Hola from Kent / Instrument Maker

[SamL]

Hey all,

New here, play and make Musical Instruments. Here's an Instrument I made, being played alongside the original I copied in the Bayerisches national Museum, Germany.

I hope you're all well.

 

[Bingy man]

Hello and welcome-stunning work

 

[SamL]

Thanks very much!

 

[Homeless Squirrel]

Hi Welcome

 

[Fred48]

Welcome to the forum @SamL .
Fred

 

[Matt_0222]

Welcome! That looks like a lot of strings!

 

[MikeJhn]

Not a normal looking string instrument, what is it called?

 

[benitod]

Ladies are welcome. Nice instrument.

 

[MikeJhn]

Interested to know how you worked out the original poster is female?

 

[thetyreman]

hello and welcome!

I'm familiar with the viol de gamba from when I studied music at university but what are the other smaller instruments?

regards,

Ben.

 

[MikeJhn]

Thanks for letting us know what the instrument is called, on investigation it seems that as long as it has a sound box and string neck it can have as many strings as it likes, the main difference is it also has frets, have I got that right?

 

[SamL]

Welcome! That looks like a lot of strings!

21! But you only play 7...

 

[SamL]

Not a normal looking string instrument, what is it called?

It's an Englische Violett - A practically extinct Baroque Bowed Instrument from the early 1700s. Some clips here;
https://www.youtube.com/@samlamingluthier

 

[SamL]

Ladies are welcome. Nice instrument.

Ironically think the distinction would make someone feel less welcome haha... But I'm male, the photo is of a German player, playing the instrument for me at a performance.

 

[SamL]

hello and welcome!

I'm familiar with the viol de gamba from when I studied music at university but what are the other smaller instruments?

regards,

Ben.

The player is holding my Englische Violett, which is a replica of the Instrument behind her on the far right. The 'inner' 2 of the 4 Instruments are a Baryton and Viola D'amore - A Baryton is a Viola Da Gamba with the back of the neck open - It has extra strings going through the next (as do all the instruments pictured), but the open neck allows you to pluck the strings at the same time;

visible one minute in to this video.

Viola D'amore is a smaller version of the Englische Violett essentially.

 

[SamL]

Thanks for letting us know what the instrument is called, on investigation it seems that as long as it has a sound box and string neck it can have as many strings as it likes, the main difference is it also has frets, have I got that right?

? I don't really understand your point sorry. The number of strings an instrument can 'tolerate' is to do with the strength of the soundboard (it's thickness, stiffness, size and wood type)... My Instrument doesn't have frets? And frets don't affect how many strings one can place on an Instrument.

 

[MikeJhn]

There wasn't any point, I was asking if I had my understanding of the instrument correct, witch obviously I didn't, also I did not say or intimate that frets affect how many strings can be on the instrument, it was a genuine enquiry into what I thought was an interesting instrument.

 

[SamL]

There wasn't any point, I was asking if I had my understanding of the instrument correct, witch obviously I didn't, also I did not say or intimate that frets affect how many strings can be on the instrument, it was a genuine enquiry into what I thought was an interesting instrument.

Was just a bit confusingly wrote, but thanks for caring. The Instrument I made doesn't have frets (which actually allows chords to be played much more in tune than can be managed on a Guitar for example), but also means learning to play in tune without frets which is a bit of a lifelong project.

More strings = more pressure on the top piece of wood and Instrument's tops can collapse. The Englische Violett with the most amount of strings in the world has 32, mine has 21.

 

[benitod]

Apologize for my mistake, SamL. I thought that the lady in the picture was the OP.