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Collection: Hurdy Gurdies
The hurdy gurdy, known in France as the vielle a roue or vielle for short, is an ancient instrument which is undergoing a modern renaissance in Europe and America.
First, to dispel a popular misconception: the hurdy gurdy was not played...
The hurdy gurdy, known in France as the vielle a roue or vielle for short, is an ancient instrument which is undergoing a modern renaissance in Europe and America.
First, to dispel a popular misconception: the hurdy gurdy was not played by the organ grinder or his monkey. They used a large music box operated by a crank. Today's hurdy gurdy is roughly the same as those built in the middle ages. It has three to six strings which are caused to vibrate by a resined wheel turned by a crank. Melody notes are produced on one string, or two tuned in unison, by pressing keys which stop the string at the proper intervals for the scale. The other strings play a drone note. Some instruments have a "dog", "trompette" or "buzzing bridge" A string passes over a moveable bridge, which by a clever movement of the crank in the open hand, can produce a rasping rhythm to accompany the tune by causing the bridge to hammer on the sound board. The instrument is held in the lap with a strap to hold it steady. The case can be square, lute back, or flat back with a guitar or fiddle shape. Forms of the vielle a roue existed not only in France, but in Germany, Italy, Britain, Russia, Spain and Hungary.
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Linda Kelly
Just what my harp needed!
I was looking for the right equipment for my Camac Isolde Celtic harp. I did NOT want to install the Dusty Strings pick-ups- seemed like way too much to add. This little gizmo was easy to install with the little pictures on placement- like, less than five minutes easy. I plugged the pickup into my new Roland Mobile Cube and it’s perfect! I don’t hear any sound distortion, and I think this will be just right when playing background music for noisier environments. Super happy with this!
K&K Big Twin Pickup
Paul Sedgwick
Awesome quality!
I was excited to receive this kit. I do have several banjos already; however, I did not have a mountain banjo. I have built gourd banjos and ekontings (I went to Gambia in 2004 and 2007 to learn how to play and make them) from scratch, so I am not a beginner in terms of making instruments. I had a lot of fun putting the kit together. I do have a few observations regarding tips or slight modifications in the instruction manual, if interested.
Thanks!
Paul Sedgwick
Mountain Banjo Kit
Jenny O.
Beautifully crafted
I am very happy with the quality of the instrument. I am of Puerto Rican decent and it reminds me of my childhood, watching the musicians and learning to play myself. It is a beautiful guiro and sounds amazing.
Animal Guiro
Mark Schimmelman
Beautiful sound
It's great to be able to buy a hurdy gurdy in the US without having to wait for 6 months to a year or more. The Aplo is a quality entry level instrument that produces beautiful sound. It resonates very well and there are no buzzes or squeaks. Workmanship is very good. I got mine cottoned, rosined and tuned in a half hour. The transaction was easy and it arrived within a week.
I've been able to play some tunes on it with only a few hours of practice. It's going to be a lot of fun.
Hurdy Gurdy, Aplo
ABEL SANCHEZ
I love it, the entonation is really very good (sorry for my bat english).
Regards!