Playing Technique: Compact Double Pendant

[moonsyne]

The Compact Double is really two pendants, one inside the other.

The Alto pendant is on the outside, has a bottom voice hole, and two bottom holes.
The Soprano is inside, has a top voice hole, and has only four holes. No bottom holes.

Blowing into the left plays the Alto. Blowing into the right plays the Soprano. Blowing into both plays both.

It is large, and can be intimidating. One might think that playing rounds would be something like this!



The technique is much simpler.

• Act as if this is a regular pendant.
  
• Treat the top hole pairs as if they were one.
  Each finger would be covering two holes!
  
• Treat the bottom holes as you would a regular pendant.
  
• To play each seperately, do not change you fingering;
  Instead choose a hole to blow into. Right or Left!
  
• To play both together, blow into both holes.
  

Limitations:

• The two chambers can not be played together through the hole range.
  When it gets to the thumbs, they are no longer in synch.
  
• A thought must be given to air volume. Soprano is blown a bit softer.
  It is not hard, but it takes a little more concentration than a simple pendant.
  
• A slight bit more attention needs to go into checking fingering.
  Make sure both holes are fully covered with each finger.
  
• It would be very hard (if not impossible) to play discord.
  
• Do not expect to do the Pendant Trick on this instrument.
  

Bonuses:

• This ocarina uses the same Picture Tabs as an English pendant.
  
• It can be instantly played by anyone who can play a pendant.
  
• Chambers can be used independantly to play two ocarinas.
  
• It has never been easier to duet with yourself.
  

[Walden]

I find these ocarinas intriguing, but I don't fully understand them. So, if I wanted to play Row Your Boat as a round, I'd play both sets of holes as one, but blow only one chamber through the first section, and then play both, thereafter?

[moonsyne]

These are juvenille rounds, a basic canon:
different instruments play the same melody,
with no changes, but at different times.
They then replay the melody together.

Playing rounds where different instruments play the same melody,
but start at different times, overlapping in an unending loop ..
would be playing discordant between the hands.

While the Songbird Sprout allows for Discord,
The Compact Double Pendant does not.

[Walden]

I wrote a canon. Cris said she would record it, but I don't think she has yet.

[moonsyne]

Sweet!