Correct, it is spruce. The instrument in question is an eleven-stringed altoguitar made by professor Georg Bolin (1912-1993) in Stockholm, Sweden. He invented this guitar type in collaboration with another Swedish guitarist, professor Per-Olof Johnson in the late sixties - early seventies. Söllscher is today guitar proefessor in Malmö, Sweden, where he once studied for Johnson.
Well,i'm a Metalhead,and i don't normally love those Music genres,but this guy is abseloutely...Amazing!Wonderfull Music. (Sorry for the horrible English)
His playing is amazing!!! This level of musicianship is very high. I should know since I am an expert on 10-string Spanish guitar and multistring guitars are difficult to play.
Amazing, better than I could ever hope to play. But check out the versions of these songs on his album called Greensleeves. That recording is out of this world.
The 1:st piece is called: Fantasie in D Minor, S.L. Weiss. The 2:nd is the ciaconna also Weiss of course. Dont try to play it on a 6-string though cause it doesn't have the deep base needed för this type of sound.
for sure dear friend... he is a great master and a nice gentleman. Very few people play in this high level... I especialize on 10-string guitar and it's a wonderful instrument... you should take a listen... Take care!!
This video shows Sollscher actually plucking all 11 strings rather than just leaving them to resonate. These pieces are a good showcase of the usefulness of the 11-string guitar.
Göran Söllscher is still practicing as a professor at my local musical academy (Malmö musikhögskola). He has a TH-cam channel, where he tends to upload some kind of arrangement every few months: www.youtube.com/@goransollscher1730
Klarheit und Reinheit zeichnen die Darbietungen von Göran Söllscher aus,die (fast) völlige Abwesenheit von Geräuschkontaminationen-die Gestalt der Komposition ,ihre Schönheit,kommt rein und vollkommen zur Geltung,reinigt wohltuend Geist und Seele-wir dürfen es annehmen-Herzliche Grüße und ein voluminöses Dankeschön aus Deutschland...
This is a great guitar player with a wonderful instrument, certainly it is a 11-string instrument, but whether it´s a 11-string or 12-string is really not important. Just enjoy the music.
+udiseus The pieces--a fantasia followed by a chaconne--are by Bach's contemporary and friend, the German lutenist, Sylvius Leopold Weiss (1687--1750). Weiss, lutenist to the royal court at Dresden, was the great lutenist of his day and the last major composer for the instrument.
I don't believe he literally meant that it is a lute shaped like a guitar. Pretty sure it is just a joking reference to the archlute, which has extra bass strings, as does this guitar.
Invented by swedish guitar builder Georg Bolin who made 8- to 13- stringed alto guitars tuned one ters higher than a guitar to make it possible to play lute music with guitar grips...
Then I guess we should call a ukelele a guitar because it has frets. Sure it's tuned like a violin and is a bit smaller than a modern guitar, but who said that a guitar has to be tuned in fourths, and be a standard size, right?
Ok, so the last 4 strings need the extra length for string tension, right? I get that, but why is the extension fretted? Are you supposed to fret up there too?? I won't be able to sleep until I understand this!!!
Like a standard classical guitar with extra basses and a capo on the 3rd fret: so from low to high Bb1 C2 D2 Eb2 F2 G2 C3 F3 Bb3 D4 G4 - unless you’re playing Renaissance lute music, in which case the 3rd string will be a semitone lower.
Why does everyone assume this is a 12-string or a lute? It's an 11-string alto guitar. Secondly, the first piece is Weiss' Fantasia in C Minor, not D minor. Lastly, learn to spell ya cretins! XD
I think since the coming of the internet, let's just stop playing lute music on monster guitars and go construct and buy the original instruments and learn to play them.
That's an opinion, and you are certainly entitled to have one. However, I would like to educate the community about the birth of this instrument. The instrument in question is an eleven-stringed alto guitar made by professor Georg Bolin (1912-1993) in Stockholm, Sweden. He invented this guitar type in collaboration with a Swedish guitarist, professor Per-Olof Johnson in the late sixties - early seventies. Johnson, already an accomplished guitarist wanted to go in-depth to the lute music from the renaissance, but he soon realised that you basically had the options of transcribing the music for a six stringed instrument, which of course already had been done, but to the cost of losing a great part of the music due to the lesser number of strings on the "normal" guitar. The other option was what you suggested; learning to play the lute and play the original music, as it was once composed. Johnson did exactly that; he studied the lute for over a year. However, he soon realised that it wasn't possible to combine the two instruments, the guitar and the lute. The double strings of the lute required the player to play with the flesh, as opposed to the nails. As you all know, most classical guitar players use the nails and herein lies the problem. You can't do both. To solve this dilemma, Johnson asked Georg Bolin if he could make a guitar with the same tonal range as the lute. This would make it possible for the musician to use the playing technique from the guitar - as well as the guitar's dynamic qualities - AND to play the music like it was once written. Presto, the alto guitar was born. Okay, according to Bolin it took eleven years of development until the alto guitar as we know it today was finished. Personally I think this is an achievement that calls for a great deal of respect instead of dismissal. This is an example of how creative people has driven the development forward thru mankind and personally I believe that the composers of yesterday would approve. IMHO you just need to listen to Göran Söllscher's performance..! Respectfully, Peter Bengtsson, master luthier
@@whoisathome I greatly enjoy mr Söllscher's recordings. Master musician. But since listening to people like Thomas Dundford and Jean Rondeau I can't go back. I've crossed the event horizon.
@@wernerretief4569 Fair enough, I wouldn't argue about difference in taste. I just thought that your comment was a bit intolerant, since I greatly appreciate the alto guitar and the two people behind it, as well as Göran Söllscher of course. It is also a fact that this guitar type has inspired many guitarists in Europe- particularly in Scandinavia - to compose contemporary music for the alto guitar, so I'd say the alto guitar has a rightfully earned place in the history of musical instruments. In 1982, I bought my first vinyl album with Göran Söllscher. The main reson for this choice was that the A side contain Stanley Myers "Cavatina". I also discovered that the rest of the music on the A side was lovely and masterfully executed by Söllscher. On the B side, however was Bach's suite no. 4 for lute, BWV 1006a and hearing the Prelude played on an alto guitar for the first time was for me like a punch in solar plexus. I had never heard such dynamics paired with the clarity and richness in overtones from a guitar before - and this was really a turning point in my life. I decided there and then that I wanted to become a guitar maker. To cut a long story short I contacted Bolin and was eventually given the opportunity to study guitar making for him for four years until I later became his assistent for an additionally six years. For me, there is nothing monstrous about the alto guitar. On the contrary, it has a unique tonal quality that is very hard to achieve with a six stringed guitar. During the forty plus years that has gone by since the event I described, I have made a number of guitars, including a few alto guitars and to me, Georg Bolin's creation is nothing short of a masterpiece, from a design point of view as well as musically. Having said this, I wouldn't dream of persuading you to abandon your event horizon. Instead, perhaps we can agree on the notion that the world is big enough for both stand points to coexist? By the way, Göran Söllscher has his own TH-cam channel where he post videos on a weekly basis; www.youtube.com/@goransollscher1730 Kind regards, Peter
Correct, it is spruce. The instrument in question is an eleven-stringed altoguitar made by professor Georg Bolin (1912-1993) in Stockholm, Sweden. He invented this guitar type in collaboration with another Swedish guitarist, professor Per-Olof Johnson in the late sixties - early seventies. Söllscher is today guitar proefessor in Malmö, Sweden, where he once studied for Johnson.
Takk for den informasjonen!
Beautifully played, as only Goran can!
This almost brings tears to my eyes.. so beautiful!
Well,i'm a Metalhead,and i don't normally love those Music genres,but this guy is abseloutely...Amazing!Wonderfull Music. (Sorry for the horrible English)
J'aime Goran Sollscher cet équilibre dans son jeu tout en nuance. Bravo !
His playing is amazing!!! This level of musicianship is very high. I should know since I am an expert on 10-string Spanish guitar and multistring guitars are difficult to play.
Amazing, better than I could ever hope to play. But check out the versions of these songs on his album called Greensleeves. That recording is out of this world.
One of the best!!
Independent Skaneland from Sweden. All respects to Goran .
The 1:st piece is called: Fantasie in D Minor, S.L. Weiss. The 2:nd is the ciaconna also Weiss of course. Dont try to play it on a 6-string though cause it doesn't have the deep base needed för this type of sound.
unbelievable ! ! !
I attended one of his concerts years ago and it changed the way I listen to music fundamentally.
How?
Do you not still use your ears...
It's a great privilege to have a master class with him, and I had one last Sunday in Seattle!
He's awesome!
Minh
Superb phrasing & mind-blowingly effortlessness we should be bringing these artists to Singapore's guitar festival !!!
for sure dear friend... he is a great master and a nice gentleman. Very few people play in this high level... I especialize on 10-string guitar and it's a wonderful instrument... you should take a listen... Take care!!
*Such a spectacular masterful performance.*
The thing is badass and he's playing it. Let's just enjoy it.
This video shows Sollscher actually plucking all 11 strings rather than just leaving them to resonate. These pieces are a good showcase of the usefulness of the 11-string guitar.
Göran Söllscher is still practicing as a professor at my local musical academy (Malmö musikhögskola).
He has a TH-cam channel, where he tends to upload some kind of arrangement every few months: www.youtube.com/@goransollscher1730
thank you
Klarheit und Reinheit zeichnen die Darbietungen von Göran Söllscher aus,die (fast) völlige Abwesenheit von Geräuschkontaminationen-die Gestalt der Komposition ,ihre Schönheit,kommt rein und vollkommen zur Geltung,reinigt wohltuend Geist und Seele-wir dürfen es annehmen-Herzliche Grüße und ein voluminöses Dankeschön aus Deutschland...
how many of my fellow classical guitarists also feel neutered after watching this?
🙌🙌
A great song
So peacfull and sad at the same time
El Gran Maestro Göran Söllscher
👍✔
Radical!
twelve string classical guitar?!?!?! i never thought that thing like this is exist
This is not a guitar, lute or just a custom built instrument. This is an actual instrument, called Alto Guitar, built by Georg Bolin.
I'd love to see Goran do a duet with Leo Lottke. Both are great twelve string guitarist, but from different worlds.
Bell suono que eleganza nella mano destra mi ricorda Williams nella posizione delle mani.
this is beautiful i dont care who you are
It is 11 strings...a custom made 11 string alto guitar. Reminds me of Narcisco Yepes 10 string guitar.
This is a great guitar player with a wonderful instrument, certainly it is a 11-string instrument, but whether it´s a 11-string or 12-string is really not important. Just enjoy the music.
Does anyone have all the videos from that concert including the encores?
yes
Wow. wonderful playing. which pieces of Bach are they? Thanx alot for uploading
+udiseus The pieces--a fantasia followed by a chaconne--are by Bach's contemporary and friend, the German lutenist, Sylvius Leopold Weiss (1687--1750). Weiss, lutenist to the royal court at Dresden, was the great lutenist of his day and the last major composer for the instrument.
Thanx. The melody of the Fantasia is extraordinary.
Amazing .Many thanks for this treasure video. Do you have in quality format. I'm very interested in to have. I have rarities for trading
It's not a 12 stringed guitar! It's a 11 stringed guitar tuned like a lute. Listen to the interview and you'll see.
actually Yepes played a 10 string. I think this is lovely but I don't think we can call this a guitar anymore. This is a modern Lute.
wow.. that baritone depth though..
well yeah
I don't believe he literally meant that it is a lute shaped like a guitar. Pretty sure it is just a joking reference to the archlute, which has extra bass strings, as does this guitar.
Beautiful. What music is that ?
The title is wrong. Göran Söllscher plays a custom made 11 string alto guitar.
Invented by swedish guitar builder Georg Bolin who made 8- to 13- stringed alto guitars tuned one ters higher than a guitar to make it possible to play lute music with guitar grips...
you can see 18 strings classic guitar in youtube
alibaba and 40th gipsy hits
18 strings guitar made in iraq
@TheDjentBoy awesome name!!! \m/
@hufschmidguitars1
Well lets just say it the proof tath Metal is real music!
was this originally written for lute?
Then I guess we should call a ukelele a guitar because it has frets. Sure it's tuned like a violin and is a bit smaller than a modern guitar, but who said that a guitar has to be tuned in fourths, and be a standard size, right?
Ok, so the last 4 strings need the extra length for string tension, right? I get that, but why is the extension fretted? Are you supposed to fret up there too?? I won't be able to sleep until I understand this!!!
Better to have them, and not need them, than to not have them at all.
Jimmy page of classical guitar
***** jimmy page is also partially asian. His grandmother is chinese from hong kong who married an english sailor
i believe its just a custom guitar but hes playing lute music on it.
11弦ギターだぜ！
What is th part called starting at 2:42?
Fantasie in D Minor - S.L. Weiss. (00:17)
Ciacona - S.L. Weiss. (2:41)
@fodera6 Jeese Louise.....
The Weiss is not of this world
How does one tune a guitar like this? (I mean, name of the strings, like: E-A-D-G-B-E)
Like a standard classical guitar with extra basses and a capo on the 3rd fret: so from low to high Bb1 C2 D2 Eb2 F2 G2 C3 F3 Bb3 D4 G4 - unless you’re playing Renaissance lute music, in which case the 3rd string will be a semitone lower.
Why does everyone assume this is a 12-string or a lute? It's an 11-string alto guitar. Secondly, the first piece is Weiss' Fantasia in C Minor, not D minor. Lastly, learn to spell ya cretins! XD
Djent it!
So let me get this straight, 11 strings are rare?
Bolin gutitars are rare...
Спасибо 🎸👍
th-cam.com/video/_-DcUiVp_Qw/w-d-xo.html
Well I can count only 11 strings...
I think since the coming of the internet, let's just stop playing lute music on monster guitars and go construct and buy the original instruments and learn to play them.
That's an opinion, and you are certainly entitled to have one. However, I would like to educate the community about the birth of this instrument.
The instrument in question is an eleven-stringed alto guitar made by professor Georg Bolin (1912-1993) in Stockholm, Sweden. He invented this guitar type in collaboration with a Swedish guitarist, professor Per-Olof Johnson in the late sixties - early seventies. Johnson, already an accomplished guitarist wanted to go in-depth to the lute music from the renaissance, but he soon realised that you basically had the options of transcribing the music for a six stringed instrument, which of course already had been done, but to the cost of losing a great part of the music due to the lesser number of strings on the "normal" guitar. The other option was what you suggested; learning to play the lute and play the original music, as it was once composed.
Johnson did exactly that; he studied the lute for over a year. However, he soon realised that it wasn't possible to combine the two instruments, the guitar and the lute. The double strings of the lute required the player to play with the flesh, as opposed to the nails. As you all know, most classical guitar players use the nails and herein lies the problem. You can't do both.
To solve this dilemma, Johnson asked Georg Bolin if he could make a guitar with the same tonal range as the lute. This would make it possible for the musician to use the playing technique from the guitar - as well as the guitar's dynamic qualities - AND to play the music like it was once written. Presto, the alto guitar was born. Okay, according to Bolin it took eleven years of development until the alto guitar as we know it today was finished. Personally I think this is an achievement that calls for a great deal of respect instead of dismissal. This is an example of how creative people has driven the development forward thru mankind and personally I believe that the composers of yesterday would approve. IMHO you just need to listen to Göran Söllscher's performance..!
Respectfully, Peter Bengtsson, master luthier
@@whoisathome I greatly enjoy mr Söllscher's recordings. Master musician. But since listening to people like Thomas Dundford and Jean Rondeau I can't go back. I've crossed the event horizon.
@@wernerretief4569 Fair enough, I wouldn't argue about difference in taste. I just thought that your comment was a bit intolerant, since I greatly appreciate the alto guitar and the two people behind it, as well as Göran Söllscher of course. It is also a fact that this guitar type has inspired many guitarists in Europe- particularly in Scandinavia - to compose contemporary music for the alto guitar, so I'd say the alto guitar has a rightfully earned place in the history of musical instruments.
In 1982, I bought my first vinyl album with Göran Söllscher. The main reson for this choice was that the A side contain Stanley Myers "Cavatina". I also discovered that the rest of the music on the A side was lovely and masterfully executed by Söllscher. On the B side, however was Bach's suite no. 4 for lute, BWV 1006a and hearing the Prelude played on an alto guitar for the first time was for me like a punch in solar plexus. I had never heard such dynamics paired with the clarity and richness in overtones from a guitar before - and this was really a turning point in my life. I decided there and then that I wanted to become a guitar maker.
To cut a long story short I contacted Bolin and was eventually given the opportunity to study guitar making for him for four years until I later became his assistent for an additionally six years. For me, there is nothing monstrous about the alto guitar. On the contrary, it has a unique tonal quality that is very hard to achieve with a six stringed guitar. During the forty plus years that has gone by since the event I described, I have made a number of guitars, including a few alto guitars and to me, Georg Bolin's creation is nothing short of a masterpiece, from a design point of view as well as musically. Having said this, I wouldn't dream of persuading you to abandon your event horizon. Instead, perhaps we can agree on the notion that the world is big enough for both stand points to coexist?
By the way, Göran Söllscher has his own TH-cam channel where he post videos on a weekly basis; www.youtube.com/@goransollscher1730
Kind regards, Peter