Nyckelharpa

**bitingmidge** · 15th July 2008, 10:39 AM

It's been quite a while since I posted any updates from the Sunshine Coast AAMIM group, so thought I'd start with these pics of Lennart Lovden's Kromatisk Nyckelharpas.

The Nyckelharpa is (nowdays) a Swedish traditional instrument with (I've lost count!) a third of it's strings acting as chromatic "drones".

As no doubt you can see, it's a bowed instrument with strings keyed rather than fingered. (Who thinks these things up?)

It sounds fantastic, there should be more of them.

There are apparently about eight of them in the country, and Lennart built two of them and is repairing another, so I'd consider him to be Australia's foremost authority on the Nyckelharper (even if he wouldn't!)

Cheers,

P

**Sebastiaan56** · 15th July 2008, 03:25 PM

Midge,

Guess there is not much to do in an arctic midwinter apart from making instruments and.....

Cool instrument, do you know the tuning?

Sebastiaan

**Beachcomber** · 15th July 2008, 04:15 PM

Originally Posted by Sebastiaan56

Midge,

Cool instrument, do you know the tuning?

Sebastiaan

I think I read in Wikipedia that the bowed strings are tuned A B B A

Seriously it's an amazing looking insrtument. A modal tuning maybe ?

**bitingmidge** · 15th July 2008, 04:27 PM

Sadly I haven't asked too much about tuning. I love the sound though.

I'm happy to ask any questions or provide contact details if anyone wants further information.

There are plenty of clips on youtube of various instruments being played, but few give a real impression of the richness (or perhaps I'm looking for another word), fullness perhaps of sound.

Some of the clips make them sound like a cross between a violin and a bagpipe!

I guess it's a combination of Lennart's playing and making skills that have impressed me!

Cheers,

P

**avengers63** · 15th July 2008, 11:34 PM

Wow. That thing looks a lot harder to play than it needs to be. It couldn't have been easy to make.

**soundman** · 15th July 2008, 11:52 PM

I wonder how "Highway to hell" would sound played on one of those

**mongrel** · 16th July 2008, 01:59 AM

People will go to any length, it seems to make music!

Thou I think the guitar will remain popular, I dont think it will be knocked off it pedestal too soon.

Slash:
"Hey girls, you seen my Les Paul?"

Lovden:
"hey girls, you seen my Kromatisk Nyckelharpas?"

That'd get you put in jail nowadays

Seriosly thou, I love the look of it, you could be a real master at something no one else was.

**Scally** · 21st July 2008, 09:18 AM

That must have been a very complicated instrument to make.

The workmanship looks excellent.

Isn't it amazing the lengths people will go to to make music. A bit like all the jigs I have in the shed!

**pugwash** · 21st July 2008, 10:27 PM

It looks kind of like a hurdy gurdy but with a bow instead of a wheel. A similsr sound too I would imagine.

**scoastene** · 6th February 2009, 11:16 PM

Check out the band Vasen from Sweden, The best Nyckelharpa player in the world is in that band. http://www.vasen.se/
There should be some music there too.

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