Mountain Ocarina: Ugly Instrument, Big Beautiful Sound
Some of the higher-quality ocarinas available are Mountain Ocarinas. While most of them aren't pretty, they are cheap, sound good with practice and are extremely sturdy.
How attractive your Mountain ocarina is depends on which model you get. The cheapest, simple polycarbonates at around $20, aren't much to look at. The instrument body is black with grey lining around the tone holes, mouthpiece and windway. The aluminum instruments are strange, yellow things that look like the musical kin of inflatable rafts, but are still an improvement over the polycarbonate ocarinas.
The hardwood models, around $80, come in various woods and are all remarkable visually. Because the hardwood instruments are essentially polycarbonates with a prettier exterior, most buyers pick the plastic ocarinas.
Two sizes, one in G and the other half an octave lower, are the only ones offered. The larger C instrument takes some practice to sound good, but once the musician has spent some time with it, the tone improves nicely. It can be played very loudly at its proper pitch by using more air, or it can be played relatively softly at a lower pitch. As the website promises, these ocarinas rarely squeak on either high or low notes, a rare quality even in better instruments.
Mountain ocarinas are incredibly durable. While other ocarinas might have better sound, you have to be careful with them: wooden ones warp and crack with extreme temperatures, and clay instruments can shatter from a long fall. The Mountain Ocarinas' resilience makes them great instruments for kids and situations where a clay ocarina might not survive.
As the maker emphasizes, these ocarinas let you take music just about anywhere. Even the larger C model fits easily in your pocket, and the G ocarina can be worn as a pendant (the C can too, but it looks weird around your neck). Both models come with removable lanyards.
Of course, there's little point in taking the ocarina with you if you don't know any music for it. Mountain Ocarinas offers a few tune books, one with over 300 Celtic pieces. Even better, the music is in standard notation, opening these vast collections to other instruments.
Don't buy a Mountain ocarina if you want a beautiful instrument. Buy one if you want an easy-to-play ocarina that sounds good and will last a lifetime.
Published by Stephen Skipp
Stephen Skipp's writing has appeared in a number of print and online sources, including the Lancaster New Era, and the Lake Superior Voice, the Lancaster Live Wire student newspaper, and the Voices student... View profile
- Save the Music...That DependsAs a music lover, as I am sure most of you reading this right now are, I would applaud and champion the phrase "save the music" as a noble and necessary idea. Let's face it, music is the universal language ...
- Used Music and Game Stores in Fargo MoorheadLooking for that great music or video game title but don't want to pay the price of new, well look no further. Try one of these great stores for music cd's, DVD's, computer games or console games and even those older...
- Music Stores on Lyons Ave in Newhall, CaliforniaLowes Music, World Music, and Vibe are each located in Newhall, in the Santa Clarita Valley, on Lyons Ave.
- Mahalia Jackson: The Afro-American Queen of Gospel MusicMahalia Jackson grew up singing Gospel music. So it's no surprise that the rest of her life revolved around it too. From the time she was four years old until her death, she sang everywhere she could.
- The Decline of MTV and VH1 as Priority Music ChannelsWhy MTV and VH1 have now turned into complete garbage when it comes to television dedicated to music.
- Hind Ocarina Instrument Review
- The Norva: Norfolk's Hottest Music Venue
- The Ultimate Guide to Downloading Music
- Guide to Downloading Music
- Patriotic Music: Surprising Secrets About Those Flag-Waving Sounds
- Meditation and Music Writing - The Art of Letting Go
- Finding Good Music Reviews Online
- Mountain ocarinas cost from $20-80
- They sound great with some practice
- They are extremely durable
9 Comments
Post a CommentActually Elana, on the Mountain Ocarina 'G' if you cover all wholes, including the EXTRA hole, you get a concert pitch of F#. But that whole is considered extra, note that the MO 'C' doesn't even have a hole there.
Just read the manual people.
If you only cover your main holes you get a concert key pitch of 'G'.
IsmaelVC, I think you missed Gerald's point.
He's stating that the root note, which is the one played with all tone holes closed, is flatter than should it be, and it's almost an F# rather than a G as it should be in a G ocarina.
Me I'm experimenting the same, with both the G and the C one. You should blow HARD to play in tune, but that way you play pretty shrilling.
Question for you: have you TRIED to check it with a tuner? There's one here, if you use windows. www.aptuner.com
Great review. I have both poly/plastic models myself and love them. No, they're not much to look at, but I've been to Europe and other places with them and not had to worry about anything happening to them. I have a clay instrument as well, and while it's certainly more attractive, the sound is no better than the Mountain instruments. And of course, I could do without the constant worry for its safety... And the much higher price tag! :o
Hehe I couldn't finish the last post.
I was going to say that I don´t think they are ugly, aud yes, they sound beautiful.
Gerald quote:
"My Mountain Ocarina in G is very flat. Root note is almost an F#. Otherwise very nice, and I too think they look just fine. As long as I play only by myself, the tuning is not too big of a deal. Stay away from the G Mountain ocarina if your looking for pitch accuracy."
I think you should see this link: "Playing the G Ocarina as a Non-transposing Instrument" http://www.concertflute.com/ocarina-technique.html#013
The reason you think the low B is a F# is.... because it is, thats why the ocarina is on the key of G major: G,A,B,C,D,F#. The fingering charts are transposed, it is explained in this PDF: "Fingerings Key of G" http://www.mountainsocarina.com/docs/key-of-g.pdf and on the link above.
So if you want to play in harmony with other instruments, you can play the ocarina with its non transposing fingerings, or you can make the other instruments transpose to the key you are into, sorry for my english if there are any mistakes : )
And also I don´
My Mountain Ocarina in G is very flat. Root note is almost an F#. Otherwise very nice, and I too think they look just fine. As long as I play only by myself, the tuning is not too big of a deal. Stay away from the G Mountain ocarina if your looking for pitch accuracy.
i agree with tom. there certainly not ugly! there beautiful instruments, and i have enough money to buy them. i cant decide if i should get a C or G, C has a low tone, and G has a high tone. anyway im ten years old, but you probably wouldnt of noticed, would you?
I think it's refreshing that Mountan Ocarinas have a simple, less flashy design. I haven't bought one yet, but my impression from the photos is that they are sleek in appearance, and therefor more appealing to me because I don't want something that looks like a toy or a "Zelda" ocarina.
I have to disagree here,
The Mountain Ocarinas are beautifull, especially the hardwood ones. I admit that they are not as flashy or ornate as some of thier clay counterparts. But Ugly? Certainly not.