Constructed language based on music
Anyone who is close to me knows about my favorite on-going thought experiment to construct a language based on a simple musical pattern. I originally thought a pentatonic scale would be fitting, due to the easily distinguishable tones and limit of only 5 notes. My idea, when I first toyed around with it, was that this was a language made by a tribe of forest dwelling beings who lacked vocal cords but were of the same intelligence as humans. Therefore, I would prefer my language to have a scale that is more natural than the 12 note chromatic.
I have recently discovered a constructed language called Solresol, and a modern revamping of it named Sarus, that uses a 7 note scale.
I also decided it was important to have an instrument central to the group. A wind instrument seemed to make the most sense. I own quite a few simple wind instruments such as the ocarina, shakuhachi, tinwhistle, native american flute, and quena. I wanted something unique, possibly playable one-handed. I found some unusual instruments such as the Picco pipe, the koudi, and the tabor pipe. I even considered sawing a recorder in half to see what that sounds like (I might still do that because it would be a cheap experiment). After digging through many Wikipedia pages, I came across the mysterious sounding willow flute. Hear a demo of what it can sound like:
Beautiful, unusual scale. No finger holes. Closeley tied with nature. Potentially playable one handed. Now this is what I've been looking for.
I have recently discovered a constructed language called Solresol, and a modern revamping of it named Sarus, that uses a 7 note scale.
Solresol note range
My issue with these languages, though, is that they were not explicitly designed with the intention of being completely musical, one such example is that techniques such as trilling were not incorporated. Additionally, the dictionary for these languages is HUGE and follows grammar rules similar to English and French, which I thought was too similar and a bit unweildy for a small tribe with little outside contact. For my basis, I think that Toki Pona is a much more suitable model. Now all I have to do is come up with the notes!
I also decided it was important to have an instrument central to the group. A wind instrument seemed to make the most sense. I own quite a few simple wind instruments such as the ocarina, shakuhachi, tinwhistle, native american flute, and quena. I wanted something unique, possibly playable one-handed. I found some unusual instruments such as the Picco pipe, the koudi, and the tabor pipe. I even considered sawing a recorder in half to see what that sounds like (I might still do that because it would be a cheap experiment). After digging through many Wikipedia pages, I came across the mysterious sounding willow flute. Hear a demo of what it can sound like:
Beautiful, unusual scale. No finger holes. Closeley tied with nature. Potentially playable one handed. Now this is what I've been looking for.
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