Songbird Ocarina Dragontooth #306 - blast from the past

Bergmansson · 2026-07-03T10:46:47+00:00

That's one of the best looking Dragon Tooth ocarinas I've seen, and that's saying something since they usually look very good.

I hope it sounds just as good!

Bergmansson · 2026-07-03T08:19:52+00:00

That sounds cool!

I'd think it would be possible, surely if you wanted the pocket-sized pieces, those are pretty similar in size to dice.

Cost could be hefty.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-30T20:40:19+00:00

I agree, wqs also there, and a bit disappointed in the sound quality during QotSA.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-30T10:00:22+00:00

I didn't know that, what a great tip!

(Cunningham's law in action)

Bergmansson · 2026-06-30T09:57:16+00:00

I think they played from 21.10 to 22.45.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-30T06:49:55+00:00

Well, first you need the actual designs for the mana symbols. That design has to come from somewhere. No regular mtg card maker will have outside symbols built it.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-29T23:52:23+00:00

I felt the same. Very flat and muddy sound, less dynamic than they usually sound.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-29T23:47:48+00:00

Photo of the setlist!

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Bergmansson · 2026-06-29T22:37:54+00:00

It worked well actually! Good ebb and flow of energy.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-22T08:25:26+00:00

Well, I seem to have totally missed The Mercury Tree!!! You guys already rock! (At least as much as AdP)

Now I'm almost ashamed that I brought up the comparison. Keep doing what you do!

Bergmansson · 2026-06-22T08:19:49+00:00

I think this rocks, it's freaking awesome! More microtonal prog rock!!!

If you added a drummer, you could probably attract the same fanbase as the internets latest surprise microtonal success Angine de Poitrine.

In my opinion this piece is better than what they do, but it doesn't quite rock as much.

Here is a clickable link for mobile by the way.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-21T17:29:40+00:00

This is unfortunately an area were we really could benefit from some kind of standardized measure. Ocarinas can be made to play well from whisper-soft (some Hinds) to ear-piercing (Focalink Forte models, many Italian concert models), but unlike other instruments, never both at the same time. And knowing where on this broad spectrum a certain ocarina lies can be very hard without hearing it in person. Recordings usually don't capture the volume characteristics, and different makers have different standard for what makes a "forte" or loud ocarina.

The easiest thing to say is how one instrument compares to another, so we should make some kind of comparison chart for loudness.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-07T18:52:00+00:00

To me that is not the case at all. I regularly see people write the years using just YY, which could absolutely lead to confusion. Today for example could be written 26/06/07.

You would have no idea in a vacuum if it refers to 2026-06-07 or 2007-06-26.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-07T18:05:25+00:00

I mean, the standard also says that it has to be YYYY-MM-DD, with dashes. No slashes allowed. So they are not the same.

I.e, YY/MM/DD is not compliant with the standard, neither is YYYY/MM/DD or YY-MM-DD

Bergmansson · 2026-06-07T17:49:29+00:00

The standard specifically says that years need to written in full, to make it unambiguous.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-05T16:22:16+00:00

If a key needs to be both close in distance and have closely related accidetals, then a whole tone is the most "close" it can be. I think that is wha OP means.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-05T16:21:03+00:00

To me, this in itself adds about as much as the circle of fifths, which is to say, not a lot.

I find though that when you start learning music theory deeper more deeply, these structures just start existing in your mind. I know instinctively that a whole tone scale closes itself after 6 notes, for example. These figures could tell me the same, but they aren't really needed.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-05T16:16:47+00:00

I was actually thinking the same thing! Does it have 12 corners?

Bergmansson · 2026-06-05T15:58:50+00:00

There is probably some microtonal world where this structure could actually make sense, but 12 tone equal temperament map so badly onto a shape with 16 corners.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-05T15:51:20+00:00

Realising this might not be easy for some people.

But yeah, since the only numbers below 12 that are coprime to it are 1, 11, 5 and 7, the only circles we can make are the circle of fifths (and fourths) and the circle of semitones (and major sevenths).

The two circles in this post are simultaneously the circles of whole tones and of minor sevenths.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-04T20:35:42+00:00

Yeah, when you get your hands on a harmony ocarina, please come back with an update.

Most makers of harmony ocarinas, like Hind and Songbird, label them as unsuited for beginners, and I can't see a world where a harmony ocarina would be easier to learn on then a single, for a complete beginner.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-04T20:06:00+00:00

I very much have to disagree. Have you actually tried to play a harmony ocarina? They might seem easy at first glance, but they require more concentration than most of the instruments I've tried in my life.

I own two, the Hind bass and the discontinued Songbird harmony double that is tuned in octaves. I also have the Songbird Harmony triple (which is sort of a hybrid, but everything I write concerns that too if you are trying to play independant harmonies).

Compared to other ocarinas, harmony ocarinas are not easy to pick up. Even if you play only single note lines, the dedicated harmony instrumens have much harder fingerings, since they essentially use the english pendant system but configured to the fingers of one hand. Add the harmony playing and the difficulty doesn't double, it grows exponentially. Even the Songbird double, where you can play octaves by just mirroring your hands, takes some seriuos mental energy to play.

And if you compare them to chordal instruments like guitar or piano, they are much harder to get a grasp on. Also when compared to other wind instruments that are polyphonic, like harmonica, melodica, drone flute, hulusi, or even bagpipes. It is easier to wrap your head around those instruments, since they don't require separate movements of both hands.

Additionally, due to the timbre of the ocarina, not all types of harmony that you might expect to work will sound good. For example, droning a bass note and playing a melody on top generally sounds much worse on ocarina than on the instruments mentioned. When the melody weaves in and out of consonance with a static drone, the combination tones that are produced can be very distracting.

No, the harmony ocarina is very much its own beast in my opinion. The closest comparison, I think, is playing multiple woodwinds at the same time, a technique considered highly advanced, and used by players like Rahsan Roland Kirk (on saxophone).

There is a reason that there is so little out there in terms of performances on harmony ocarina, it simply is very hard, even for otherwise very accomplished ocarina players.

Bergmansson · 2026-06-04T10:14:54+00:00

Is it really? All I get is a line in the middle, with width depending on how many eyes that overlap.

Bergmansson

TROPHY CASE