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The erkencho is a folk clarinet of the northern region of the
The erkencho is a folk clarinet of the northern region of the Gran Chaco
The Gran Chaco or Dry Chaco is a sparsely populated, hot and semiarid lowland natural region of the Río de la Plata basin, divided among eastern Bolivia, western Paraguay, northern Argentina, and a portion of the Brazilian states of Mato Gro ...
of South America, particularly northwestern Argentina. It consists of a tube 10–13 inches (25–33 cm) long, with a single reed and a cow or goat horn attached at the end, as a hornpipe
The hornpipe is any of several dance forms played and danced in Britain and Ireland and elsewhere from the 16th century until the present day. The earliest references to hornpipes are from England with Hugh Aston's Hornepype of 1522 and others r ...
. Some writers consider the erkencho to be a smaller variant of the erke
The erke (alternatively erque, coroneta, or quepa) is a large labrophone (lip reed) instrument native to the Gran Chaco of Bolivia, northern Chile, and Argentine Northwest.
Construction
The erke is composed of two or more lengths of cane join ...
, with the name ''erkencho'' being a diminutive thereof.
History
The erkencho can be traced back in 20th century when Andean folkloric musicians used it to harmonize their music. Although the erkencho is played within secular music, the erke has been most notable as a ritualistic instrument. In fact, certain communities in the Gran Chaco consider playing erke for secular reasons as taboo. * In ancient days, the erke was played in the winter season, which was characterized by snow, leaving them to believe the erke was responsible for snowy weather. In the spring and summer seasons, people avoiding playing the erke in the fear that it would snow, ultimately affecting them negatively given the fact that farming was the main source of income at the time.Construction and Design
The materials for making this instrument were readily available in Gran Chaco thanks to the floral characteristics of the region. The high temperatures of the region with a rich ecosystem including forests, savannah, cactus and wetlands. It is in these ecosystems that they get the canes or reeds from the wetlands to make the erke instrument. Additionally, with the strong presence of cattle from farming, as well as the presence of other wild animals with horns in nearby forests, the natives would get ready supply of horns to construct their aerophones. The erkencho is fairly simple in design, constructed out of: * A long cane or reed * Wool * A Horn * Thread or glueSee also
*Shofar
A shofar ( ; from he, שׁוֹפָר, ) is an ancient musical horn typically made of a ram's horn, used for Jewish religious purposes. Like the modern bugle, the shofar lacks pitch-altering devices, with all pitch control done by varying the ...
References
* Anthony Baines, ''Lexikon der Musikinstrumente'', J. B.Metzler Verlag, Stuttgart und Bärenreiter Verlag, Kassel, 1996, * J. B.Metzler, "Lexikon der Musikinstrumente" Bärenreiter Verlag * Erkencho Instrument, Exotic Instruments http://www.exoticinstrument.com/erkencho-instrument/ Hornpipes Argentine musical instruments Indigenous culture of the Gran Chaco {{argentina-stub