Zills, also zils or finger cymbals, (from Turkish

Turkish language

Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...

 zil, "cymbals" ) are tiny metallic cymbal

Cymbal

Cymbals are a common percussion instrument. Cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys; see cymbal making for a discussion of their manufacture. The greater majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sound a...

s used in belly dancing

Belly dance

Belly dance or Bellydance is a "Western"-coined name for a traditional "Middle Eastern" dance, especially raqs sharqi . It is sometimes also called Middle Eastern dance or Arabic dance in the West, or by the Greco-Turkish term çiftetelli...

 and similar performances. They are called sājāt (صاجات) in Arabic

Arabic language

Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...

. They are similar to Tibetan tingsha bells

Tibetan tingsha bells

Tibetan tingsha are small cymbals used in prayer and rituals by Tibetan Buddhist practitioners. Two cymbals are joined together by a leather strap or chain. The cymbals are struck together producing a clear and high pitched tone. Typical sizes range from 2.5–4 inches in diameter. Tingsha are very...

.

Features

A set of zills consists of four cymbals, two for each hand. Modern zills come in a range of sizes, the most common having a diameter of about 5 cm (2 in). Different sizes and shapes of zills will produce sounds that differ in volume, tone and resonance. For instance, a dancer performing with an orchestra will use a larger zill with more volume, whereas a cabaret dancer will use a zill with a more delicate sound. American Tribal dancers typically use a much larger zill with a more mellow tone.

Makers of zills commonly use brass

Brass

Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc; the proportions of zinc and copper can be varied to create a range of brasses with varying properties.In comparison, bronze is principally an alloy of copper and tin...

 rather than the bronze

Cymbal alloys

Cymbals are made from four main alloys, all of them copper-based. These are: bell bronze, malleable bronze, brass and nickel silver.-Bell bronze:Bell bronze, also known as bell metal, is the traditional alloy used for fine cymbals, many gongs and, as the name suggests, bells.It is normally stated...

 used for larger cymbals, but they may also employ many other alloys. They may plate

Plating

Plating is a surface covering in which a metal is deposited on a conductive surface. Plating has been done for hundreds of years, but it is also critical for modern technology...

 some zills in order to give a silvery colour or a brighter surface. Performance zills vary in appearance and may be shiny, dull, plain or engraved.

Modern dancers use elastic

Elastomer

An elastomer is a polymer with the property of viscoelasticity , generally having notably low Young's modulus and high yield strain compared with other materials. The term, which is derived from elastic polymer, is often used interchangeably with the term rubber, although the latter is preferred...

 to secure the zills, one to the thumb and one to the middle finger of each hand. Professional zills have two slots to allow the threading of the elastic through the zill, whereas cheaper versions (including tourist versions) have only one hole.

Zills can be played in several ways, to produce either ringing tones or a harsh "clack" sound.

Zills belong to the standard instruments used in Ottoman military band

Ottoman military band

Ottoman military bands are thought to be the oldest variety of military marching band in the world. Though they are often known by the Persian-derived word mahtar in the West, that word, properly speaking, refers only to a single musician in the band...

s and also occasionally appear as part of Western orchestra

Orchestra

An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...

l or other musical performances. In these cases musicians usually just call them finger cymbals and use them to obtain a ringing sound with "Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

ern" associations. Percussionists playing finger cymbals sometimes use a less complicated technique than the traditional one used by dancers. The musician holds one cymbal in each hand by gripping the strap between the thumb and the index finger, and plays them by striking the rims together. They use this technique for occasional flourishes in the music rather than for complex rhythms and sounds.

There are many rhythms in belly dancing music that can be spelled out in finger cymbal playing:

• triplets (left/right/left/pause – “giddyup, giddyup, giddyup”)
• quads (L/R/L/R/no pause)
• beledi (dum/dum/tek-a-tek/dum-tek-a-tek)
• chiftatelli (dum/dum/tek-a-tek/dum/dum/dum – “John went to the sea; caught. three. fish.”)
• ayub (dum/a-tek-tek – “buy more shoes, and…buy more shoes, and . . .,”)
• bolero (dum/tek-a-tek-tek/dum/dum/dum/dum – “I want to be a belly dancer”)

External links

• http://dwp.bigplanet.com/saroyan/onlinestore/ Saroyan zills has mp3 sound samples of their zills