The Ocarina as a Starter Instrument for Young Music Students

Many children express an interest in learning a musical instrument but are not sure which one they want to play. Often parents themselves initiate the music studies and want to give the children some time and basic musical experience before asking the youngsters to make a permanent choice. In such cases, the ocarina is an ideal starter instrument.

The Ocarina
The ocarina is a folk instrument whose early versions began thousands of years ago. Over the centuries, it has appeared in various forms in a wide range of cultures, including ancient Egypt and China.

The standard modern Western version of the instrument was developed in the 1860s by an Italian named Giuseppe Donati. The modern name, too, is Italian: ocarina originated as an Italian dialectal name meaning literally "little goose," a diminutive of oca ("goose"), a fanciful reference to the shape of the instrument.

The ocarina has an oval body, looking somewhat like a fat potato (in the United States, the instrument is sometimes called a sweet potato), with 4-12 (usually 8-10) finger holes and a projecting mouthpiece. Genuine folk versions are made of various forms of earth material, such as molded clay. Modern Western versions are found in ceramic, wood, glass, metal, and most commonly plastic.

Advantages as a Starter Instrument
(1) Simplicity of tone production. The ocarina is similar to the recorder, which is also often used as a starter instrument. With each instrument, the player puts a mouthpiece between the lips, blows air into the instrument, and varies tones by opening and closing holes with the fingers.

If a young player blows too hard into a rcorder, the instrument often emits a shrill, piercing noise. This touchiness in the recorder can discourage beginners.

The ocarina, however, presents no such problem. If blown too hard, the ocarina simply does not sound at all. The player can relax and try again without any fear of producing embarassing screeches.

The ocarina has a soft, pure tone. Unlike most other wind instruments, it has no audible overtones. Its compact globe shape allows the air within the instrument to vibrate as a whole instead of in the sections that would produce higher partials.

(2) Inexpensiveness. The plastic ocarina is one of the cheapest instruments to buy and requires virtually no upkeep expenses, such as reeds, pads, strings, or oil.

(3) Wide range of sizes. The ocarina comes in many different sizes suitable for young students. The smallest is about the size of a matchbox.

(4) Large repertoire. Despite the fact that it is relatively little known among the general populace, the ocarina has a large quantity of music available. The young student can play not only folk tunes, for which the instrument has a natural affinity, but also arrangements of various kinds of classical and popular music.

(5) Ease of handling. Because of the wide range of sizes available, the selected ocarina should fit comfortably within the cupped hand of any student. The instrument can easily be carried by a lanyard (a cord with an attached hook) or simply by a string around the neck.

(6) Ease of learning. Students learn scales and simple tunes rapidly on the ocarina. This quick success tends to encourage students to keep up their music studies.

In many ways, then, the ocarina is a great starter instrument. While acquiring basic musical skills and experiencing the motivating joys of musical success, students can take whatever time is necessary to decide on a permanent instrument.