How to play your Kantele.

[Dick Glasgow]

How to play your Kantele.

Following a an interesting question by one of our members here, I thought it might be handy to post some links here, on how to play a Kantele, for anyone who happens to have one of these interesting instruments, but hasn't yet worked out how to tune or play it.

Perhaps one day I'll be lucky enough to find one at a Car Boot Sale!

Anyway, here are some links which might help you get started:

Tuning Charts
{Go to Kanteles & then Tuning of Kanteles.}

Playing Tips
{Go to Playing the Kantele}

Playing Technique

A Guide for Five & Ten String Kanteles (pdf)

There are also three sound files of delightful Kantele playing at the foot of this page, which are well worth listening to:

Sound Files

[gypsy]

Oh man, bless yer heart! will check it out soonest, although will most likely facilitate in the winter. Twixt running Farmers market, day job, and gigging, i don't have a day off until november. Life is good! But will wait to get further educated...........mebbe i could TUNE the little beastie, though

[Dick Glasgow]

Yes, I know what you mean Gypsy.

I have a couple of instruments like that about me too.

For example, a set of bellows blown Leicestershire Small Pipes, which I never seem to get round to learning to play.

Incidentally, the expression over here in Ulster is to put something - 'On the Long Finger' & my Small Pipes are certainly on that, along with our Mt D & an Indian Drone Box ......

Och, life is just too short! I want to learn them all!

[gypsy]

I give you serious sick. I BUILT a hurdy gurdy.......and still can't play it. I am thinking of hiring a 3 year old to go scare sheep with and crank and crank and crank to break it in. then mebbe i could stand to work with it.

[Dick Glasgow]

Lucky you, Gypsy.
My Gurdy cost me £1,800 & it's a beautiful instrument & we use it at all the costume events we do & educational ones too, but I got it at the same time as I got my first H-D .................. so no nontest!

Have you had a chance to listen to the clips from our fellow member here, Nikita's, CD?
They include H-D & Gurdy & I must say they are very tasty indeed.
They might even inspire you to get cranking! ;D

Montferrine