Blog 6 Film Questions

While watching this movie, I was able to get a sense of the instruments that these Northern Indians used. The tabla was of the common instruments that I noticed in the scenes, as well as what appeared to be a large bowl. In the first and second scene, I saw an instrument that had strings and was played with a bow. In the first scene, it is a typical rebaba, but in the second scene, a kid is playing a rebaba made from a coconut. This instrument was similar to the shamisen of Japan, but also reminded me a little of a sitar from India. The tabla-like instrument that was used in the film was appropriate being that the presenter who played Northern Indian music explained how the tabla is such a big part of N. Indian music. Another instrument I noticed were little cymbals, a member of the idiophone family.
In the film, the Gypsies absorbed the music cultures they encountered. He shows this by how he films the movie. He films it as it is: a journey. In the three different scenes, the performers are in different settings and perform differently. But doing this, the director is showing how the Gypsies have taken in from other cultures and show it through their own music.
I thought the most interesting aspect of the film was how it was filmed. It was as if we were following these Gypsies on a long journey. This gives the viewer a first-hand experience, rather than be bored from a documentary. I enjoyed seeing how the Gypsies performed and the different instruments they played. It really opened my eyes to music from a side of the world I know nothing about.