Curiosities about instruments, the tambourine and Rising Star Fan Art.

Greetings to all my dear Rising Star friends, today I am very happy to share with you a new article on my blog. I want to tell you some interesting facts about a very interesting instrument, I am referring to the tambourine. And, as usual, at the end of the post I will present you some fan art that I have created, inspired by our beloved game, Rising Star. Without further ado, let's begin.

Friends, I tell you that the tambourine is one of those instruments that has traveled around the world and through time. We know of its first existence from records found in Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, Greece and Rome, where it was used mainly in religious contexts.

In the Middle Ages, the Crusaders brought it to Europe from the Middle East. At that time, women used it in dances and songs, and minstrels quickly adopted it. In Spain, during the 17th century, it was known as "adufe" or "adrufe", terms of Arabic origin. The truth is that it has a great history and a quite interesting linguistic evolution.

But you may not know what a tambourine is. If that's your case, I'll tell you that it's a percussion instrument that belongs to the groups of idiophones and membranophones. Translated into a less technical language: it produces sound both by the vibrations of its jingles (idiophone) and by its skin or plastic membrane (membranophone). It is played in many ways: hitting it with the hand, the fingers, the fist, or even the knee, a little strange but true 😅. In some more spectacular performances, such as the "Tambourine Fantasy" typical of the tunas, it is hit with different parts of the body while dancing.

• One of the coolest things about the tambourine is its diversity. Although the most common shape is circular, there are also hexagonal tambourines (like in Chile), octagonal (in China) and even square ones. In addition, depending on its size, it can be called a pandero in some places.

Its usefulness is also shown in how you can play it: you can shake it in the air, rub it with your fingers, or hit it in different ways to get a variety of sounds. And if you're feeling particularly ambitious, you can try the famous "roll," which involves sliding a finger across the membrane or shaking the tambourine with precision. But of course, that takes a lot of practice; it won't be like the saying goes: "sewing and singing."

• Although its origins lie in ancient religious rituals, the tambourine is used today in numerous musical styles. For example, in classical music, folk, rock and pop. In symphony orchestras, it usually has a special place. That's why you have to have a good ear to hear its sound among so many instruments, unless it is the center of attention.

As an interesting fact, I can tell you that it is said that the tambourine inspired Bob Dylan to compose his famous song "Mr. Tambourine Man." It turns out that watching Bruce Langhorne, a guitarist and collaborator of his, play the tambourine, stuck in his memory so much that he dedicated this iconic song to him. But of course this is just speculation, only Bob has the last word 😅.

• Let's talk a little about how to play the tambourine. Techniques can be divided into "hard taps" and "soft taps." "Soft taps" typically involve separate fingers to deliver a smooth, continuous sound, while "hard taps" involve stronger strikes with a closed fist or stiff fingers, perfect for marking downbeats in dancing. The key is to keep the left hand in a constant oscillating motion to produce a base sound, and then play around with the different taps.

Rising Star Fan Art

Now, changing the subject, I present my post #67 about some of the fan art I've made with the help of DALL-E, inspired by our beloved game, Rising Star. In this post, I've used the card theme again along with several elements of the game. For example, I've added the star, some instruments and singers to give more personality to the images. Some of the images also have futuristic and retro touches, and I've added stages and concerts to give it a special touch.

The images are free to use, so you can use them from this post without any problem. I reiterate that they have been made by me with the help of DALL-E.

I hope you enjoyed this journey through the history and curiosities of the tambourine. And that you liked the fan art. See you in a new post. Until next time friends, greetings to all.