In
music
Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...
, a drone is a
harmonic or
monophonic
Monaural or monophonic sound reproduction (often shortened to mono) is sound intended to be heard as if it were emanating from one position. This contrasts with stereophonic sound or ''stereo'', which uses two separate audio channels to reproduc ...
effect or
accompaniment where a
note
Note, notes, or NOTE may refer to:
Music and entertainment
* Musical note, a pitched sound (or a symbol for a sound) in music
* ''Notes'' (album), a 1987 album by Paul Bley and Paul Motian
* ''Notes'', a common (yet unofficial) shortened version ...
or
chord is continuously sounded throughout most or all of a piece. A drone may also be any part of a musical instrument used to produce this effect; an archaic term for this is ''burden'' (''bourdon'' or ''burdon'') such as a "drone
ipeof a
bagpipe
Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, ...
", the
pedal point
In music, a pedal point (also pedal note, organ point, pedal tone, or pedal) is a sustained tone, typically in the bass, during which at least one foreign (i.e. dissonant) harmony is sounded in the other parts. A pedal point sometimes function ...
in an
organ, or the lowest
course of a
lute. Α ''burden'' is also part of a song that is repeated at the end of each
stanza, such as the chorus or
refrain.
[Brabner, John H F., ed. (1884). ]
The national encyclopædia
', Vol. V, p.99. Libr. ed. William McKenzie. .
Musical effect
"Of all harmonic devices, it
droneis not only the simplest, but probably also the most fertile."
A drone effect can be achieved through a
sustain
In sound and music, an envelope describes how a sound changes over time. It may relate to elements such as amplitude (volume), frequencies (with the use of filters) or pitch. For example, a piano key, when struck and held, creates a near-immedi ...
ed sound or through
repetition
Repetition may refer to:
* Repetition (rhetorical device), repeating a word within a short space of words
*Repetition (bodybuilding), a single cycle of lifting and lowering a weight in strength training
*Working title for the 1985 slasher film '' ...
of a note. It most often establishes a
tonality
Tonality is the arrangement of pitches and/or chords of a musical work in a hierarchy of perceived relations, stabilities, attractions and directionality. In this hierarchy, the single pitch or triadic chord with the greatest stability is ca ...
upon which the rest of the piece is built. A drone can be instrumental, vocal or both. Drone (both instrumental and vocal) can be placed in different ranges of the polyphonic texture: in the lowest part, in the highest part, or in the middle. The drone is most often placed upon the
tonic or
dominant (play "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" with a drone on the , on the , or on . Compare with .). A drone on the same pitch as a melodic note tends to both hide that note and to bring attention to it by increasing its importance.
A drone differs from a
pedal tone
Pedal tones (or pedals) are special low notes in the harmonic series of brass instruments. A pedal tone has the pitch of its harmonic series' fundamental tone. Its name comes from the foot pedal keyboard pedals of a pipe organ, which are used ...
or point in degree or quality. A pedal point may be a form of
nonchord tone and thus required to
resolve unlike a drone, or a pedal point may simply be considered a shorter drone, a drone being a longer pedal point.
History and distribution
![A Lady Playing the Tanpura, ca](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/A_Lady_Playing_the_Tanpura%2C_ca._1735.jpg)
The systematic use of drones originated in instrumental music of
ancient Southwest Asia
The ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia (modern Iraq, southeast Turkey, southwest Iran and northeastern Syria), ancient Egypt, ancient Iran ( Elam, ...
, and spread north and west to
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
and south to
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
. It is used in
Indian music
Owing to India's vastness and diversity, Indian music encompasses numerous genres in multiple varieties and forms which include classical music, folk (Bollywood), rock, and pop. It has a history spanning several millennia and developed ove ...
and is played with the tanpura (or
tambura) and other Indian drone instruments like the
ottu, the
ektar
Kodak Ektar is a professional color negative film introduced in 2008, designed for nature, outdoors, fashion, and product photography. The film offers ultra-fine grains, ultra-vivid colors, and high saturation, and is available in Film speed, ISO ...
, the
dotara
The ''dotara'' (or ''dotar'') Persian ( bn, দোতারা, as, দোতাৰা, literally, 'Of or having two strings') is a two, four, or sometimes five- stringed musical instrument, originating from Iran and Central Asia. It is comm ...
(or dotar;
dutar in
Persian Central Asia), the
surpeti, the surmandal (or
swarmandal
The ''swarmandal'' ( hi, स्वरमण्डल ), ''surmandal,'' or Indian harp is a plucked box zither, originating from India, similar to the qanun that is today most commonly used as an accompanying instrument for vocal Indian classi ...
) and the
shankh (conch shell). Most of the types of bagpipes that exist worldwide have up to three drones, making this one of the first instruments that comes to mind when speaking of drone music. In America, most forms of the African-influenced
banjo contain a drone string. Since the 1960s, the drone has become a prominent feature in
drone music
Drone music, drone-based music, or simply drone, is a minimalist genre that emphasizes the use of sustained sounds, notes, or tone clusters – called drones. It is typically characterized by lengthy audio programs with relatively slight harm ...
and other forms of
avant-garde music.
In vocal music drone is particularly widespread in traditional musical cultures, particularly in Europe, Polynesia and Melanesia. It is also present in some isolated regions of Asia (like among Pearl-divers in the Persian Gulf, some national minorities of South-West China, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Afghanistan).
Part(s) of a musical instrument
![Golowan Festival Penzance June 2005 Mid-Argyl band2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/Golowan_Festival_Penzance_June_2005_Mid-Argyl_band2.jpg)
''Drone'' is also the term for the part of a
musical instrument intended to produce the drone effect's sustained
pitch, generally without the ongoing attention of the player. Different melodic Indian instruments (e.g. the
sitar
The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in medieval India, flourished in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form ...
, the
sarod
The sarod is a stringed instrument, used in Hindustani music on the Indian subcontinent. Along with the sitar, it is among the most popular and prominent instruments. It is known for a deep, weighty, introspective sound, in contrast with the sweet ...
, the
sarangi
The sārangī is a bowed, short-necked string instrument played in traditional music from South Asia – Punjabi folk music, Rajasthani folk music, and Boro folk music (there known as the ''serja'') – in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. It is ...
and the
rudra veena
The ''Rudra veena'' ( sa, रुद्र वीणा) (also spelled ''Rudraveena'' or ''Rudra vina'')—also called ''Bīn'' in North India—is a large plucked string instrument used in Hindustani Music, especially dhrupad. It is one of the m ...
) contain a drone. For example, the sitar features three or four resonating drone strings, and Indian notes (
sargam) are practiced to a drone.
Bagpipe
Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, ...
s (like the
Great Highland Bagpipe and the
Zampogna) feature a number of drone pipes, giving the instruments their characteristic sounds. A
hurdy-gurdy
The hurdy-gurdy is a string instrument that produces sound by a hand-crank-turned, rosined wheel rubbing against the strings. The wheel functions much like a violin bow, and single notes played on the instrument sound similar to those of a vi ...
has one or more drone strings. The fifth string on a five-string
banjo is a drone string with a separate tuning peg that places the end of the string five
frets down the neck of the instrument; this string is usually tuned to the same note as that which the first string produces when played at the fifth fret, and the drone string is seldom fretted. The bass strings of the
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
n
drone zither
Drone zithers or droned zithers are stringed instruments of the zither family that have few (sometimes only one) melodic strings and a greater number of drone strings. The oldest known form of drone zither is the Scheitholt.
The Scheitholt deve ...
also freely resonate as a drone. The Welsh
Crwth
The crwth (, also called a crowd or rote or crotta) is a bowed lyre, a type of stringed instrument, associated particularly with Welsh music, now archaic but once widely played in Europe. Four historical examples have survived and are to be fo ...
also features two drone strings.
Use in musical compositions
Composers of
Western classical music
Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" ...
occasionally used a drone (especially one on open fifths) to evoke a rustic or archaic atmosphere, perhaps echoing that of Scottish or other
early or
folk music
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...
. Examples include the following:
*
Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led ...
,
Symphony No. 104, "London", opening of finale, accompanying a folk melody.
*
Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...
,
Symphony No. 6, "Pastoral", opening and trio section of scherzo.
*
Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...
, Symphony No. 3 in A minor, opus 56, 'Scottish', especially the finale.
*
Chopin,
Mazurkas, Op. 7: all five contain a drone.
*
Berlioz,
Harold in Italy
''Harold en Italie,'' ''symphonie avec un alto principal'' (English: ''Harold in Italy,'' ''symphony with viola obbligato''), as the manuscript calls and describes it, is a four-movement orchestral work by Hector Berlioz, his Opus 16, H. 68, wr ...
, accompanying oboes as they imitate the
piffero
The ''piffero'' () or ''piffaro'' is a double-reed musical instrument of the oboe family with a conical bore ( Sachs-Hornbostel category 422.112).
It is used to play music in the tradition of the ', an area of mountains and valleys in the north-w ...
of Italian peasants
*
Richard Strauss,
Also sprach Zarathustra
', Op. 30 (, ''Thus Spoke Zarathustra'' or ''Thus Spake Zarathustra'') is a tone poem by Richard Strauss, composed in 1896 and inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche's philosophical 1883–1885 novel ''Thus Spoke Zarathustra''.[Mahler
Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and the modernism ...]
,
Symphony No. 1, introduction; a seven-octave drone on A evokes "the awakening of nature at the earliest dawn".
*
Bartók, in his adaptations for piano of Hungarian and other folk music.
The best-known drone piece in the concert repertory is the Prelude to
Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
's ''
Das Rheingold
''Das Rheingold'' (; ''The Rhinegold''), WWV 86A, is the first of the four music dramas that constitute Richard Wagner's '' Der Ring des Nibelungen'' (English: ''The Ring of the Nibelung''). It was performed, as a single opera, at the National ...
'' (1854) wherein low horns and bass instruments sustain an E throughout the entire movement. The atmospheric ostinato effect that opens Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, which inspired similar gestures in the opening of all the symphonies of
Anton Bruckner, represents a gesture derivative of drones.
One consideration for composers of
common practice
In European art music, the common-practice period is the era of the tonal system. Most of its features persisted from the mid-Baroque period through the Classical and Romantic periods, roughly from 1650 to 1900. There was much stylistic evoluti ...
keyboard music was
equal temperament. The adjustments lead to slight
mistunings as heard against a sustained drone. Even so, drones have often been used to spotlight
dissonance purposefully.
Modern concert musicians make frequent use of drones, often with just or other non-equal tempered tunings. Drones are a regular feature in the music of composers indebted to the
chant tradition, such as
Arvo Pärt,
Sofia Gubaidulina, and
John Tavener
Sir John Kenneth Tavener (28 January 1944 – 12 November 2013) was an English composer, known for his extensive output of choral religious works. Among his best known works are '' The Lamb'' (1982), ''The Protecting Veil'' (1988), and '' Song ...
. The single-tones that provided the impetus for
minimalism through the music of
La Monte Young and many of his students qualify as drones.
David First
David First (born August 20, 1953) is an American composer. His music most often deals with drones and interference beats, the latter aligning his music with that of Alvin Lucier. He usually plays computer or guitar and has led the World Casio ...
, the band
Coil, the early experimental compilations of
John Cale (''
Sun Blindness Music
''New York in the 1960s: Sun Blindness Music'', better known as ''Sun Blindness Music'', is an album by John Cale released in 2001. It is the first of a loose anthology of experimental albums recorded during Cale's tenure with the Theatre of E ...
'',
Dream Interpretation
Dream interpretation is the process of assigning meaning to dreams. Although associated with some forms of psychotherapy, there is no reliable evidence that understanding or interpreting dreams has a positive impact on one's mental health.
In m ...
, and ''
Stainless Gamelan
''John Cale: Inside the Dream Syndicate Volume 3, Stainless Gamelan'' or simply ''Stainless Gamelan'' (and sometimes incorrectly ''Stainless "Steel" Gamelan'', after the first track on the album) is an album by John Cale, better known for his ...
''),
Pauline Oliveros
Pauline Oliveros (May 30, 1932 – November 24, 2016) was an American composer, accordionist and a central figure in the development of post-war experimental and electronic music.
She was a founding member of the San Francisco Tape Music Cente ...
and
Stuart Dempster
Stuart Dempster (born July 7, 1936 in Berkeley, California) is a trombonist, didjeridu player, improviser, and composer.
Biography
After Dempster completed his studies at San Francisco State College, he was appointed assistant professor at th ...
,
Alvin Lucier (''
Music On A Long Thin Wire ″''Music on a Long Thin Wire'' is a musical piece by Alvin Lucier conceived in 1977.
In his own words (1992): "''Music on a Long Thin Wire'' is constructed as follows: the wire is extended across a large room, clamped to tables at both ends. Th ...
''),
Ellen Fullman,
Lawrence Chandler and
Arnold Dreyblatt
Arnold Dreyblatt (born 1953) is an American composer, performance artist and visual artist.
Biography
Arnold Dreyblatt was born in 1953 in New York City. His mother, Lucille Wallenrod (1918–1998), was a painter.
He started his studies at W ...
all make notable use of drones. The music of
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
composer
Giacinto Scelsi is essentially drone-based. Shorter drones or the general concept of a continuous element are often used by many other composers. Other composers whose music is entirely based on drones include
Charlemagne Palestine
Chaim Moshe Tzadik Palestine (born 1947), known professionally as Charlemagne Palestine, is an American visual artist and musician. He has been described as being one of the founders of New York school of minimalist music, first initiated by La M ...
and
Phill Niblock
Phill Niblock (born October 2, 1933 in Anderson, Indiana) is an American composer, filmmaker, videographer, and director of Experimental Intermedia,Alan Licht, ''Common Tones: Selected Interviews with Artists and Musicians 1995-2020'', Blank Forms ...
. ''The Immovable Do'' by
Percy Grainger
Percy Aldridge Grainger (born George Percy Grainger; 8 July 188220 February 1961) was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist who lived in the United States from 1914 and became an American citizen in 1918. In the course of a long an ...
contains a sustained high C (heard in the upper woodwinds) that lasts for the entirety of the piece. Drone pieces also include
Loren Rush
Loren is a given name, nickname and surname which may refer to:
Given name Men
* Loren Acton (born 1936), American physicist and astronaut
* Loren C. Ball (born 1948), amateur astronomer who has discovered more than 100 asteroids
* Loren M. Ber ...
's ''Hard Music'' (1970) and
Folke Rabe's ''Was??'' (1968), as well as
Robert Erickson
Robert Erickson (March 7, 1917 – April 24, 1997) was an American composer.
Education
Erickson was born in Marquette, Michigan. He studied with Ernst Krenek from 1936 to 1947: "I had already studied—and abandoned—the twelve tone sys ...
's ''Down at Piraeus''. The avant-garde guitarist
Glenn Branca Glenn may refer to:
Name or surname
* Glenn (name)
* John Glenn, U.S. astronaut
Cultivars
* Glenn (mango)
* a 6-row barley variety
Places
In the United States:
* Glenn, California
* Glenn County, California
* Glenn, Georgia, a settleme ...
also used drones extensively. French singer
Camille uses a continuous B throughout her album
Le_Fil.
Drones continue to be characteristic of folk music. Early songs by
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
employ the effect with a retuned guitar in "
Masters of War
"Masters of War" is a song by Bob Dylan, written over the winter of 1962–63 and released on the album ''The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan'' in the spring of 1963. The song's melody was adapted from the traditional "Nottamun Town." Dylan's lyrics are ...
" and "
Mr. Tambourine Man". The song "
You Will Be My Ain True Love", written by Sting for the 2003 movie ''
Cold Mountain'' and performed by Alison Krauss and Sting, uses drone bass.
Drones are used widely in the
blues and blues-derived genres.
Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as " rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis ma ...
featured drones in solos and fills. Drones were virtually absent in original
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...
music, but gained popularity after
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...
used drones in a few popular compositions (for example, "
Blackbird" has a drone in the middle of a texture throughout the whole song, "
Tomorrow Never Knows
"Tomorrow Never Knows" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written primarily by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released in August 1966 as the final track on their album ''Revolver'', although it was the firs ...
" makes use of
tambura). They also used high drone for the dramatic effect in some sections of several of their compositions (like the last verses of "
Yesterday" and "
Eleanor Rigby
"Eleanor Rigby" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1966 album ''Revolver''. It was also issued on a double A-side single, paired with " Yellow Submarine". The song was written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to L ...
").
Roy Ayers
Roy Ayers (born September 10, 1940) is an American funk, soul, and jazz composer, vibraphone player, and music producer. Ayers began his career as a post-bop jazz artist, releasing several albums with Atlantic Records, before his tenure at Po ...
' ''
Everybody Loves the Sunshine'' (1976) has a high sustained synth string note through most of the song. The rock band
U2 uses drones in their compositions particularly widely. In the
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
song "
In The Light", a
keyboard
Keyboard may refer to:
Text input
* Keyboard, part of a typewriter
* Computer keyboard
** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping
** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware
Music
* Musi ...
drone is used throughout the song, mostly in the intro.
Use for musical training
Drones are used by a number of music education programs for ear training and pitch awareness, as well as a way to improvise ensemble music. A
shruti box
A shruti box (sruti box or surpeti) is an instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, that traditionally works on a system of bellows. It is similar to a harmonium and is used to provide a drone in a practice session or concert of In ...
is often used by vocalists in this style of musical training. Drones, owing to their
acoustic properties and following their longstanding use in
ritual
A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized ...
and chant, can be useful in constructing aural structures outside
common practice
In European art music, the common-practice period is the era of the tonal system. Most of its features persisted from the mid-Baroque period through the Classical and Romantic periods, roughly from 1650 to 1900. There was much stylistic evoluti ...
expectations of
harmony and melody.
See also
*
Drone metal
Drone metal or drone doom is a style of heavy metal that melds the slow tempos and heaviness of doom metal with the long-duration tones of drone music. Drone metal is sometimes associated with post-metal or experimental metal.
Characteristics
...
- a form of heavy metal music focusing almost entirely on droning, heavily downtuned
electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gu ...
and
bass guitar
The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...
, often lacking vocals or drums.
* ''
Jivari
''Javārī'', (also: 'joārī', 'juvārī', 'jvārī' (alternately transcribed 'jawārī', 'jowārī', 'joyārī', 'juwārī', and 'jwārī')) in Indian classical music refers to the overtone-rich "buzzing" sound characteristic of classical In ...
''
References
{{Authority control
Accompaniment
Musical techniques
Carnatic music instruments
Indian musical instruments