Just curious about these. How do you deal with stringing these? Do they need loops on both ends like the Portuguese guitarras with those Preston tuners? No one seems to have any problems with that, at least on this thread.
Just curious about these. How do you deal with stringing these? Do they need loops on both ends like the Portuguese guitarras with those Preston tuners? No one seems to have any problems with that, at least on this thread.
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
i haven't changed strings on mine yet... only gets played a couple of times a year, when I'm on vacation in Ireland...
Exactly how they're restrung. However, in this thread, I'd thought about replacing the tailpiece with an Allen MR-10 or TR-10 so I could use ball end strings....
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Apollonio Acousto-electric bouzouki (in shop)
Mixter 10 string mandola (still waiting 2+ yrs)
Unknown brand Mandocaster (on the way!)
=============================
"Doubt begins only at the last frontiers of what is possible." -- Ambrose Bierce
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
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Apollonio Acousto-electric bouzouki (in shop)
Mixter 10 string mandola (still waiting 2+ yrs)
Unknown brand Mandocaster (on the way!)
=============================
"Doubt begins only at the last frontiers of what is possible." -- Ambrose Bierce
Rob: you can buy strings with one loop, regardless of whether they have ballends or loop ends. What you can't buy AFAIK are double-looped strings. You shouldn't have to create loops on both ends in either case unless you buy unlooped strings. I was just asking how people deal with that. I guess they buy those string looper devices either from John Pearse or Fernandez.
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
=============================
Apollonio Acousto-electric bouzouki (in shop)
Mixter 10 string mandola (still waiting 2+ yrs)
Unknown brand Mandocaster (on the way!)
=============================
"Doubt begins only at the last frontiers of what is possible." -- Ambrose Bierce
Fortunately, both of my waldzithers have standard geared tuners -- the Preston tuners were a marketing ploy by Böhm to make their instruments look more self-consciously ancient. However, as it happens you can buy double-looped strings, at least if you're setting a waldzither up in its traditional open-C tuning rather than mandola tuning. Optima and Lenzner each offer waldzither strings which will be cut and looped to the precise length specified at the time of ordering. Available from Schneider-Musik:
Optima
Lenzner
Martin
https://soundcloud.com/corncrake/waldzither-sample
Playing a double jig called “Out on the Ocean” on my original glass-bridged Reiche model. A lovely warm sound even through a cheap built-in mic.
"Danger! Do Not Touch!" must be one of the scariest things to read in Braille....
[QUOTE=Colin Lindsay;1344656]https://soundcloud.com/corncrake/waldzither-sample
Playing a double jig called “Out on the Ocean” on my original glass-bridged Reiche model. A lovely warm sound even through a cheap built-in mic.[/QUOT
E]
Nicely played Colin. Must get you down here for a gig sometime!
Well, something triggered some neurons this morning, remembering this instrument and the scrolled headstock: could it be that the well-known image of Andy Irvine playing what I'd always thought of as a Portuguese guitarra from the back of "The Well Below the Valley" is really another one of his waldzithers?
There is plenty of video footage of him playing one with a plainer headstock, e.g.
If anyone knows if the album picture is really another waldzither that would be great!
"But wasn't it all stupid nonsense, rot, gibberish, and criminally fraudulent nincompoopery?"
- Neal Stephenson, Quicksilver
I would love to see a photo of a glass bridge that goes on these WZs. Is it compensated? Is it all glass or just the top?
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
Your wish is my command! Just a prismatic glass strip with notches for the strings; nothing fancy. As I said earlier I had the notion that the glass edge, being sharp and therefore striking less of the string than a wooden one, may allow for a sharper sound - but this may be just fanciful on my part and have no basis in musical science whatsoever...
"Danger! Do Not Touch!" must be one of the scariest things to read in Braille....
It is interesting. The traditional bandolim for choro usually has a bone bridge for the same reason, I would imagine -- a nice bright tone. I would think tho that it is the substance rather than just the shape of the bridge top tho that might contribute something.
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
19th Century Tunes
Playing lately:
1924 Gibson A4 - 2018 Campanella A-5 - 2007 Brentrup A4C - 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin - Huss & Dalton DS - 1923 Gibson A2 black snakehead - '83 Flatiron A5-2 - 1939 Gibson L-00 - 1936 Epiphone Deluxe - 1928 Gibson L-5 - ca. 1890s Fairbanks Senator Banjo - ca. 1923 Vega Style M tenor banjo - ca. 1920 Weymann Style 25 Mandolin-Banjo - National RM-1
And another kick of this thread, just in case you missed my post in the other one I did:
It's almost certain the 3 course is going to be collecting more and more dust. 'Tis sad, aye, but 'tis true. I just really love the sound of the 'zither. I'm going to take her to Elderly soon and see about lowering the action just a hair, is a wee bit high for my tastes up around the 7th-12th frets.
All in all though, I'd love to see a modern revival of these oh-so-versatile instruments shoot...maybe I'll buy a Kawalek kit *after* I attend the workshop this coming spring, and try modding one up
=============================
Apollonio Acousto-electric bouzouki (in shop)
Mixter 10 string mandola (still waiting 2+ yrs)
Unknown brand Mandocaster (on the way!)
=============================
"Doubt begins only at the last frontiers of what is possible." -- Ambrose Bierce
Dude, it's as versatile of an instrument as I've ever touched, given the scale length, there is more than a few tunings you could use, and with the longer end of that spectrum (43-50cm), add a capo and you're really talking versatile. I'm seriously considering putting the Pope 3 course up for sale, since it hasn't even been *touched* since I got the 'zither!
=============================
Apollonio Acousto-electric bouzouki (in shop)
Mixter 10 string mandola (still waiting 2+ yrs)
Unknown brand Mandocaster (on the way!)
=============================
"Doubt begins only at the last frontiers of what is possible." -- Ambrose Bierce
I love these Optima Strings which use Open C Tuning. This tuning is essentially a Perfect Fourth above the Keith Richards 5 String Open G Tuning (the Bass Waldzither on the other hand is tuned the same) & I managed to put Slightly Heavier strings on it so I could tune it down to Open G w/ the top 4 Strings (or all 5) Doubled. Some Waldzithers have a longer scale length so they can easily handle that lower tuning.
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