Ocarinas United

Amazing! But perhaps it would be easier to understand if each brand/tone (alto, soprano) of ocarina was on a completly seperate graph

NinOcarino wrote:Hi. I want to know about the range of Songbird sweet potatos, specialy the XL . Yes, is A to G, but ¿WhichA? Is like Alto pendant or like Bass pendant? Anyone knows?

As far as I can tell by ear comparison with a piano, it starts from A4. Hope that helps.

NinOcarino wrote:¿Why are not included in the range image?

They're not included because no one has told Gerald which range Songbird ocarinas fit in. I will in a couple of days when I my new ocarinas arrive. :)

My Songbird Extended Range Fairy ocarina is tuned in the key of C. That much I know (because it says so on the website hehe). As far as range.... I was told it's an Alto, but I honestly don't know myself. I haven't learned the A4 etc stuff yet.

I have sent an email off to Songbird to inquire about their ocarina ranges.

This is an evolving project, so as I get more information on various makers, I'll be adding them.

Ocarinar wrote:Do you think you could do the double and triple ocarinas from Focalink?

http://www.focalink.com.tw/product_en.php?classmaster=6

I sent an email to focalink a week ago - I have yet to receive a reply.

Wow that is one snazzy chart you got there! It really clarifies the ranges of all the ocs ive been looking at! Usually tenor, soprano, alto and bass have a designated range associated with them.

Looking at that very handy chart im noticing a couple things... the C6 to C7 range is entirely above the treble clef which is VERY high in terms of musical instruments. Where as C5 to C6 falls in the upper treble clef and above it. And finally C4 to C5 starts at middle C which falls directly between the bass and treble clef and goes to the top half of the treble clef. As far as a naming scheme goes, an instrument is generally named based on where the majority of range lies. I suggest:

C6 - C7 = Soprano
C5 - C6 = Alto
C4 - C5 = Tenor
C3 - C4 = Bass
C2 - C3 = Dbl Bass?

I realize by this naming scheme we have no Bass or Dbl Bass on the chart, but rest assured there are ocarinas that fall into this category, you know those REAL big ones im talking about? There arent to many on the market but they will come eventually, especially if I have anything to do with it !!
And some people might say well there isnt now, changing a system like this to accommodate lower ocarinas will mess up the existing system, and like any good programmer knowns you always have to plan for the future.

Heck while we are at it we could come up with a whole naming system! Like... take for example a hind bass C ocarina, its made of wood, has a range of B3 to D5 which is 11 notes total plus 6 sharps/flats. So by my chart it fall in the Tenor range. So a short form description of it could look something like

Hind Bass C (Tenor)[B3-D5]{Range: 11 + 6}

So just by taking a quick look you know its range on our scale, the note range, and how many notes it covers + how many sharps/flats.

any thoughts?

abseeley wrote::) any thoughts?

It's a good naming system, but that's the third time it has been "invented" by now. (I were the first). There's just one problem, the only type of ocarinas that are named Soprano are Soprano C which are the highest pithced ocarinas. I like the Asian way of ocarina naming more though (check Maparam and Focalink how that works).

very coool

Would it be possible to add a Treble Clef Staff along with accompanying notes to this diagram?
Just a suggestion. I think it would make it even better!! Thanks.

There are still quite a few missing... Maybe an update would be in order sometime soon? I'd personally like to see some focalinks there also some doubles and triples, so people can properly see the difference it makes

Are you using C4 as middle C on the Piano? Therefore the A above it - A4 - would be 440 A (Concert A - 440 vibrations per second)??

Your chart is accurate in terms of the written notes, but C4 on the Hind Alto / STL Tenor will actually sound 1 octave higher (C5). This enables the music to be written on the treble staff - not using ledger lines. You are probably not aware of this when you play. In fact if you play the note on the piano and then the Ocarina you still have to listen carefully because the octave is exactlly twice as many vibrations per second and the higher octave is contained in the overtones of the lower octave.

English Handbells do the same thing - always 1 octave higher than written

Guitars are just the opposite. The lowest string on the guitar is E - and written below middle C on the staff. It actually sounds one octave lower. However, the player hardly notices this unless he really tries to tune that string up to pitch and breaks the string doing it.

The are considered "C" instruments because C = C. But the C you are reading is not the C you are playing.


Your chart is great! Don't mean to confuse everyone.

Scamper