hey!

I love all kinds of instruments especially ones that are fairly unknown or unusual in some way. I recently got this amazing kenyan guitar for my birthday and it is made out of a tree branch, string, cow hide and certain other woods and it produces an amazing sound!

I would love to know if any of you have come across or have strange instruments because its nice to find out about instruments that dont quite make it into the limelight!



thanks


Marc.

I'd quite like to have a go on an erhu, a Chinese stringed instrument with only 2 strings!

One day, when I can afford the 855.00GBP shipping cost on Ebay...

Me too! I took a few lessons playing the Guzheng (Chinese Harp) but I had to stop them when I left for university.

A few sites on the Guzheng:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guzheng
http://www.dpamicrophones.com/

ahh theres this very plucky banjo-type guitar i heard in a serious competition, cant remember the name tho...

hmmm well if you're Chinese like me, i just bought one in China (for the equivalent of about £15 i think) and its a really good one, just carried it home on the plane!


Sitar?

My son just bought a nose-flute at a Christmas market in Berlin. He really wanted the didgeridoo with a side branch which the man was also selling, but nose-flutes fit into pockets more readily. You blow down the thing through your nose, better not to have a cold at the time, and the air gets directed into your mouth which acts as a resonating chamber. My son was able to play tunes on it within minutes of trying. It looks revolting though!

Awsome!

All these weird and wonderful instruments its brilliant!

Don't really fancy the nose flute though!

ah the domra! (sp?) Yes I found it quite hard not to laugh, unfortunately....

yeah i think so it was the one we heard at the competition final!

Archlutes?

I have some silly instruments.
like a Cornamusen Rauschpfeife Rackett and 3 hole pipes
All early instruments

I absolutely LOVE the Duduk!! or sometimes Doudouk. It is an armenian instrument made from Apricot Trees and sounds like a wierd soprano saxophone. You can get some of the most amazing sounds with it!!! It is becoming quite popular for soundtracks to movies and games - the Narnia Chronicles features it, as well as the computer game 'Myst' and 'Exile'.

You have to check out the musical examples:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000667Q...-0159807?n=5174

My friend received a Finger Piano (or "Mbira") for Christmas and has absolutely no idea what to do with it! Any suggestions???

I'm crazy about rare instruments, I just love them! The more random the better!





The Hobgoblin Music shops sells the Erhu for a very good price. Have a look at www.hobgoblin.co.uk. They also have loads of other wacky instruments.

Matt

Oh dear, now I am tempted to part with the very little amount that a teaching assistant earns... I'll let you know if I do and how it goes! Thanks for that!

One to listen out for, though you are unlikely to find it in a shop, is the Ondes Martenot. This is an electronic instrument which makes an eerie high-pitched sound. It has been extensively used by Olivier Messaien in his works, and it often appears on science-fiction film score sound-tracks. More at: http://www.peterpringle.com/ondes.html .

hey thanks for your replies guys! I personally love the mellotron which was a fantastic musical invention, quite a modern one but brilliant none the less! woaw i don't think i've heard of many of the instruments you have been describing, its great though!

I really like the look of a snake... or is it a serpent , i didn't know they existed until i browsed through a music encyclopedia and i am really curious about the sound it makes, i really want one to play around with

Edinburgh University's musical instrument collection has a serpent. And an alphorn.

...and my husband has just reminded me, there is an anaconda there too. Apparently that's a big, big serpent. (I'd jokingly asked if there were treble, tenor and bass serpents, and it turned out that there sort of are.)

Being a violin player, I'd like a go on a viol.

Just before Christmas my husband bought some Bones! Yup, nearly similiar to playing the spoons, but these are genuine animal rib bones, polished and of similiar sizes. You have a set in each hand and 'wave your hands around and snap them etc' (It seems like that). Its been non stop clickity clack since he got them. There supposed to be used with his 'scratch' folk band. I reserve judgement.

And let us not forget the Arpeggione, which can be seen here: http://www.discordia-music.com/Arpeggione_...ntroduction.htm

Hi there

I've always wanted to learn the Chinese instrument Erhu or Er-hu. It produces such a gorgeous, ancient, moving sound. Unfortunately I don't think you can get them in New Zealand...

Play it Find out what notes are what and then try and incorporate it into any pieces you might play in a band. Wonder what an mbira solo would sound like...

I'm a guitarist, so I've always been fond of plucked stringed instruments, most of which remainded extint unti recent times. Some include the Theorbo (big lute), the Oud (Eastern Lute) and my favourite, the vihuela. The vihuela enjoyed the height of it's popularity in Spain during the 16th and early 17th centuries. Unfortunately, the rise in popularity of the lute, the guitar and other bigger, louder instruments caused it to become almost extinct. The vihuela is almost identical to a guitar as far as it's tuning is concerned, except it has two strings for each pitch (whereas the guitar has one) otherwize known as a course. It looks similar to a guitar as well, but they usually weigh as little as 400 grams!!!

It's repertoire is sublime; lots of original solo works including fantasias, tientos, diferencias (theme and variation style works on popular tunes of the day) and glosas (similar to chaconnes and ground bass works). Also, much repertoire for vihuela and voice, both sacred and secular. The secular repertoire consists of villancicos (carols and popular songs)and romances (ballads), some newly composed, some arrangements of existing songs. Almost all of the sacred works for solo vihuela or vihuela and voice are transcriptions of works by other composers such as Josquin, Dufay, Willaert etc.

There were 7 main vihuelistas (vihulea composers/performers)- Milan, Narvaez, Daza, Mudarra, Valderrabano, Pisador and Fuenllana and almost all of the music can be found in 7 publications that were published. All of the music is printed using tablature rather than notaton. The tablatures is almost identical to that of popular acoustic and electric guitar styles, except it includes one 'minor' addition: RHYTHM!

Watch out for vihuela recordings in stores, because it's becoming the 'in-thing' again. Many budget-priced recordings on the Naxos label.

Hope that was interesting for some of you, DibolicConcerto.

It's good to see someone keeping the vihuela alive! We learnt about it in music class at school so rest assured it won't be unknown and virtually extinct soon

I was given a native american flute as a gift from a maker several years ago (i'd never met him before.. twas a rather random kindness, but very touching.)
I think it's one of the most elegant and beautiful instruments in its purity and simplicity.. they create the most beautiful, earthy, haunting sound! I just need to learn to play mine properly now.

links:
some clips here ---> http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00000136...v=glance&n=5174
This is a (much more ornate) flute by the same maker ---> http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...bayphotohosting

(If you read the ebay blurb, don't think he's going ott with meaning and stuff to sell his flute... when i met him, i realised that this is how Doug seems to see the world around him, and how he expresses himself)...
anyway, hope this might be interesting.
s xx

I've also heard of a lyra da braccia or something along thise lines . all i know is that it is a 7 stringed violin with 2 strings not on the fingerboard if i remember what i heard correctly, im curious to what these look like

Here is a website of unusual instruments. Have a look as some of them are good. http://www.siegelproductions.ca/fiddlefarm...nstruments.html

i've got a bamboo one of these - great fun!

I would just like to mention a Museum in South London that is not that well known but well worth a visit for anyone interested in the history and origins of music. The Horniman Musseum in Forest Hill ( www.horniman.ac.uk) has an amazing collection of instruments and manuscripts including some very rare instruments. The Museum offers lots more and is completely free. I realise London is a long distance for some of you but if your in the area its a nice family day out.