Toaca

[ma2000]

Hello!

I just realised that I never saw anything like this outside Romania. Have you?
Is there anything simmilar in other countries? I suppose there has to be. What is it called in other languages?
Anyway, toaca (twa-kah) is a musical instrument used in Orthodoxy, just like the bell. It's basically a board or a piece of metal that can be portable or not.
You can see a monk performing at toaca. The first 3 minutes it's just the prelude.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3IZJ1d3HxQ

Other types can be listened to here (a portable wooden one and a metal one) :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMKzgRwd4bM&feature=related

My favorite is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2icovOk0bY&feature=related

You can see a piece of culture shock in here :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsgJ6dja5AM

 

[Kristos]

Finally - someone else who thinks that a bell is a musical instrument. Thank you!

BTW - we recently installed our bell and we playing every Sunday. The neighbors probably hate us

 

[ma2000]

Finally - someone else who thinks that a bell is a musical instrument. Thank you!

BTW - we recently installed our bell and we playing every Sunday. The neighbors probably hate us

I bet they will be happy!

I think that it's called "semandron" or "talanton" in Greek.

 

[Greg the byzantine]

The Talanton. They use it in Greek Monasteries too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgmFGyJpsak&feature=PlayList&p=3A0D54E970B1B01C&playnext=1&index=15

I personally like bells, I get goose bumps whenever I hear church bells.

 

[ClementofRome]

TOACA ROCKS! Mickey Hart ain't got nothing on this blessed monk!!!

 

[nestoj]

Yup, monasteries here use them too (just the sound at the beginning of the video):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIeHB6ZHsjo

 

[ma2000]

Yup, monasteries here use them too (just the sound at the beginning of the video):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIeHB6ZHsjo

How do you call them?

 

[nestoj]

How do you call them?

'Klepalo' or 'Klapalo' - depends on the part of country.

 

[cassc]

The first time I ever saw these were in Guatemala (well I probably saw them at the Monasteries in Greece but didn't process what I saw) I have pictures of the really big one and a portable one:

From the Monastery:

and at the Hogar:

 

[Sphinx777]

We need an English translation of this Wikipedia Toaca article...

http://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toacă

 

[E.C.]

Have not seen them, but have heard them.





Didn't they start being used because the Muslims didn't allow bells? I think I may have been told that, but probably forgot!

 

[ma2000]

The first time I ever saw these were in Guatemala (well I probably saw them at the Monasteries in Greece but didn't process what I saw) I have pictures of the really big one and a portable one:

Are those Hogar Rafael Ayau Orphanage & Monastery Lavra Mambre?

We need an English translation of this Wikipedia Toaca article...

http://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toacă

I'll try to do it when I'll have more time.
You really are a Wikipedia fan, are you?

Didn't they start being used because the Muslims didn't allow bells? I think I may have been told that, but probably forgot!

I found out that they were first mentioned in the Ladder of Divine Ascent, so they were used earlier. But probably in the country churches they started using them after that.