nocturne Nineteenth-century character piece for piano. The name was first used c. 1812 by the Scottish composer John Field (1782-1837) for works employing a lyrical melody over an accompaniment of broken chords. Frederic Chopin’s romantic nocturnes, similar in style, are the most celebrated.
nodule \'na-jiil\ In geology, a rounded mineral concretion that is dis¬ tinct from, and may be separated from, the formation in which it occurs. Nodules usually are elongated and have a knobby irregular surface; they are generally oriented parallel to the bedding. Chert and flint, clay iron¬ stone, and phosphorites commonly occur as nodules. Manganese-rich nod¬ ules are found on the ocean floor.
Noel-Baker (of the City of Derby), Philip John Noel-Baker, Baron orig. Philip John Baker (b. Nov. 1, 1889, London, Eng.—d. Oct. 8, 1982, London) British statesman and advocate of disarmament. He worked for the League of Nations secretariat (1919-22) and taught international relations at the University of London (1924-29). He served
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© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
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Nogi Maresuke ► noise I 1373
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in the House of Commons (1929-31, 1936-70) and in ministerial posts (1945-61). He helped draft the UN charter, and he campaigned widely for peace through multilateral disarmament. An Olympic runner in 1912, 1920, and 1924, he later served as president of UNESCO’s Inter¬ national Council on Sport and Physical Recre¬ ation (1960-82). In 1959 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace.
Nogi Maresuke Vno-ge-.ma-'ras-kaX (b. December 1849, Edo [Tokyo], Japan—d. Sept. 13, 1912, Tokyo) General in Meiji-period Japan. He served as governor of Taiwan and fought in the Russo-Japanese War. On the death of the Meiji emperor, Nogi and his wife committed ritual suicide by seppuku (self-disembowlment), considered the ultimate samurai act of loyalty. This action affected such Meiji-period writers as Natsume Soseki and Mori Ogai (1862-1922) and illuminated the contrast between Japan’s feudal past and rapidly modernizing present.
Noguchi \no-'gu-che\, Isamu (b. Nov. 17, 1904, Los Angeles, Calif., U.S.—d. Dec. 30, 1988, New York, N.Y.) U.S. sculptor and designer. He spent his early years in Japan. After premedical studies at Columbia Univer¬ sity, he became Constantin Brancusi’s assistant in Paris. He was influenced as well by Alberto Giacometti, Alexander Calder, Pablo Picasso, and Joan Miro. His medical training suggested to him the interrelatedness of bone and stone. Much of his work consists of elegantly abstracted, rounded forms in highly polished stone. His long collaboration with Martha Gra¬ ham resulted in stage sets for many ballets, and he also designed many public sculptures, sculp¬ tural gardens, and playgrounds, as well as fur¬ niture.
Noh theatre or No theatre Classic Japa¬ nese theatrical form. One of the world’s oldest extant theatrical forms, Noh theatre has a heroic theme, a chorus, and highly stylized action, cos¬ tuming, and scenery. Its all-male performers are storytellers who use their visual appearances and movements to suggest their tale rather than enact it. Noh (from Japanese no, meaning “tal¬ ent” or “skill”) developed from ancient forms of dance-drama and became a distinctive form in the 14th century. The five types of Noh plays are the kami (“god”) play, which involves a sacred story of a Shinto shrine; the shura mono (“fighting play”), which centres on warriors; the katsura mono (“wig play”), which has a female protagonist; the gendai mono (“present-day play”) or kyojo mono (“madwoman play”), which is varied in content; and the kiri or kichiku (“final” or “demon”) play, which fea¬ tures devils and strange beasts. Kan’ami (1333— 84) and his son Zeami (1363-1443) wrote many of the most beautiful Noh texts; more than 200 remain in the modem Noh repertoire.
noise Undesired sound that is intrinsically objectionable or that interferes with other sounds being listened to. In electronics and information theory, noise refers to those ran¬ dom, unpredictable, and undesirable signals, or changes in signals, that mask the desired infor¬ mation content. In radio, this noise is called static; in television, it is called snow. White noise is a complex signal or sound covering the entire range of component frequencies, or tones, all of which possess equal intensity.
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1374 I Nok culture ► nongovernmental organization
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Nok culture Ancient Iron Age African culture. It existed on the Benue Plateau of Nigeria between about 500 bc and ad 200 and was first dis¬ covered in 1928 in the village of Nok. Artifacts having similar features were found over an area that stretched about 300 miles (480 km) east to west and 200 miles (320 km) north to south. The most characteristic of these are hollow, coil-built clay figurines of animals and stylized human beings, usually heads. Other artifacts include iron and stone tools and stone ornaments.
nokhor \'nce-koer\ Mongol "comrade" In Mongolia during the time of Genghis Khan (c. 1160-1227), one who forswore loyalty to family and clan to devote himself to following a leader to whom he attached him¬ self. Many of Genghis Khan’s best generals were nokhor. In modern times the word is used more loosely.
Nolan, Sir Sidney (b. April 22, 1917, Melbourne, Austl.—d. Nov. 27, 1992, London, Eng.) Australian artist. Early in his career he created greatly simplified abstractions. In the mid 1940s he began to paint the local desolate desert landscapes in a more representational style. In his mature work he often applied unusual media—such as polyvinyl acetate—to masonite, glass, or canvas. Apart from his landscapes, most of his works dealt with Australian historical or legendary characters and events—notably, the bushranger Ned Kelly.
Noland, Kenneth (b. April 10, 1924, Asheville, N.C., U.S.) U.S. painter. Noland attended Black Mountain College in North Carolina and studied under the French sculp¬ tor Ossip Zadkine in Paris (1948- 49). He and Morris Louis, influenced by the work of Helen Frankenthaler, worked together on the technique of staining with thinned paints. This method presented pure, saturated colour as an integral part of the can¬ vas. He employed his colours in con¬ centric rings and parallels that were shaped and proportioned in relation to the shape of the canvas. Noland taught at the Institute of Contempo¬ rary Arts (1950-52) and at Catholic University (1951-60), both in Wash¬ ington, D.C., and at Bennington Col¬ lege (1968) in Vermont.