Instruments

Contents

• Celtic Harp
• Cittern/Bozouki/Octave Mandolin
• Didjeridu
• Hurdy-Gurdy
• Nyckelharpa

Celtic Harp / Folk Harp / Lever Harp

Ancient Irish bards accompanied their recitations on lap harps strung with bronze wire. Today’s Celtic or folk harp is a direct descendant of that renowned instrument, which is pictured on Irish coins. Smaller than a concert harp, it may have nylon, wire, or gut strings. Sharps and flats are played via sharping levers at the top of the strings.

This is the instrument that gave our duo its name: “Telynor” is Welsh for harper.

More info: International Society of Folk Harpers and Craftsmen

Played by: John

Telynor recordings:

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Cittern / Bozouki / Octave Mandolin

This relatively new scion of the mandolin family has its roots in the Renaissance cittern and Greek bozouki. Developed to add a deeper, more powerful range to the mandolin’s bright tone, it is rapidly gaining popularity with traditional musicians around the world...and odds are that each calls it something different.

More info: Dan Beimborn’s Cittern Pages

Played by: John and Anna

Telynor recordings:

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Didjeridu

The haunting, primal sound of this quintessential drone instrument is produced by human lips buzzing slowly together at one end of a long, hollow tube. The technique was developed by the native people of Australia using tree branches that had been hollowed out by termites. They dipped one end in beeswax to make a comfortable mouthpiece and figured out how to keep the sound going with circular breathing — continuing to push air out through the mouth while breathing in through the nose.

More info: didge.net, Dreamtime

Played by: Anna

Recordings:

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Hurdy-Gurdy

A crank at one end turns a wooden wheel, which rubs the gut strings and produces a continuous droning sound. The melody is played with wooden keys that stop the two center strings. This instrument dates back to medieval Europe and sounds something like a bagpipe being played in the next room while someone rattles a cup of dice. A popular folk instrument throughout Western and Eastern Europe, it’s now gaining converts in the United States and Great Britain.

Played by: Anna

Telynor recordings:

More info: Alden and Cali Hackmann’s Hurdy-Gurdy Site

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Nyckelharpa

This Scandinavian cousin to the hurdy-gurdy (see above) also dates back to medieval times and uses a similar keyed mechanism to play the melody notes. Instead of a wooden wheel, the nyckelharpa (nyckel is Swedish for “key”) is played with a short bow. Its rich, ethereal sound is produced by 12 sympathetic strings that rest below the bowed strings and chime in with harmonic echoes as each note is played.

More info: American Nyckelharpa Association

Played by: Anna

Telynor recordings:

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