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 viola organista
Author: ned 
Date:   2013-11-20 22:35

This is nothing to do with clarinet, but it's an amazing instrument. In all my years I have not heard of this invention until today.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JG7qvkGZkug

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 Re: viola organista
Author: Chris P 
Date:   2013-11-21 13:36

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JG7qvkGZkug

It's a large hurdy gurdy!

Nice playing too.

Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010

The opinions I express are my own.

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 Re: viola organista
Author: Paul Aviles 
Date:   2013-11-21 13:36

I just attended an exhibit of many Leonardo da Vinci inventions presented in full size models and some in scaled down versions. Da Vinci was apparently an amazing musician who built many different instruments including a double flute and a large drum machine (basically a cart) used in war to make the enemy think the forces they faced were larger than they really were. There was at least one comprehensive treatise on music (if not more) written by Leondardo da Vinci that was lost to history. No small loss indeed.




.................Paul Aviles



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 Re: viola organista
Author: Chris P 
Date:   2013-11-21 13:40

Here's a longer video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sv3py3Ap8_Y

And here's one of the mechanism: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIFocw29a-I

Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010

The opinions I express are my own.

Post Edited (2013-11-21 13:44)

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 Re: viola organista
Author: Ken Shaw 2017
Date:   2013-11-21 15:12

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viola_organista. It's a large hurdy gurdy in the shape of a harpsichord. There is a rotating wheel with strings pressed against it by fingering the keyboard. It sounds like a standard hurdy gurdy.

A similar instrument is the lira organizzata http://www.weichselbaumer.cc/english/lira_images.html, which also has organ pipes. Haydn wrote a concerto for two of them. The House of Esterházy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Esterh%C3%A1zy, which employed Haydn, had a fondness for unusual instruments. Prince Nikolaus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikolaus_Esterh%C3%A1zy loved the Baryton http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baryton, a viola da gamba with numerous extra strings that vibrated sympathetically and could be plucked by the player. Haydn wrote some 150 pieces for it.

Ken Shaw

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 Re: viola organista
Author: Paul Aviles 
Date:   2013-11-21 17:12

Thanks Chris for the post of the "inner workings" of this gizm.





...............Paul Aviles



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 Re: viola organista
Author: Paula S 
Date:   2013-11-21 19:08

Unique and beautiful! What a treat for us all :-)

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 Re: viola organista
Author: ned 
Date:   2013-11-22 03:05

Chris P and Ken Shaw refer to the hurdy-gurdy.

Whilst the VO has (seemingly) a somewhat similar operating mechanism, I'm not sure that the the two bear real comparison, assuming you were serious? I guess not.

The HD is principally a folk instrument and to some folks, I'd say, an instrument of derision. I have heard the term ''hurdy-gurdy'' used pejoratively, that is, by likening it to something that is objectionable - this is just MY experience, I should point out.

The VO, as far as I am concerned, is very much a serious instrument. Just listen to it (I'm listening to Chris P's first link) - it's pretty much a complete string section played by one person. The operator in the short demo video, seems even to be extracting some mild vibrato by ''fluttering'' the keys.

Perhaps it's the first synthesiser?



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 Re: viola organista
Author: Chris P 
Date:   2013-11-22 06:41

A synthesizer is a programmable instrument to create different sounds, but this one only makes the one sound.

To be fair, the only similarity this instrument shares with a hurdy gurdy are the cranked rosined wheels that play the strings and the keyboard, but the strings aren't in constant contact with the rosined wheels and the keyboard operates one string at a time with a single string for each note instead of acting like frets on a single string to produce all the notes, so it's a fully polyphonic instrument (like a harpsichord) instead of monophonic like the hurdy gurdy (drones aside).

What's the difference between a hurdy gurdy and a chainsaw? Vibrato.

Just found another version, but this one isn't as good:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qTlln_vzXA

Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010

The opinions I express are my own.

Post Edited (2013-11-22 10:46)

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 Re: viola organista
Author: Ken Shaw 2017
Date:   2013-11-22 15:28

Ned -

Like the recorder, the hurdy gurdy has serious music and serious players. Of course I was referring to the fact that it and the VO have a rotating wheel (substituting for the bow) and a keyboard. A hurdy gurdy is as necessary for its music as a 5-key clarinet is for Mozart -- you don't have to play it, but you need to know about it and respect its players.

Ken Shaw

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