Psalteries are ancient musical instruments with a long history. They began as simple boards with strings attached to pegs and progressed from there to hollow boxes with strings. They are still being used today as they are relatively easy to play and produce the most ethereal sounds. The demand for these instruments has led to a number of craftsmen devoting themselves to their production. If you are looking for a bowed psaltery for sale, it is possible to find one online.
The most basic instruments are fairly easy to build but to build the more advanced items requires much skill. Craftsmen need to be skilled woodworkers but they also have to have musical understanding. It is important for such an instrument to be solidly constructed so it can be held comfortably and hold up under pressure. It also needs to produce the best notes. Some artistic flair is an added bonus when it comes to choosing and combining wood and decorating sound holes.
Bowed psalteries are triangular in shape. The strings run down both sides and it is bowed one string at a time. Modern versions are fully chromatic with the strings on the right side like the white keys on a piano and those on the left side like the black keys.
Handcrafted items often come at a price. Basic instruments are available for beginners that are not as expensive and there are even instructions given on sites on how to make your own. One can first learn how to play on a more basic version and then graduated to one of the truly beautiful more expensive items.
The types of wood used affect the sound as well as the resilience of the instrument. The soundboard is usually made of a much lighter wood than the back and sides as it is responsible for transferring the string vibrations. The frame makes up the triangular base and holds the load of all the strings in tension so a harder wood must be used.
Each string wraps over a hitch pin and runs across a perpendicular piece of wood at the top called the bridge. It ends up wound around a tuning pin at the base. The hitch pins anchor the strings to the instrument and lift them above the soundboard. The spacing of these hitch pins is very important as this affects the sounds created.
The sound hole of the instrument is usually decorated. Typically, if it is a pattern or carving inside the sound hole, it is considered a rose. If anything is inlaid around the sound hole it is called a rosette. Most suppliers of these items offer the customer several choices of design.
Psalteries are usually sold as a complete package including not only the instrument and the bow but other items like a tuning wrench and rosin for the bow. A music book or sheets of music may be included as well as playing instructions. Take advantage of an offer of a bowed psaltery for sale and grab the opportunity to learn how to play this intriguing instrument.
The most basic instruments are fairly easy to build but to build the more advanced items requires much skill. Craftsmen need to be skilled woodworkers but they also have to have musical understanding. It is important for such an instrument to be solidly constructed so it can be held comfortably and hold up under pressure. It also needs to produce the best notes. Some artistic flair is an added bonus when it comes to choosing and combining wood and decorating sound holes.
Bowed psalteries are triangular in shape. The strings run down both sides and it is bowed one string at a time. Modern versions are fully chromatic with the strings on the right side like the white keys on a piano and those on the left side like the black keys.
Handcrafted items often come at a price. Basic instruments are available for beginners that are not as expensive and there are even instructions given on sites on how to make your own. One can first learn how to play on a more basic version and then graduated to one of the truly beautiful more expensive items.
The types of wood used affect the sound as well as the resilience of the instrument. The soundboard is usually made of a much lighter wood than the back and sides as it is responsible for transferring the string vibrations. The frame makes up the triangular base and holds the load of all the strings in tension so a harder wood must be used.
Each string wraps over a hitch pin and runs across a perpendicular piece of wood at the top called the bridge. It ends up wound around a tuning pin at the base. The hitch pins anchor the strings to the instrument and lift them above the soundboard. The spacing of these hitch pins is very important as this affects the sounds created.
The sound hole of the instrument is usually decorated. Typically, if it is a pattern or carving inside the sound hole, it is considered a rose. If anything is inlaid around the sound hole it is called a rosette. Most suppliers of these items offer the customer several choices of design.
Psalteries are usually sold as a complete package including not only the instrument and the bow but other items like a tuning wrench and rosin for the bow. A music book or sheets of music may be included as well as playing instructions. Take advantage of an offer of a bowed psaltery for sale and grab the opportunity to learn how to play this intriguing instrument.
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