As a german i can't deny the fact that many german traditions wich are nearly or totally dead in the german motherland are alive and well in Pennsylvania. There is one main difference when it comes to the Scheitholz and that is that in germany it is played either by hand or with a horn plectrum.
Nowadays it's usually plucked by hand or plectrum in Pennsylvania too, but we know from photographs that it has a long bowed tradition as well. I think the reason so few people bow it is that...it's difficult...
I think it's a situation where there's been change over time. My impression at least is that a lot of these drone zithers (which used to be widespread across central and northern Europe, kinda from France to Germany and then straight up) used to be primarily played by or at least had a significant tradition of bowing, and then tended to change to plucking/strumming over time, which is a change that was likewise seen in the mountain Dulcimer which is descended from the Scheitholt after the Pa Dutch brought it here.
Thank you for this very good video! I think its very good and contains a lot of information that is hard to get. I own serveral "medieval" or rather unknown instruments and it's always nice to get more information on tuning and playing technique. I'm looking forward to your next unboxing!
It's so interesting that in the US the bowed way of playing is so prominent when in Europe it appears to be more of an afterthought, as far as I can tell.
While there is a maker, Kenneth Bloom, who has heavily modified the Appalachian dulcimer to play with a bow, the contemporary Appalachian dulcimet played in the United States today is more or less exclusively a plucked instrument. It does not worked well to play it with a bow! If I understand this video, this bowed German zither is it's ancestor. The only bowed zither tradition I know about with any currency outside of extremely marginal historical novelty is the Nyckelharpa. Though that might techincally be a "lute" that's box shaped on account of the elaborate mechanical fretting mechanism. There's also the bowed pslatry a 20th century German instrument, which is often passed off as a renesance era instrument. I've also seen examples of German violin zithers that are strung similarly, or in reverse, to a violin and are played resting upon a table. There is an American bowed zither called a Ukelin, but it was part of a marketing scam to sell largely unplayable contraption zithers door to door to amateurs as instruments that anyone can play. It never saw use as part of any performance practice, prior to the trend towards the intentional use of obscure, impractical and broken lost historical instruments in indie-folk experimental music in the mid 2000s. When I, an American, played my broken Ukelin through a contact mic, wah wah pedal and guitar amp in a context we refered to as "european free-improv" I didn't use a bow, despite playing eletric violin and attempting bowing my mandoin, balalaika, and guitar. Anyway, as an American who is especially into lost and obscure acoustic instruments, and who is main instrument right is an Appalachian duclimer inspired Canadian diatonic guitar, I definitely associate attempting to bow a zither with Germany, and bowed zither playing definitely isn't prominent in American. I don't think it's prominent anywhere.
Very interesting, but according to Michael Praetorius who originated the term "Scheitholt" you are not playing one. Your instrument has a raised fret board and there is no string which is shortened by a small hook on the soundboard. You are playing for lack of another term a Pennsylvania German bowed zitter (zither). Thank you sharing this video. Excellent playing.
Strange question: a great friend passed a dulcimer down to me and I just started to try it out, and it seems to me that sometimes I hear the upper and lower part of the string almost at the same volume, so it confuses a lot! Is there a way to further dampen the “wrong half” of the string?
@simonanardi4312 huh, very interesting. If you're using your fingers "piano style," you can just leave all the fingers down between the nut and the highest finger. If you're using a noter or your thumb, you can trail behind the thumb/noter with your ring finger and pinky lightly touching the string. Let me know if this works for you!
@@NiccoloSeligmann sounds beautiful wonderful job would make for a superb piece in a films soundtrack one of the most beautiful instruments I've ever heard
Thanks 🎶🎶🎶💖💖💖💖💖🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🤩🤩🤩🤩
As a german i can't deny the fact that many german traditions wich are nearly or totally dead in the german motherland are alive and well in Pennsylvania. There is one main difference when it comes to the Scheitholz and that is that in germany it is played either by hand or with a horn plectrum.
Nowadays it's usually plucked by hand or plectrum in Pennsylvania too, but we know from photographs that it has a long bowed tradition as well. I think the reason so few people bow it is that...it's difficult...
I think it's a situation where there's been change over time. My impression at least is that a lot of these drone zithers (which used to be widespread across central and northern Europe, kinda from France to Germany and then straight up) used to be primarily played by or at least had a significant tradition of bowing, and then tended to change to plucking/strumming over time, which is a change that was likewise seen in the mountain Dulcimer which is descended from the Scheitholt after the Pa Dutch brought it here.
Lovely!!! And you play it by picking and with the bow as well, I wanna learn this, too!
It has a surprisingly rich, beautiful sound for such a small, simple-looking instrument
Thank you for this very good video! I think its very good and contains a lot of information that is hard to get. I own serveral "medieval" or rather unknown instruments and it's always nice to get more information on tuning and playing technique. I'm looking forward to your next unboxing!
It's so interesting that in the US the bowed way of playing is so prominent when in Europe it appears to be more of an afterthought, as far as I can tell.
Are you saying that backwards?
While there is a maker, Kenneth Bloom, who has heavily modified the Appalachian dulcimer to play with a bow, the contemporary Appalachian dulcimet played in the United States today is more or less exclusively a plucked instrument. It does not worked well to play it with a bow! If I understand this video, this bowed German zither is it's ancestor. The only bowed zither tradition I know about with any currency outside of extremely marginal historical novelty is the Nyckelharpa. Though that might techincally be a "lute" that's box shaped on account of the elaborate mechanical fretting mechanism. There's also the bowed pslatry a 20th century German instrument, which is often passed off as a renesance era instrument. I've also seen examples of German violin zithers that are strung similarly, or in reverse, to a violin and are played resting upon a table. There is an American bowed zither called a Ukelin, but it was part of a marketing scam to sell largely unplayable contraption zithers door to door to amateurs as instruments that anyone can play. It never saw use as part of any performance practice, prior to the trend towards the intentional use of obscure, impractical and broken lost historical instruments in indie-folk experimental music in the mid 2000s. When I, an American, played my broken Ukelin through a contact mic, wah wah pedal and guitar amp in a context we refered to as "european free-improv" I didn't use a bow, despite playing eletric violin and attempting bowing my mandoin, balalaika, and guitar.
Anyway, as an American who is especially into lost and obscure acoustic instruments, and who is main instrument right is an Appalachian duclimer inspired Canadian diatonic guitar, I definitely associate attempting to bow a zither with Germany, and bowed zither playing definitely isn't prominent in American. I don't think it's prominent anywhere.
Very interesting and cool!!!!
Best unboxing ever.
interesting instrumentm, im like it.
Very interesting, but according to Michael Praetorius who originated the term "Scheitholt" you are not playing one. Your instrument has a raised fret board and there is no string which is shortened by a small hook on the soundboard. You are playing for lack of another term a Pennsylvania German bowed zitter (zither). Thank you sharing this video. Excellent playing.
Strange question: a great friend passed a dulcimer down to me and I just started to try it out, and it seems to me that sometimes I hear the upper and lower part of the string almost at the same volume, so it confuses a lot! Is there a way to further dampen the “wrong half” of the string?
@simonanardi4312 huh, very interesting. If you're using your fingers "piano style," you can just leave all the fingers down between the nut and the highest finger. If you're using a noter or your thumb, you can trail behind the thumb/noter with your ring finger and pinky lightly touching the string. Let me know if this works for you!
I am curious about what strings you use for this scheitholt.
Gut, three thicknesses
@@NiccoloSeligmann Thank you much!
your nails match the colour of your hair
you’re so funny 😂
What melody are u playing in the beginning
Just something super simple that I improvised and then did a couple extra times
@@NiccoloSeligmann sounds beautiful wonderful job would make for a superb piece in a films soundtrack one of the most beautiful instruments I've ever heard
So gross
??????? wtf
Play nicely. If you don't, you'll be sent to your room without dessert.