Psaltery
History of Psaltery
A psaltery is an ancient and medieval type of zither, a musical
instrument that originated from the middle east approximately
three thousand years ago. The name is taken from the Greek
psallein, which means "plucked with fingers." There are all
shapes and forms, trapezoidal, wing shaped and hog-nosed. Some
of these instruments were plucked, struck, or bowed. Reference in
the bible makes some scholars feel the psaltery, like the harp, was
acceptable for ladies of court to play.
The modern psaltery is different with pins on both sides, and is
tuned to the chromatic scale, as in a piano. The contemporary
bowed psaltery was made in Germany after many years and
brought to the United States in the latter 1950's. Psaltery have
developed from their original design into finely crafted pieces of
art, with a beautiful and sweet tone that is unforgettable to the ear.
The psaltery is an easy instrument to play, even if you are not
familiar with it. If you can hum a tune, you can easily play the
psaltery. There are numerous beginner books that can be
purchased on the Internet or in music stores. We highly
recommend 'The Psimple Psaltery Instruction Book' by
Melodye Whatley and Ingrid Skinner and we offer their book with
purchase of psaltery and case.
If you have never played a bowed psaltery, the right side strings
correspond to the white keys on a piano. On the opposite side, the
strings correspond to the black keys on a piano. The shorter
strings correspond to treble notes, and longer strings correspond
to bass notes. The instrument is bowed along the strings at the
sides of the psaltery to produce an unforgettably clear and sweet
sounding voice. Each string is held in place by two pins, the
lower set of pins being the tuning pins. The size of the string is
commonly used on guitars and banjos, and can be purchased at
any music store.
To tune, follow each string to the pin at the bottom where you will
place the key and turn ever so slightly to the desired note. The
tuning can be accomplished by the aid of a chromatic tuner or a
piano. As you play the psaltery, the strings will begin to reach a
more common tension and you will eventually need to tune it less.
Our instruments will need to be tuned upon arrival, as the strings
are slightly loosened for shipping to release pressure.
A psaltery is an ancient and medieval type of zither, a musical
instrument that originated from the middle east approximately
three thousand years ago. The name is taken from the Greek
psallein, which means "plucked with fingers." There are all
shapes and forms, trapezoidal, wing shaped and hog-nosed. Some
of these instruments were plucked, struck, or bowed. Reference in
the bible makes some scholars feel the psaltery, like the harp, was
acceptable for ladies of court to play.
The modern psaltery is different with pins on both sides, and is
tuned to the chromatic scale, as in a piano. The contemporary
bowed psaltery was made in Germany after many years and
brought to the United States in the latter 1950's. Psaltery have
developed from their original design into finely crafted pieces of
art, with a beautiful and sweet tone that is unforgettable to the ear.
The psaltery is an easy instrument to play, even if you are not
familiar with it. If you can hum a tune, you can easily play the
psaltery. There are numerous beginner books that can be
purchased on the Internet or in music stores. We highly
recommend 'The Psimple Psaltery Instruction Book' by
Melodye Whatley and Ingrid Skinner and we offer their book with
purchase of psaltery and case.
If you have never played a bowed psaltery, the right side strings
correspond to the white keys on a piano. On the opposite side, the
strings correspond to the black keys on a piano. The shorter
strings correspond to treble notes, and longer strings correspond
to bass notes. The instrument is bowed along the strings at the
sides of the psaltery to produce an unforgettably clear and sweet
sounding voice. Each string is held in place by two pins, the
lower set of pins being the tuning pins. The size of the string is
commonly used on guitars and banjos, and can be purchased at
any music store.
To tune, follow each string to the pin at the bottom where you will
place the key and turn ever so slightly to the desired note. The
tuning can be accomplished by the aid of a chromatic tuner or a
piano. As you play the psaltery, the strings will begin to reach a
more common tension and you will eventually need to tune it less.
Our instruments will need to be tuned upon arrival, as the strings
are slightly loosened for shipping to release pressure.
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