Carnyx & Co. - Reconstruction of the Deskford Carnyx

Reconstruction of the Deskford Carnyx

When Dr. John Purser approached me in 1992 with the idea of becoming involved with the project to reconstruct the Deskford Carnyx my reaction was at first one of amused interest. I was vaguely aware of the instrument - of course through Goscinny and Uderzo’s Aterix the Gaulcartoons, but also because of Purser’s own mention of the instrument during his BBC radio documentary series Scotland’s Music. However, in early 1992 John turned up at my home in Edinburgh with John Creed’s brass mock-up of the head - and I immediately realised that here was a very serious and exciting project. A few days later, in the archaeology department of the National Museums of Scotland, the beauty and physical presence of the original artefact, with its empty eye sockets and gaping mouth, seemed to be issuing a mute demand for re-birth. I was hooked - and I am immensely grateful to John for launching me into one of the most compelling and stimulating projects of my musical life.

Since May 1993 I have been the member of our team most visibly associated with the carnyx, because I’m the one that plays it - but I was the last member to join that team, and when Dr. Ellen Hickmann asked me to write an article about the carnyx I felt strongly that this should be a collection of short articles by all the individuals involved in the reconstruction, and the ongoing projects inspired by it, each from our own professional standpoint:

John Purser musicologist, initiator and co-ordinator of the project
John Creed silversmith
Fraser Hunter archaeologist
Murray Campbell physicist
John Kenny musician

The Carnyx As a Musical Instrument

John Creed’s first prototype reconstruction was made of extruded brass tubing. It looked magnificent, and the overall dimensions had already been largely decided between Fraser Hunter and John Purser. Bit it wasn’t a musical instrument, merely a beautiful piece of metal craft. At this stage in 1992 it was necessary to go back to the ancient iconography and speculate about metal weight and tube dimensions - and it was decided to make more exhaustive analyses of the original material. Bronze alloys were selected to replicate as nearly as possible the original metal composition and, at my suggestion, the tube was beaten far thinner to increase resonance. It was also decided to use a series of 4 cylinders of successively wider bore up to the 5th section which flared to the neck, constituting a 'bell' behind the head. This created a ‘stepped cone’ with each joint embellished and strengthened with a knop.

Mouthpiece

The interface with the player’s embouchure was - and remains - a major area of speculation. The solution we adopted was to bend the tube so that the player’s head and neck are in a comfortable relationship to the vertical tube, allowing an open throat and unimpeded breath control. There is no evidence for a mouthpiece as such - but it is perfectly obvious that the player’s lips must have been protected from a thin sharp surface, as is the case of all other lip-reed instruments, whether of metal, shell, bone or wood. Therefore, I designed five different mouthpieces - ranging from a kettle shape, through cone, to a simple bronze ring with an inner diameter very slightly wider than the tube end - effectively no more than a cushion for the lips, with no narrowing or throat. This last has proven to be by far the most flexible and effective solution - there is no contrivance to impede the passage of the vibrating air column from the player slips directly into the full diameter of the bottom tube of the instrument.

It should be noted that the Celtologist Axel May has made very strong and convincing arguments for a different solution: an elliptical opening directly into the bottom tube section, without bending. We are hoping to produce a model of this type during 2001. One difficulty to be overcome is the raising or shaping of the metal to provide a comfortable aperture for the lips, whilst allowing sufficient clearance for the player’s nose!

Performance Techniques

What was played on the carnyx; what did it sound like? Well, of course, there can be no certainty. I am a modern brass player, a trombonist, and the carnyx can be played using conventional modern techniques. This, however, produces an extremely limited and bland sound palette. Modern western brass techniques have developed in response to stimulus such as deliberate imitation of the human voice in sacred music, hunting and military signals, and the need to produce clear, well tuned tones which can work in melodic and harmonic combination. Very little of this can be assumed to have had any relevance to the sound world of the Celt 2000 years ago in a non-urbanised society with a social organisation based upon religious and cultural concepts which are quite clearly very different to those of the classical world, let alone post-renaissance western Europe.

My response has been to take inspiration from the carnyx itself: its zoomorphic character shows clearly that it forms part of a totemic, possibly shamanic, concept. If the appearance of the wild boar was so important, why not it sound? So, I have done my best to imitate and incorporate the cries and grunts of the wild boar into the sound. This attempt, in turn, lays open the possibility of combining the player’s voice with conventional lip vibration in a multitude of ways. A fluid and flexible sound world of immense timbral variety can be achieved in this way - the sound of the instrument and the player’s voice combining in a kind of heightened “proto-speech” as well as creating polyphony.

Given the age-old Celtic predilection for drones and the fact that, when conventional technique is applied to such a wide tube the maximum duration of a note is quite sort, I have felt justified in employing the technique of circular breathing. This is of added benefit in colouring the tone, since the required tongue movement and alteration of the oral cavity create further speech shapes. Several cultures have discovered both the technique of circular breathing and also of vowel coloration of instrumental sound - the best known being the didgeridoo. However, I have been at great pains to disclaim any notion that the carnyx was some kind of bronze age didgeridoo and I have not deliberately employed rhythmic patterns or other elements classic to Aboriginal culture.

It is worth noting that the characteristic sound world of the didgeridoo derives in part from the speech patterns of Aboriginal language and accent, as well as from observation and imitation of their natural environment. I believe that the zoomorphic nature of the carnyx likewise invites the incorporation of vowel and consonant colours drawn from Celtic tongues and our own northern natural environment. Indeed, Nigel Osbourne’s piece Forest-River-Oceanmakes extensive use of precisely this sound palette, deriving material based upon phonems of the Gaelic language as well as nature sounds taken from the find site at Deskford on the shores of the Moray Firth.

Articulation

The complete range of conventional single, double, triple and doodle tonguing techniques are readily available. Flutter tongue, both frontal glottal is functional across the range. When flutter tongue is employed without lip vibration, the column of air within the tube has substantial body and flexibility of tone. In addition, use of the diaphragm as a percussive pump is very effective. The tube size and surmounting head allow the possibility of a wide range of extremely effective purely breathe sounds, including percussive slap tonguing and pitch-variable sibilants.

The Dynamic Range

The range of the carnyx is enormous - certain overtones are projected much more powerfully than others (for example middle C), and these can be louder than a modern trombone. At the other extreme, it is possible to play as quietly as an alto flute.

Pitch Compass

The range I have been able to achieve on the carnyx is surprisingly wide. It’s harmonic series is as follows:

It is not possible to play extremely loud in either the extreme high or low registers - and it is also very tiring to play high and loud for extended periods. This, however, is a standard feature of brass playing . Thrills and tremolos are possible between adjacent harmonics from middle C upwards. The rim cushion to open tube also allows for considerable pitch bending and lip flexibility - for example, it is quite possible to perform the following bends.

Multiphonics

In addition to the combination of lip vibration and player’s voice it is also possible to produce multiple sounds with the lips alone by “splitting” between adjacent overtones. An unstable, rolling phenomenon occurs, comprised of up to 7 audible notes. These are made up of the fundamental and higher partials of the harmonic series. However, these work best between the 2nd to 3rd, and 3rd to 4th partials, and are extremely difficult to obtain in the higher register.

Sound Projection and Timbre

The head of the carnyx is a major factor in determining the tone colour: one would expect the sound to issue from the mouth but, in fact, it seems to radiate from the entire head. Certainly, the whole head is “live” and closing the mouth produces only limited muting. We have hoped that the tongue would activate at certain frequencies - but so far we have not be able to achieve this. It is, however, an interesting and easily controllable rattle, beating against the bronze “soft” palette.

The carnyx was obviously intended for outdoor use - and its sound carries extremely well over long distances. This seems not merely to be a question of volume, but one of projection. The same is true of the alphorn. A practical demonstration of this was my playing of the carnyx on top of Arthur’s Seat, the volcanic hill sitting in the heart of Edinburgh. The summit is over 900ft high but I was able to make unsuspecting tourists in the car park of Holyrood Palace - 900ft below, and over one mile away - turn their heads by playing two sustained middle C’s fortissimo and swooping around the higher harmonics. In the world of musical archaeology I believe this is referred to as “an ego trip”.

Playing Posture

All depictions of the carnyx being played show it held upright over the player’s head. There is no modern counterpart to this playing posture and it takes a bit of getting used to. However, once I had learned to balance the instrument(I went weight training and took the advice of an acrobatic choreographer!) I found I could walk, run, and even climb stairs without ceasing to play. I have also been able to play non-stop for upward of 40 minutes - so endurance is no impediment to performance. In the situation of playing with other instrumentalists and reading music this upright posture is a distinct disadvantage. The player’s eyes tend to be fixed at head height and the carnyx towers above the other players. To get around this John Creed has designed a collapsible stand which allows the player to sit while the head of the carnyx rests in a fork at variable height. The performer can now read music as well as assimilating much more easily into an ensemble and the timbre is unaffected.

Differing Characteristics of the First and Second Reconstruction

John Creed’s first reconstruction was unveiled at the Royal Museum of Scotland in May 1993 and it is this instrument which was used for all performances and recordings until January 1998. Throughout 1997 it was becoming increasingly clear that with the opening of Scotland’s new National Museum a conflict would arise between the function of the reconstruction as musical instrument and display artefact. Furthermore, as the music being written increased in scope and complexity it was essential that I have the instrument available for practice. Therefore, funded by the Hope Scott Trust, a second reconstruction was undertaken, which has since been in my permanent keeping. This instrument differs in being much lighter with thinner tube walls and head metal. Also, though the tube diameters are the same, the joints are chamfered as opposed to butted - making a smoother interior tube profile. The effect on the tone and "feel" of the instrument was considerable: I found my secure range increased by over a 6th, and that I was able to play far more delicately than on the first instrument. On the other hand, at extremely loud volume the notes tend to "crack up" and certain overtones are less well centred. Overall, however, I would say that the 2nd instrument is more flexible in response.

Conclusion

Whilst being fascinated by the archaeological and musicological significance of the carnyx, and full of admiration for the dedication to detail which has made this a most exhaustively authentic reconstruction, my own principal role is that of expressive artist. I am now primarily concerned with the development of performance techniques and the use of the carnyx as an expressive musical instrument. Did people 2,000 years ago do the things I am doing? Well, no, not in the same way - and not for the same reasons. But it must be remembered that, though I bring a contemporary knowledge of lip-reed techniques and a modern brass player’s skill to bear, I have only been working with the instrument since 1993 and, until February 1998, I never had the carnyx in my possession for longer than three days at a time, so I didn’t have a great deal of time to practice. The ancient Celt, on the contrary, had permanent access to the instrument and regarded it in a cultural context about which we can only vaguely conjecture. Furthermore, the techniques of playing were probably passed down through generations, along with music of varying character and function. Indeed, our concept of music as an art form may well be entirely inappropriate to the original use of the instrument. It is very likely that the ancients discovered many things that I have not yet, and may never, stumble upon - and yet the man standing on the shores of the Moray Firth 2,000 years ago had the same total physical potential as any modern counterpart. The most important thing is to keep exploring, expanding the technical and timbral palette - and with an open mind. It would be folly to impose a limited view of ‘musicality’ or ‘authenticity’ upon the carnyx; better surely to rejoice in the reawakening of an ancient voice, and its potential for the enrichment of our own musical culture in the 21st century.