My personal opinion is that it is not based on the type or instrument (flute, fiddle, etc) but that it is the nature of the instrument. A flute with a loud brawny sound is most likely to be a guy, and then should be appropriately named.
Then, are there tendencies? Most banjos that I've met seem to be male. While most harps are female. Fiddles seem to be split pretty evenly to my reckoning. And then do our genders or playing styles reflect which instrument we choose?
Right now I have two fiddles: a beautiful old French shop violin circa 1900s with a nicely flamed one-piece back and a floral inlay on the tailpiece, and an ugly old trade fiddle with nasty varnish from about the same era that is practically worthless but doesn't sound bad.
I call them Lady and The Tramp. One is obviously feminine and the other very masculine...you can guess which is which.
my acoustic fiddle is a boy, Rónan, the electric...i think it's a girl but doesn't have a name yet even though i've owned it longer...it's just too cybernetic to have a personality I guess.
That sounds lke a frustrating situation for both concertinas.
I think that both of my fiddles are straight, but I haven't had a new 1/8 fiddle appear in the china cabinet yet. Maybe I need to play some Barry White for them and leave them alone for a while...
Blues harps are mouth ~organs~ and are about six inches long (a little short, I know), so they're male. Mind you, they do wail quite a lot... Chromatic harps must be male as they have a knob on the end. Double-sided tremolos most useful in ITM are in D/G, but you can get them in A/C and D/C so I'm less sure about them.
My accordions are definitely female because to made sweet music you have to finger and caress the buttons. It is also a big help with getting the music started if you know where the G spot is. Right there between the E and the C spots. I could never figure out the sex of the uileann pipes however. I've been led to believe that even an Octopus has trouble with them
Most of my instruments don't seem to have a gender. But there is this one cheap fiddle I'm modifying, and despite my having drawn floral patterns all over him, he does seem to be a guy. His name is Sven.
No, uilleann pipes are definitely male. They cause lots of pain and hassle and can be quite bewildering to sort out why things aren't working out right and seem to want contradictory things. But you keep going back to them anyway.
both my guitars are female........ i think it depends on the instrucment and the feeling you get off them. I still dont get why are ships are female? maybe it all to do with the head case thats playing the particular instrument.
There's a flute on my coffee table that's long and black and weighs a ton. It feels like a billy club. You could bludgeon a man to death in a single blow.
We can rely on the French here. La flûte. And who better than the French to rely on in matters de la sexualite?
(If that circumflex doesn't survive a trip through cyberspace, trust me, it was there when it left here).
The French version of Wikipedia advises:
Terme générique, une flûte est un instrument de musique à vent dont le son est créé par la vibration d'un souffle l’air se fendant sur un biseau droit....
As an Irish Australian, I am in a particualry good position to translate:
General term, a flute is a musical wind instrument of which the sound has been created by waving a souffle in the air while warding off a bison with the right hand.
(If there are any further questions, I will try to help...)
I just got back from playing at a wedding.....and thought I'd check in on the "latest" news on the yellow board. Now, mind you, I mostly just lurk about, not contributing, but this thread is much too tempting to not make a comment! I have'nt laughed so hard in a looooonnnng time!
And, just for the record, I have two fiddles, both male, as well as a male mandolin.
Thanks, everybody, for the hearty belly-laughs at the end of a very long day!
Thank you, seisflutes, you are too kind. But yes, I do try very hard with translations, particularly to avoid the oft-noted danger of producing a too-literal translation, as often happens when one is tempted to look up a word one doesn't know. Rest assured, none of that when you leave the translation up to me!
In German the sex of things is not always dertermined by logic. But it's clearly defined most of the time. Here goes:
die Geige, die Fiedel - she
die Gitarre
die Flöte
die Harfe
die Konzertina
die Trommel (drum)
die Mundharmonika (mouth harp)
die Mandoline
die Bouzouki
der Dudelsack (pipes) - he
der/das Banjo
das Akkordeon - it
BTW it's DER Computer as it rarely does what it's told
I'm not sure as to the gender of my flute...but it's made by a Mr. Terry McGee, who I see has posted on here! It has a lovely sound and tone, and very lightweight, too; maybe it's female then. Mr. McGee, thank you for making such a fine instrument!
Ha ha! ... very troll! ... and here was me thinking bodhrans were made from those raceing dogs, greyhounds, whippetts, or something.
To get back to the topic of this thread, my old fiddle is definitely the old girl, patched and mended, a few scars, a tad frail, but still with a strong voice and a lot to say when she wants to. Were she human, in her youth she would have been an Emily Pankhurst, but she has mellowed, gotta love her for what she is.
My two fiddle are respectively like the women who gave them to me. So I named them after their pirate names. my Barracuda fiddle ( a Satori Etude from the late 19990s) has a blond varnish can be heard from a distance and has a bright, flashy tone.
My Philistina fiddle (Pre-WWII German made Strad copy) OTOH has a dark finish and a sweeter, queiter tone. Both fiddles are definately straight (well sometimes I wonder about Philistina...).
Being both a violist and a violinist, I essentially have 2 fiddles (though I more often play classical music with my viola). My viola is definitely a post-menopausal woman. It still has a very sweet sound but the instrument itself is scarred (it is supposed that the maker attempted to pass it off as a 1720s Italian masterpiece based on the false label and some artifical aging via patchy staining and curious knife markings, even though it is clearly German craftsmanship from the late 1800s). It is also slightly warped near the f-holes due to age, and every day I pick it up it evokes a greater and greater sense of frailty.
As for my dear violin, it couldn't be in greater contrast. If ever a fiddle was dripping with youthful testosterone... The local violin shop owner and staff now know me as "the one who bought the monster".
Some instruments have very high masculinity or feminity but some are less distinct in that regard. I think it has more to do with an instrument's individual timbre, feel, response, etc. rather than the type of instrument.
I've a small dwarf-like harp called Harold, it's definately male.
Then 2 twin-harps (one is mine, the other my mother's) called "To be" and "or not to be". I don't know.. i can't decide whether they're male or female <.<
But i'd say my whistle is a boy before his puberty vocal change
Instrument genders
Instrument genders
While discussing the name of upmine3's accordion (http://www.thesession.org/discussions/display/15391/comments#comment318108), the question of gender arose. How do you tell if your instrument is male or female? Are all accordions masculine in nature, and all harps feminine?
My personal opinion is that it is not based on the type or instrument (flute, fiddle, etc) but that it is the nature of the instrument. A flute with a loud brawny sound is most likely to be a guy, and then should be appropriately named.
Then, are there tendencies? Most banjos that I've met seem to be male. While most harps are female. Fiddles seem to be split pretty evenly to my reckoning. And then do our genders or playing styles reflect which instrument we choose?
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by Red Crow
Re: Instrument genders
oh god, is that a joke?!!
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by martin t
Re: Instrument genders
Right now I have two fiddles: a beautiful old French shop violin circa 1900s with a nicely flamed one-piece back and a floral inlay on the tailpiece, and an ugly old trade fiddle with nasty varnish from about the same era that is practically worthless but doesn't sound bad.
I call them Lady and The Tramp. One is obviously feminine and the other very masculine...you can guess which is which.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by Marklar
Re: Instrument genders
I have one male concertina and one female, and I think the female is a lesbian.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by Dow
Re: Instrument genders
my acoustic fiddle is a boy, Rónan, the electric...i think it's a girl but doesn't have a name yet even though i've owned it longer...it's just too cybernetic to have a personality I guess.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by matan_fiddler
Re: Instrument genders
That sounds lke a frustrating situation for both concertinas.
I think that both of my fiddles are straight, but I haven't had a new 1/8 fiddle appear in the china cabinet yet. Maybe I need to play some Barry White for them and leave them alone for a while...
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by Marklar
Re: Instrument genders
Now all we have to do is find out how the bodhrans reproduce and put a stop to it so we can all live happily ever after.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by Dow
Re: Instrument genders
Isn't the bodhran female and the stick male? Both forever virgins, but not for the want of trying.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by llig leahcim
Re: Instrument genders
The pipes are definitely female, because they can multi-task and they never keep quiet. And they squeak when you squeeze them.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by granama
Re: Instrument genders
I'm lucky Jeremy isn't a woman.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by granama
Re: Instrument genders
Blues harps are mouth ~organs~ and are about six inches long (a little short, I know), so they're male. Mind you, they do wail quite a lot... Chromatic harps must be male as they have a knob on the end. Double-sided tremolos most useful in ITM are in D/G, but you can get them in A/C and D/C so I'm less sure about them.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by Steve Shaw
Re: Instrument genders
My accordions are definitely female because to made sweet music you have to finger and caress the buttons. It is also a big help with getting the music started if you know where the G spot is. Right there between the E and the C spots. I could never figure out the sex of the uileann pipes however. I've been led to believe that even an Octopus has trouble with them
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by Free Reed
Re: Instrument genders
Most of my instruments don't seem to have a gender. But there is this one cheap fiddle I'm modifying, and despite my having drawn floral patterns all over him, he does seem to be a guy. His name is Sven.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by seisflutes
Re: Instrument genders
I've got 3 whistles - one of each.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by maxF
Re: Instrument genders
No, uilleann pipes are definitely male. They cause lots of pain and hassle and can be quite bewildering to sort out why things aren't working out right and seem to want contradictory things. But you keep going back to them anyway.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by TheSilverSpear
Re: Instrument genders
Or maybe I need to find better men. Or better pipes.
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by TheSilverSpear
Re: Instrument genders
both my bouzoukis are female..they demand to be played gently and sing when capoed high
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by ecidralla
Re: Instrument genders
my banjo is a guy..its crude, blunt and dies out quickly
# Posted on October 7th 2007 by ecidralla
Re: Instrument genders
My guitars are rather curvy - so I suppose they are female. But, I don't ask, they don't tell.
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by grumblingoldwoman
Re: Instrument genders
both my guitars are female........ i think it depends on the instrucment and the feeling you get off them. I still dont get why are ships are female? maybe it all to do with the head case thats playing the particular instrument.
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by Lollypoll
Re: Instrument genders
Sue's a phone, Clarrie Net, Vi Ola, Har Monica - no mistaking their gender. Nor can there be much doubt about Tim Pani, Mel Odeon and Hugh Phonium.
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by Steve Shaw
Re: Instrument genders
There's a flute on my coffee table that's long and black and weighs a ton. It feels like a billy club. You could bludgeon a man to death in a single blow.
Must be female.
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by sbhikes
Re: Instrument genders
We can rely on the French here. La flûte. And who better than the French to rely on in matters de la sexualite?
(If that circumflex doesn't survive a trip through cyberspace, trust me, it was there when it left here).
The French version of Wikipedia advises:
Terme générique, une flûte est un instrument de musique à vent dont le son est créé par la vibration d'un souffle l’air se fendant sur un biseau droit....
As an Irish Australian, I am in a particualry good position to translate:
General term, a flute is a musical wind instrument of which the sound has been created by waving a souffle in the air while warding off a bison with the right hand.
(If there are any further questions, I will try to help...)
Terry
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by Terry McGee
Re: Instrument genders
Wow, that's a truly excellent translation Terry!
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by seisflutes
Re: Instrument genders
I just got back from playing at a wedding.....and thought I'd check in on the "latest" news on the yellow board. Now, mind you, I mostly just lurk about, not contributing, but this thread is much too tempting to not make a comment! I have'nt laughed so hard in a looooonnnng time!
And, just for the record, I have two fiddles, both male, as well as a male mandolin.
Thanks, everybody, for the hearty belly-laughs at the end of a very long day!
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by Beccavio
Re: Instrument genders
Thank you, seisflutes, you are too kind. But yes, I do try very hard with translations, particularly to avoid the oft-noted danger of producing a too-literal translation, as often happens when one is tempted to look up a word one doesn't know. Rest assured, none of that when you leave the translation up to me!
Terry
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by Terry McGee
Re: Instrument genders
The guitars have strings attached, definitely female.
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by mcknowall
Re: Instrument genders
In German the sex of things is not always dertermined by logic. But it's clearly defined most of the time. Here goes:
die Geige, die Fiedel - she
die Gitarre
die Flöte
die Harfe
die Konzertina
die Trommel (drum)
die Mundharmonika (mouth harp)
die Mandoline
die Bouzouki
der Dudelsack (pipes) - he
der/das Banjo
das Akkordeon - it
BTW it's DER Computer as it rarely does what it's told
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by kuec
Re: Instrument genders
Were the aforementioned 8-string mini-jobbie to be female, I suppose it would have to be called a womandolin.
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by Steve Shaw
Re: Instrument genders
"das Akkordeon - it
Die Ziehharmonika for diatonic accordions. Erika and Erica are definitively females.
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by Risto
Re: Instrument genders
And Morgane must be a female accordion dressed in mens clothing....
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by Risto
Re: Instrument genders
I'm not sure as to the gender of my flute...but it's made by a Mr. Terry McGee, who I see has posted on here! It has a lovely sound and tone, and very lightweight, too; maybe it's female then. Mr. McGee, thank you for making such a fine instrument!
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by mellow yellow
Re: Instrument genders
I think bodhrans must all be female. I've often heard the anguished cry "Screw you and your effin' bodhran!"
# Posted on October 8th 2007 by Steve Shaw
Re: Instrument genders
Bodhrans are gods, they do not have human characteristics.
# Posted on October 9th 2007 by bodhran bliss
Re: Instrument genders
Ah, but are there billy bodhrans and nanny bodhrans? Y'know, that could almost be a serious question!
# Posted on October 9th 2007 by Steve Shaw
Re: Instrument genders
You're kidding.
# Posted on October 9th 2007 by mcknowall
Re: Instrument genders
Kidding, get it?
# Posted on October 9th 2007 by mcknowall
Re: Instrument genders
Yep, I get it. I'm not as gruff as you seem to think, you know.
# Posted on October 9th 2007 by Steve Shaw
Re: Instrument genders
Gruff, get it?
# Posted on October 9th 2007 by Steve Shaw
Re: Instrument genders
wot's gruff?
# Posted on October 9th 2007 by mcknowall
Re: Instrument genders
*Groan* Three Billy Goats Gruff for Pete's sake! Come to think of it, weren't they hassled by a nasty troll who resided under a bridge?
# Posted on October 9th 2007 by Steve Shaw
Re: Instrument genders
Oh.
Taxi!
# Posted on October 10th 2007 by mcknowall
Re: Instrument genders
Ha ha! ... very troll! ... and here was me thinking bodhrans were made from those raceing dogs, greyhounds, whippetts, or something.
To get back to the topic of this thread, my old fiddle is definitely the old girl, patched and mended, a few scars, a tad frail, but still with a strong voice and a lot to say when she wants to. Were she human, in her youth she would have been an Emily Pankhurst, but she has mellowed, gotta love her for what she is.
# Posted on October 10th 2007 by Clear Drops
Re: Instrument genders
"whippetts"
No, you just misheard.
"Whip it outta here" or words to that effect.
# Posted on October 10th 2007 by Johannes J
Re: Instrument genders
A good bodhran should be like Emily Pankhurst. Chained to the railings.
# Posted on October 10th 2007 by Steve Shaw
Re: Instrument genders
My two fiddle are respectively like the women who gave them to me. So I named them after their pirate names. my Barracuda fiddle ( a Satori Etude from the late 19990s) has a blond varnish can be heard from a distance and has a bright, flashy tone.
My Philistina fiddle (Pre-WWII German made Strad copy) OTOH has a dark finish and a sweeter, queiter tone. Both fiddles are definately straight (well sometimes I wonder about Philistina...).
# Posted on October 10th 2007 by Pirate-Fiddler
Re: Instrument genders
"Sue's a phone, Clarrie Net, Vi Ola, Har Monica - no mistaking their gender. Nor can there be much doubt about Tim Pani, Mel Odeon and Hugh Phonium."
Is Vi O'Lin therefore an Irish Lass?
# Posted on October 10th 2007 by Pirate-Fiddler
Re: Instrument genders
And if you happen to bump into her in Spain you say "Vi! Hola!"
# Posted on October 10th 2007 by Steve Shaw
Re: Instrument genders
Gosh, I love this discussion.
Being both a violist and a violinist, I essentially have 2 fiddles (though I more often play classical music with my viola). My viola is definitely a post-menopausal woman. It still has a very sweet sound but the instrument itself is scarred (it is supposed that the maker attempted to pass it off as a 1720s Italian masterpiece based on the false label and some artifical aging via patchy staining and curious knife markings, even though it is clearly German craftsmanship from the late 1800s). It is also slightly warped near the f-holes due to age, and every day I pick it up it evokes a greater and greater sense of frailty.
As for my dear violin, it couldn't be in greater contrast. If ever a fiddle was dripping with youthful testosterone... The local violin shop owner and staff now know me as "the one who bought the monster".
Some instruments have very high masculinity or feminity but some are less distinct in that regard. I think it has more to do with an instrument's individual timbre, feel, response, etc. rather than the type of instrument.
# Posted on October 13th 2007 by arya3
Re: Instrument genders
I've a small dwarf-like harp called Harold, it's definately male.
Then 2 twin-harps (one is mine, the other my mother's) called "To be" and "or not to be". I don't know.. i can't decide whether they're male or female <.<
But i'd say my whistle is a boy before his puberty vocal change
# Posted on November 18th 2007 by Henni