I have tried out several strings in order to get the most clear tone on my
Symphonie (Chris Allen) and Allegro (Weichselbaumer) and now I use Aquila
Venice strings, I like them very much.
http://www.aquilacorde.com/catalogo4.htm
With your long melodystrings a very good c' or d' should be possible.
Here are the dimensions I would advice, calculated from my experiences on my
instruments with 345 mm scaling:
For a d' melodystring: 1.18 mm plain gut or 1.28 mm Venice ("128" on their
site)
For a c' melodystring: 1.05 mm plain gut or 1.12 mm Venice
The fact that you have tried to make something like a 15th century hurdy
gurdy indicates, I think, that you prefer to play music from the time before
1500, so probably most modal music. That is what I prefer as well. If so, I
would advice you to put on a c' melody string and bourdons in D, d and a/g.
In modal music this works fine. The most common mode in drone music seems to
be dorian (or hypodorian), and then playing with drone d or drone g (or G,
but this may not be authentic) is a good idea. This combination (apart from
abolute pitch questions) must have been common with medieval hurdy gurdies:
generaly, these had a keyboard
c d e f g a bes b c ....
or probably in other cases
c d e f g a bes/b c ...
where the bes/b tangent could be turned to bes or to b.
Playing on such a keyboard in dorian mode is only possible by using a d or
g/G drone, eventually combined with a fifth drone a or d'/d. (Moreover, if
the instrument is tuned in Pythagorian temperament -which was the standard
in the 13th century and probably up to about 1400- this lay-out does not
present serious impureness problems between melody and drones.)
Almost all early tunes I play, work fine this way and it is more comfortable
than playing with a g-string and c-drone, using the scale
bes-c-d-es-f-g-as/a-bes-c-....
For Ionian mode (modern "in dur") such as seen in a well known Saltarello
(often denoted as 6/8 c b a g a b c d b c ...) this can be played on such a
diatonic keyboard with drone f. (This might be a historical cause for our
present chromatic keyboard from g.) But with a chromatic keyboard, Ionian
mode can be played with drone g or drone d as well.
Good luck!
Ernic Kamerich
-----------------------------
2009/8/22 Reymen Marc <[email protected]>
> Just try to push the strings a bit harder to the tangents by pushing the
> string to the tangent with your finger between the tangent and the fixed
> bridge...
> If the tone is ok than the tangents arent pushing hard enough to the
> sting...
> putting something on the front of the tangent ( a piece of wood )or making
> new ones a bit longer will solve the problem...
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> *From:* Dana R Gregory <[email protected]>
> *To:* [email protected]
> *Sent:* Saturday, August 22, 2009 12:16 AM
> *Subject:* [HG-new] Re: Tech advice: stringing
>
> Before purchasing any more strings, try this. Simply tune your chanter
> string to g. The 0.94 size will work very well as it is the same size on my
> Chinook with unison g chanter strings. Next, drop the tuning on your drones
> to the following, trompette- c, Petite burdon in C and the gros burdon in G.
> That is standard G/C tuning. Try it, you might like it better. If you really
> want to play in D/G tuning, then you'll need a 0.99 or even a 1.04 size to
> play in D, with your drones in d, petite D, and gros in G. Good luck.
>
> --- On *Fri, 8/21/09, Leonard Williams <[email protected]>* wrote:
>
>
> From: Leonard Williams <[email protected]>
> Subject: [HG-new] Tech advice: stringing
> To: "Hurdy-Gurdy List" <[email protected]>
> Date: Friday, August 21, 2009, 2:03 PM
>
>
> I have a home-built hurdy-gurdy based on a presumed 15th c. style
> (plans from a reputable early instrument luthier in California). Having no
> symps or trompette, it is probably more like a symphonie, but with a large,
> flat-back, lute-shaped body instead of the symphonie's simple box. String
> length is 438 mm (17.25 in) chanterelle, 457 mm (18 in) drones. Tuning:
> chanter d' (keyed in G); drones (from top down) g, d, G. (I hope that
> style
> of designation is clear--d' a tone above middle c = c'.)
> I've been through several string gauges on the chanter, working to
> get the clearest tone, but at best it tends to be squawky at the high end
> of
> the register. Currently I'm using 0.94 mm (.037 in) gut. Yes, I have been
> working on my cottoning, rosining and shimming techniques!
> The question--with its longer than normal h-g string length, I
> wonder if I might do well to drop the instrument (in pitch, not bodily!) to
> a C gurdy with a heavier chanter tuned to g, drones c, G, C. I think the
> body size of this beasty would support the lower pitch, but I have no idea
> of relationship between scale length, tone clarity and suitable
> pitch--i.e.,
> is the scale perhaps to long to produce good high notes with tangents and
> the limited pressure they function under? I know it doesn't make as much
> difference on fingerboard instruments, but gurdy is more like a bowed
> clavichord.
>
> Thanks an regards,
> Leonard Williams
> _
> [: :]
> / | | \
> | | | |
> (_==_)
> !~¿
>
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Internal Virus Database is out-of-date.
> Checked by AVG.
> Version: 7.5.557 / Virus Database: 270.11.6/1980 - Release Date: 2-3-2009
> 23:02
>
>
> >
>
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