3 Steps of Nyckelharpa Learning - Scandi Folk Nerd #5

[@carlavangeel2484]

So nice how enthousiast you teach us this lovely basics ! Thanks !

[@EmelieWaldken]

I'm always super enthusiastic when it's about scandinavian folk music and/or nyckelharpa ;)

[@espressivsymbols3220]

So as a composer I want to say 1) huge thanks for the HIGHLY informative video and 2) you actually solved one of my Timbre searches for a commission I'm doing, so now I just have to find a player (in mean time i'll write for strings as back up). I just wanted to say thank you and keep doing what you're doing! You're awesome af!

[@EmelieWaldken]

So nice that I could help for one of your composing commissions ! Give a link here (or send it to me via which ever way you want) when it's done so I can hear, that will certainely be super interesting =)

[@martinhietkamp]

Very helpful and ecouraging! I played guitar before starting to learn the Nyckelharpa a year ago. My teacher stressed good bowing technique from start. Still struggling and sometimes frustrating but I can already hear and feel the difference it makes! My teacher also stresses the importance to anchor the first finger when climbing up on the keyboard, even when you don't play it or start for example with the second or third finger. That helps me a lot. Thnx for the great video and looking forward to the next one!

[@EmelieWaldken]

Thank you for the nice and nerdy comment ! Great teacher you have, to give you proper bowing technique from the start ! Yes, for climbing it's really helping to keep an anchor - even if that finger is not "heard" in the notes. Have a nice playing !

[@yeoldfart8762]

I hope some day to add a nickelharpa to my collection. I really enjoy your music. Thanks for putting it out there.

[@EmelieWaldken]

I wish you'll manage, it's such a great instrument in my opinion ! Thank you for the nice comment !

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

What I did rather cleverly here is to try to play the Suzuki Twinkle Variations from Violin School Book 1 on the Nyckelharpa which allowed me to climb the Keyboard but it also allowed me to learn the various bowing techniques from Violin.

[@ghfirefly]

Yeee, thank you for this! I am a fiddler about to get a nyckelharpa so I have been watching your series for ideas about how to approach this when I get it. This was perfect- I am curious to see the next installments. Much respect..

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

Emelie Waldken I heard that Optima now makes Nyckelharpa Sympathetic Strings which are 24K gold wound. I use Prim Strings because they have Damping Materials to cut out the Higher Overtones.

[@ChrisC811]

You are very inspiring. I especially like your explanation of the bowing.

[@EmelieWaldken]

Thanks for this nice comment, and yesss hehehe a new person is inspired to play the nycklharpa ! I'm glad ! This amazing instrument deserves to be better known and more played !

[@jqquick6152]

Thank you . Such great explanation and steps.

[@dididoo]

Hello, I've had a nyckel for 3 months. I'm in France. Someone in Portugal told me me he followed your lessons to learn. I don't know when he started but I'd love to play like him! Are the nyckel lessons the videos nerd? The ones with#? As I'll be looking for them and I only have a mobile no computer, and little network where I live. I learnt piano when young so musicwise I'm OK. I taught myself the diatonic accordéon at 22 and the dulcimer and played by ear and with a folkgroup. And I've sung all my life and slot of sight reading However I am now 70, I give myself 30 years to be able to play the Spelmansgladje on the nyckel, then I'll be happy! As you say I find keeping the bow straight difficult, never used one before. But I've now decided to not worry too much, once the left hand can get on on its own I'll be able to concentrate more on the bow. I try to stick to the good push and pull pattern, though, that's why I use the scores. Without I was doing just anything. However I have trouble to accepted that on the strong beat you pull, seems to me more logical to push! I don't know why! I'll must get into the habit! I'm trying the Jamtland Brudmarsch for a first piece to really learn properly. The music is in the book I got from J C Condi with the nyckel. I used to live nearby him. However I won't be able to go to his weekend nyckel classes in the autumn, they are near where I live now, because of health problems. I can't spend all day playing neither all evening, or the next day. I find it's best to play in the morning. I've got the score of Hommage till en Spelman which as you say goes very high, I make an awful noise! But I won't insist, I'll take the high part an octave lower. That must work too! Any help or advice is welcome. Are you Swedish? I thought you were Swiss, you are often near the Lac Leman or near mountains.

[@avenderiel]

First step in learning nyckelharpa: Find a place to buy one. Second step: I´ll tell you when I get there.

[@EmelieWaldken]

^^ Quite accurate - sadly. But in a way the hunt makes the instrument all the more fascinating, I think. Good luck, hope you'll find one soon !

[@cacheteinflado1]

ON EBAY YOU CAN FIND BUT EXPENSIVE ONES

[@pedropacheco2821]

@@cacheteinflado1 i can't find

[@ΚωσταςΜπαδανης]

@@EmelieWaldken I think that nowhere in Greece I can find someone who sells nyckelharpas..... I really like this instrument and I would like to learn in .Meaby in my school I am the only one who knows it..

[@EmelieWaldken]

@@ΚωσταςΜπαδανης I sadly don't know of any nyckelharpa builder in Greece, that's true, but there is minimum one in Italy ! Else Holger Funke in Germany sends to the whole Europe and further ;)

[@VAdu56]

Bravo Emilie ! je construis une Nyckleharpa, et suis attentif à tes conseils pour plus tard quand elle sera finie ...!! Merci pour cette vidéo Vincent ( France - Bretagne forêt de brocéliande ...Morbihan)

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

It has 4 Rows of Keys & the main playing strings are tuned like a Viola (it takes Prim Nyckelharpa Strings on the main 4, the Sympathetic Strings are just Individual Guitar Strings as Prim is working on their Sympathetic Nyckelharpa Strings) which is a perfect 5th below the Violin, so all it is, is a Viola w/ Keys attached to it so that it's easier to play in tune.

[@0marrei0]

Hej Emelie! Jag fyndade precis en nyckelharpa och är supertaggad på att lära mig instrumentets alla härliga och traditionella toner. Men är dock helt novis på stråkinstrument. Tusen tack för din video! Det var mycket bra introduktion till min nya knäkompis. (Hade gärna sett den längre versionen av den 😅)👍🙂👍

[@andreware6492]

I have to learn how to read music- to be able to read the folk melodies I want to play on the Nyckelharpa. But great lesson on technique. thanks

[@EmelieWaldken]

It's totally possible to play a lot of music without reading notes ! One can learn music by ear - many folk musicians do that and quite a fair percentage of them can in fact not read dots ;)

[@andreware6492]

@@EmelieWaldken Wow really? That's such good news for me! I'm located in NY so will be looking for a Harpa now :)

[@yeoldfart8762]

Thank you for the reply! I got to caretake a cello for a couple years. Great fun. I’ve been given a viola which is just about as much fun. Thoughts of turning it into an octave Fiddle. Would fit into session easier. Main instruments are guitar and 6 string banjo. A little button accordion. A little penny whistle. Never enough musical instrument. Keep making utube. They are great!

[@EmelieWaldken]

Thanks for the nice compliments ! I totally relate about getting more instruments - I'm now trying to get "fluent" with hurdy-gurdy and säckpipa at the same time, and I also want a gamba and a hardingfela, and some more things ^^

[@idasofie6]

Greetings from Norway. I have many years experience with classical piano and harpsichord. I'm interested in picking up nyckelharpa. Would you say the learning curve with the keyboards will be easier when you have piano (keyboard) background? I've been wanting to try a string instrument for years and nyckelharpa appeals to me more than violin/fiddle. It seems so versatile and you can play folk and classical music. Do you think it's worth getting into, even as a side instrument, and how hard is it to learn to use the bow?

[@EmelieWaldken]

Hej hej ! I definitely think it's worth getting into nyckelharpa, no matter what ;) The sound is really deep and rewarding ! Note that it is actually not as versatile as a violin ; one can play classical music on it but it is not exactly as adapted to it than violins - some techniques are not possible (vibrato is limited, glissando impossible) but then there are some upsides too, such as the pitch that one defines once during tuning the tangents and then does not need to care about ! The bow is the hardest to learn for people who don't have a fiddle/viola/cello/double-bass background, but it is totally doable, many people start their musical journey on nyckelharpa and learn the bow with the rest. Piano and harpsichord will not exactly help you technically wise. Of course general musical experience is always a plus, but the nyckelharpa keyboard's logic is TOTALLY different from a piano's. The keys go in half-tones (like the fingers on a violin), not in diatonic mode with the "black keys" in-between like a piano. It's a different logic entirely - but in my opinion is makes a lot of sense by nature, it's very intuitive. Let me know if you go for it and how it goes !

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

schottis från Haverö can also be played on the Violin

[@dididoo]

A big problem for me is that I sing these Swedish tunes all day long, a different tune each day. And of course through the day I gradually slightly change the tune. Add this and take out that. That's why I need the scores too to see what they should be when I play them. But that slight change has always happened in folkmusic anyway.

[@EmelieWaldken]

This phenomenon is very common, it happens a lot to me too ! And yes, for this sheet music is so useful, or a recording is too. And indeed, such changes have happened at all times in folk music, especially when only transmitted orally, and that's why we have sometimes MANY versions of the same tune ;)

[@Billiam112]

Jag har precis köpt min första nyckelharpa (på chans på blocket) för att se om det är något för mig innan jag investerar i en vettig. Har du tips på någon bra låt att börja med? :)

[@serrafn3101]

Does anyone have the sketches of the nyckelharpa

[@EmelieWaldken]

I'm sorry I don't understand what you mean, which sketches ?

[@serrafn3101]

@@EmelieWaldken ig you have an sketch of how to create this instrument. My grandpa wants to create one with wood and I have not finded any instructions of how to do it.

[@EmelieWaldken]

​@@serrafn3101 Building a nyckelharpa is a complex process, several amateurs do it here in Sweden but to really do it well it's a full profession (as for violin building, it's quite similar). Most people learn from the building course at Eric Sahlström Institute in Tobo, Sweden or from old masters. I know there's a book too, with plans, but probably in Swedish only. I sadly don't have the references for it, but I'm pretty sure the American Nyckelharpa Association has them, as most builders. You could ask one of them or the AMA =)

[@jakebarnes5211]

You are an amazing musician! I have a nerdy question for you: do you think Swedish music would sound good on a tenor banjo? I started my musical career on guitar, got absorbed with Celtic mandolin a while back, and now focus mainly on Celtic tenor banjo (tuned GDAE, an octave below violin). My hometown of Mora, Minnesota is rich with Swedish traditions, and I'd like to learn the music, but also not butcher it and do it injustice.

[@EmelieWaldken]

Thanks a lot ! Well in my opinion swedish music can be played on all instruments. There is currently a kind of fondness for american folk music in Sweden, so I would say a banjo is especially fitting. And with your GDAE tuning you'll have no problem playing the fiddle tunes ! I didn't know there was another Mora in the USA (I only know the swedish one). This tradition of swedish music in your place sounds like a very interesting thing to dig into ! Go for it ;)

[@jakebarnes5211]

Awesome! We've even got a 7 meter Dala horse and an annual Vasaloppet! Be sure to check out Lead Belly and Charley Patton for some amazing lesser-known Americana.

[@AmyHakanson]

Yes! There are several people playing Swedish folk tunes on banjo, including myself. Check out Premo & Gustavsson, it's a nyckelharpa/banjo duo project. I know Allison De Groot (from the Goodbye Girls, a bluegrass/old time band with Lena Jonsson) has played some Swedish music on banjo as well. I think it would work quite well on tenor banjo.

[@scatteredntattered3216]

Im just gonna ask you since you play the actual instrument lol I play the saxaphone and flute and my soul has been captured by this intriguing instrument. So the hext step is for me to learn, i actually have a violin teacher loacally. Should I learn the violin 1st? or dive right into the harpa? Thanks you ❤❤

[@EmelieWaldken]

Go for the instrument you want to play ! If you do want to learn to play the fiddle too, then go for the fiddle, but it's definitely not a requirement for playing the 'harpa !

[@webersonthiago8221]

porfavor alguém sabe onde posso comprar esse intrumento ?

[@Oraclestarsong]

Thank you for this information. For someone in the states who wants to get started where do you suggest purchasing quality instrument and learning to play.

[@EmelieWaldken]

In the USA I recommend you get in touch with the American Nyckelharpa Association, they're present a bit everywhere across the country and will very surely help you ! Also on my website I have a list of builders including a few in the US : www.emeliewaldken.net/builders.html Good luck !

[@AmyHakanson]

If you're on facebook, the American Nyckelharpa Association group there is a really good place to ask if anyone has one for sale! Most of us check in there pretty frequently. Where do you live? There are plenty of folks in the PNW who might have one you can try if you can meet up with them, and there is a Nyckelharpa spelmanslag in the Twin Cities in Minnesota. There are also quite a few folks on the East Coast who play. Depending on your location I could recommend some teachers.

[@AmyHakanson]

@Brina Owens if you'd like to get in contact with I can keep an eye out for used nyckelharpas for sale, as well. If you want to reach out my email address is amyhakansonmusic (at) gmail (dot) com Good luck!

[@samf8887]

Please where do you get this instrument from trustworthy source? Im in california u.s.a. ive been trying to look for this instrument for literally years with no luck.

[@EmelieWaldken]

It's indeed a bit difficult outside of Europe, but there are at least two builders in the USA, check down the list on my webpage : waldken.weebly.com/nyckelharpa.html Also, you should prolly get in touch with the American Nyckelharpa Association : www.nyckelharpa.org/ Good hunt !

[@RRCDog]

Samantha, where in California are you located? North or South? There is currently a Nyckelharpa for sale in the fiddle booth at the Great Dickens Christmas Fair in San Francisco, it was made by a builder in Nevada City. I've been going into the booth several times a day when the fair is open on the weekends, teaching myself to play it but can't afford to buy it right now.

[@AmyHakanson]

Hi Samantha, if you are near the Bay Area you should check in with Mark Walstrom. He has a music shop called "Timbre Folk & Baroque," and probably has a few nyckelharpas for sale. There are a few players in L.A. as well - Morgan O'Shaughnessey and Ryan Koons, off the top of my head, although Ryan may have moved back to the East Coast - and a few folks in Ashland, OR, if you live in Northern California. If you reach out to anyone listed on the ANA website, which Emelie linked to, or the America Nyckelharpa Association group on facebook, you are likely to find someone with a good quality instrument that they are selling, or at least ask around and someone will let you know when there is one for sale.

[@celebrationsongs]

Really love your videos, they are so helpful. Is your nyckelharpa by Johannes Mayr as you have so many tangents?

[@EmelieWaldken]

Thank you, I'm glad my videos are helpful ! My nyckelharpa is not by Johannes Mayr but by Bernard Dimet and Jean-Claude Condi. Condi also makes 4-rows keyboards (and very, very good ones !).

[@celebrationsongs]

@@EmelieWaldken Ok thats really good to know, I have never heard of Dimet & Condi before - maybe one day I will feel good enough to cope with an added row of tangents lol. I have a Swedish one by Bosse Nilsson. What sort of price range are those very very good ones by Condi in? I have so far only heard people sighing for the nyckel harpas made by Soeren Aahker - claiming them to be amazing and pricey LOL. Couldn't afford one myself lol

[@EmelieWaldken]

@@celebrationsongs Dimet has never been a well-known builder, I think my nyckelharpa is the only one by him (and actually half by him as Condi finished it). I definitely recommend 4-rows keyboard, there are so many more possibilities with them than with 3-rows ! But 3-rows already allow for so much, that's true too. I'd say it's mostly about your taste in sound (do you want more low notes ?) and in what to play (do you want to play second voices and more bass-lines things ?). If you answered yes to both questions then you should prolly go for a 4-rows keyboard ! The Sören Åhker nyckelharpas are said to be very good indeed, never tried one myself though, but many other builders are also really good, also the cheaper ones such as the basic strong solid Olle Plahn ones ! The Condis vary quite a lot in their price depending on the model, but they are expensive in general, not less than 3500-4000 € for a good one, and it can go quite way above that even.

[@jonplaud]

I play violin and I want to learn the nykelharpa.

[@kilimanjarno]

Emelie, my friend and I are having a discussion about what your accent is! We're both musicians and we're both interested in accents. I live in Canada, and she lives in France. I think your accent is French; she thinks its Eastern European. Is one of us correct? Would you tell us the facts!

[@Frank-oz8be]

Id love to follow your advice.... If I could find a nyckleharpa! *Shakes fist*

[@gerald4013]

Super vidéo, comme d'hab :-) Malheureusement, avant ça y a 3 problèmes qui se posent: 1. avoir assez d'argent pour acheter un nyckelharpa 2. trouver un nyckelharpa (2 ans d'attente chez un luthier français, et ils sont dans les Vosges donc quand on habite en Bretagne...) 3. avoir le temps pour apprendre et jouer... Snif.......

[@EmelieWaldken]

Oooh je compatis =( Même au cas où tu ne parles pas suédois, je te recommande le groupe FB "folkmusik köp och sälj" qui est LE groupe d'occasion pour les instruments folk. On y trouve régulièrement des nyckel, pas forcément des instruments magnifiques mais potables, pour pas cher. Par contre évidemment il faut aller la chercher après... (ce qui peut être une bonne excuse pour se faire une virée en Suède, hehe). Sinon, en Allemagne il y a Holger Funke (du groupe Poeta Magica) qui revend des nyckel suédoises, il en a souvent en stock donc pas d'attente, et il y a pas mal de prix/modèles différents. Je suis sûre qu'il parle anglais. Bonne chasse !

[@gerald4013]

tack så mycket! Je note pour quand j'aurai des sous :-)

[@malzardronan4625]

gerald Oui j'ai vu ce Luthier sur internet et j'aimerais me faire faire fabriquer une Nyckelhärpa aussi je pense que je vais devoir prendre mon mal en patience :(

[@jamesthatguy672]

Where is a good place to purchase this?

[@richardhaynes5793]

Good, and thank you, but 'muscle memory' is nonsense. I'm a piano teacher, it seems to be a non- conscious part of the brain that handles complex and refined trained actions. It is why musicians, sports etc. even dancers train/practice the way we do.

[@Belseful]

Why don´t you play?? only talk...bla bla bla..

[@EmelieWaldken]

Why don't you shut up if you don't have anything interesting nor constructive to say ?? bla bla bla