object and glockenspiel as a musical instrument from 0:10-1:35.
- Video (2:31) of another German band, showing a ceremonial Schellenbaum and musical glockenspiel at 0:40 and a smaller whirling musical Schellenbaum from 0:55-1:05.
- Video (14:34) of a Chilean military parade, showing a glimpse of a ceremonial Schellenbaum from 0:50-1:00.
- History of Turkish Crescent from ancient times until the 18th century; in German: Janissary instruments and Europe
- Alla turca: Ottoman Band Influences on European Music.