Tuning Without a Tuner, the Ancient Way - by Lina Palera and LyreAcademy.com

[@meaganadams2671]

For a time I trained as a piano tuner. The tuning technics for piano today are remarkably similar to the tuning technique demonstrated here!

[@SEIKILO]

Very good point, Meagan! Some things are so simple, but yet so effective, that remains the same (more or less) over the course of the centuries. If you haven't already, subscribe to stay tuned as more videos like this premiere every week on our channel: kzbin.info/door/5mCqBulD2KzLugC1lEEedA

[@pnptcn]

Thank you for this lesson. After experimenting with the technique I can easily tune to any of the Greek diatonic modes without a tuner now. All I need is a pitch and I'm ready to go. This has made me feel so much closer to the instrument and the resulting Just temperament is gorgeous, full of resonant overtones and life.

[@SEIKILO]

Wonderful! Congratulations on advancing with your lyre playing! :) Lina is an amazing lyre tutor, and you can find many lyre courses and masterclasses for different levels at the Lyre Academy: lyreacademy.com/

[@glishev]

Thanks for that! It works not only for a Greek lyre but for an Anglo-Saxon one, too!

[@SEIKILO]

You're welcome, Glishev! That is true; all lyres can be tuned using the ancient Greek method. :)

[@Rosedeespana]

Thank you so much bless you I’m trying to write a worship song for the Olympians

[@SEIKILO]

Thanks for your comment, Andy! We wish you the best in your lyre composition journey! Take a look on this lyre sheet music series for more inspiration: luthieros.com/lyre-sheet-music/ In case you haven't already, subscribe to stay tuned, as more videos like this premiere on our channel every week: kzbin.info/door/5mCqBulD2KzLugC1lEEedA

[@tiagoadulis]

Amazing lesson! Thank you. I can’t wait for my lyre to arrive!

[@SEIKILO]

A great lesson by LyreAcademy.com and Lina Palera, indeed. Wish you the best with your lyre! :)

[@MikeDGuitar]

Ancient Greece certainly had a fascinating history! I appreciate the great breakdown of the tuning! I noticed, though, that you called the low string the first string. Is that how strings were numbered back then?

[@SEIKILO]

Thanks for watching, Mike! It was the other way in ancient Greece: they used to number the strings starting from the higher notes and ending at the lower ones. This is the opposite of modern practice and why there was so much confusion during the Renaissance and later on. For reasons of consistency and ease, the LyreAcademy team chose the low-to-high numbering. It has stuck with this approach as a significant amount of educational materials have been produced over the last four years. More videos like this premiere on our channel every week, so subscribe here to stay tuned: kzbin.info

[@MikeDGuitar]

@@SEIKILO Wow, that's very interesting! Thank you for the great response. Also, from what I've been hearing, it seems that Plato was a lyre player. He thought that those who added a seventh string to the six-string lyre were decadents because the purity of the instrument was being compromised.

[@SEIKILO]

Hello again, Mike! There were no reports that Plato was a lyre player. However, there are several accounts of Socrates being one! In fact, he held music and the lyre in such high regard that he was not ashamed to begin practicing the lyre at an advanced age. That is most likely the reason there is a lyre next to him in his final moments, in Jacques-Louis David's famous painting "The Death of Socrates". As for Plato, he was indeed a believer in the "older" music, and he proposed that in an ideal polis only certain musical modes should be practiced, so as to preserve the moral character of the citizens and not allow them to fall into decadence.

[@MikeDGuitar]

@@SEIKILO That's great to know! I actually suspect that Socrates was a character made up by Plato to enhance his allegories. The reason why I think that is because Socrates was legally executed at an advance age, an age where leniency and reverence are generally received. In other words, seniors are outside the power struggle of social living.

[@MargaretHarmer]

Thank you for your lessons. This tuning (mathematical Pythagorean intervals) would give Just intonation tuning. Our ears today are used to the equal temperament where 4ths and 5ths are slightly adjusted. How do you address this and maybe tune in the ancient perfect intervals in your playing?

[@SEIKILO]

Thanks for watching, Margarete. It depends on what you want to do! If you plan on participating in a band, then an equal temperament is needed (in most cases) so you can play in harmony and unison with the rest of the instruments. If you plan on doing a solo performance with ancient Greece as a theme, then just intonation might make more sense. It all depends on how you are going to use your lyre! In case you tune it in just intonation, then you have to leave some room both for you and your audience to get familiar with the different sounds (at first, your lyre might sound a little bit out of tune, as we are -as you said- used to equal temperament).

[@ChrysaPlati]

Απολαυστική~

[@SEIKILO]

Οπως πάντα! :)

[@alexandrusimo899]

couldn't you tune the f based on the c? that way the system would have the f more in tune to the equal tempered system

[@SEIKILO]

Thanks for the comment, Alexandru! We just received a reply from Lina Palera, Head of Music Programs at the LyreAcademy.com, so here it is: "The tuning described in this video is based on several sources, including (but not limited to) John G. Landels' book "Music in Ancient Greece and Rome." According to these sources, the ancient Greeks used the 4ths and the 5ths to tune their lyre, as discussed in the video. In case that we were using only 4ths (and this is a pretty smart approach you suggest), why not tune F according to C? We would, once again, meet the F-B diminished and not a perfect 4th. So, the same dilemma, don't you agree? We would then have Bb instead of B or B with the diminished sound."

[@Demetriosssss]

Once I get they lyre I will be very sacred to tune it. I’m afraid it will pop off😥

[@SEIKILO]

Hi, Demetrios! Practice leads to perfection, so you don't have to be afraid at all. Small careful steps are what it takes to tune your instrument while protecting your lyre. Our community is here to help every new lyre player, so don't forget to enroll in the free course of LyreAcademy.com, where you will find amazing tips for beginner-level lyre players! What's more, here is a very helpful video about tuning your lyre, just premiered on our channel: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p2fOY4WJnqupj68 More videos like this will be premiered soon, so don't forget to subscribe to stay tuned: kzbin.info/door/5mCqBulD2KzLugC1lEEedA

[@GonzaloCalvoPerez]

Salutations. I would like to communicate my archaeological finding of the only preserved pythagorean houses, in Menorca. These are the "taulas", wich I have proved represent the concept of "tomi", today known as golden ratio or golden proportion. I believe that those interested in ancient greek music, tuning, etc., must be very interested. Please contact me if so.

[@SEIKILO]

Hello Gonzalo and thank you for your comment. Please share more about your research at [e-mail].

[@GonzaloCalvoPerez]

@@SEIKILO Geia. I have written an email to that adress. Please confirm reception!