5 String Kantele, a playing guide, part 1 of 5

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This video is taken from the Kantele-making CD-ROM which is the summary of over a decade of Kantele-making (soon to be a book!)
These series of videos from the CD-Rom cover various tunings and ways to play and will use several tune examples from the Fishbone 5 String Kantele tune book available separately from Lani K Thompson at
www.kantelemus...
My own website with more information on Kanteles is at
www.michaeljki...

[@Goschenhobel]

Your kantele instructions are really very helpful. Great - and thank you for sharing!

[@GBennett88]

hey, thanks for the video! im a Finn and I have grown up looking at the ornamental full sized kantele's on the wall and have always wanted to learn. my great aunt and uncle are both professional kantele players and decided it was time to pick it up! thanks for your videos!

[@zeledee1]

That video is great !!! =) Now my kantele isn't just a souvenir from my beloved Finland =) Thank you

[@visualdarkness]

Can't wait to get my kantele!

[@michaeljking]

5 string is easy to start with but you may find the 5 notes limiting if you want to play more diverse music. The 10 string can play the old 5 string music as well celtic/folk/ modern material. best to listen to 10 string and 5 string to decide

[@squidbo63]

Hi Michael, I love your videos. I bought your plans for making a kantele, but I suck at building so I gave up and paid for one. Could you possibly provide us with a list of all of the alternative tunings for a five string kantele, I think I've got three from your site.

[@michaeljking]

Hi I only use three myself on 5 string kantele. Which I demonstrate on these videos, With these there are many variations. Like dropping the low D to C etc. Of course there are minor oentatonic scales etc. You can experiment and find a variation to fit a tune. You can also restring these with brass or bronze strings to tune to a lower key. (A or G)

[@The1TheyCallJake]

A man named Corwen ap Broch lives in Verwood. He makes Finnish and Norse instruments. You could find his website by googling his name.

[@Forseti6288]

Hi there. Nice video. I have a question for you. I was looking on a website for a store close to here called MumaHarps. They had two kinds of Kanteles. One with a sound hole and another one called a "Board" kantele with no sound hole but much cheaper... I like the sound of yours, but would it be considered a board kantele? or do you think I should invest in the more expensive one? Thank you

[@michaeljking]

shouldn't be a problem, might need to use slightly thinner strings at the top end on a standard 10 string in D

[@FrankGGuitar]

I like your version of "Water is Wide" better than James Taylor's. What arrangement are you looking at in this video? I didn't see it in the book MY KANTELE IS MY TEACHER.

[@michaeljking]

Wow, Thanks very much! its a very heart felt song, 16 year ago, I did it quite quickly when everyone had gone to bed one evening to demonstrate strumming and singing a song. Only wrote out one verse at the time. The sheet music will be added to my 5 string kantele playing book (hopefully ready by early next year) but you have all the chords on the video.

[@FrankGGuitar]

@@michaeljking I will buy that book.

[@RodrigoLaiho7]

great !!! very helpful

[@Forseti6288]

Thanks a lot. I'm also wondering, can you tune these to the key of E minor?

[@michaeljking]

Thanks! you are right there!

[@rstabler1]

When you type the address, you want to use kantele without the s. Hope that helps.

[@michaeljking]

I will take my chances, thanks! ;-)

[@alfredovitori]

Hi, Michael, thanks for these videos, they're a great help. Just one question: where can I find the mp3 files to tune the strings?

[@michaeljking]

I think that is on the Kantele making CD just a d major or D minor scale. I use a tin whistle to tune in but a guitar tuner would do.

[@michaeljking]

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[@luiscesars.kaisar8329]

Parabéns meu amigo, som muito bom, embora sai bem agudo, mas bonito e melodioso ! Vou fazer um também, obrigado, thanks ! 2020 Brasil

[@michaeljking]

These instruments are fine for music therapy or modern folk but wont have the same sound as the finnish kantele,, they are more like a modern zither. check out kanteles dot come for some reasonably priced authentic models instead if that's what interests you

[@herculean616]

What if I'm playing this on a guitar that has a division in the middle

[@michaeljking]

Different instrument You can play the same notes on a guitar of course, or restring a guitar to be a like a Kantele,. Very easy to build a simple Kantele of course.

[@Forseti6288]

Sorry. I meant to say sound BOX. One had one, the other didn't. Thanks again =P

[@sharonrickey1397]

9

[@keeelane]

just tune it to natural overtone just intonation

[@michaeljking]

+keeelane If you are playing by yourself and not others that's a good choice. Personally I tuned by ear when playing by myself, My 15 String Kanteles are actually sent out tuned to just intonation and I use an app on my phone to tune in , set to Just intonation, A=432 Hz

[@keeelane]

Michael J King yes, sure or you can have all the others tune to just intonation as well. :) kantele was not really a band instrument probably before the 20th century anyway.