Wheelharp - Nicholas Pike

[@TheHeadHunter1000]

Good lord. It like the essence of human sorrow in an instrument. The eerie sharp vibrato adds so much more empathy to the notes. Almost as if it was a last breath.

[@redraven24]

This is the most accurate and most poetic comment on here. And I totally agree...it does sound like a sorrowful last breath in the form of a song. Which to my melancholy artist's heart sounds deeply beautiful. Thanks for commenting!

[@WichyBaldwin]

😐🤢

[@MikeyLikey95]

Yeah... somebody definitely put a human soul in this instrument.

[@jokestermasteroflaughter7754]

@@MikeyLikey95 Yea it’s screaming in anguish and misery

[@LeakyJAZZ]

it's not vibrato, it's a harmonic

[@RADIOACTIVEBUNY]

This is what the apocalypse sounds like. What a dark instrument.

[@djeze6333]

+RADIOACTIVEBUNY BACH- TOCCATA AND FUGUE I THINK HE SHOULD PLAY THAT SONG!!!!!!!!!!

[@RubyDragon-ed8xx]

+DJ EZE Oh come on m8 lol

[@RubyDragon-ed8xx]

+DJ EZE I can slightly agree with you on that there

[@alexisreichenbach3180]

Listen to the Waterphone. It’s way worser.

[@lsswappedcessna]

Hey, I was just thinking this gave me a post-apocalyptic bayou feeling.

[@alvagoldbook2]

That's the most terrifying sounding instrument ever.

[@sIpoolguy]

record previously held by the waterphone lol

[@jorgesebastian1262]

I think it is beautiful

[@Blitzentine]

I still think the waterphone holds it. That or Justin Beiber's vocal chords.

[@ZethKeeper]

Try octobass.

[@Tryacc100]

uhhh apprehension engine?

[@GigabyteGhostieGG]

This could literally be an instrument used to describe a looming monster or a deity with not the best intentions or when something horrible is unfolding. _I love it._

[@wizardmix]

Like a glass harmonica but with chalkboards and teeth.

[@paullambert7840]

+Evan J I think your comparison is completely unfair but it made me laugh (in fact, I'm still chuckling at it as I write this), so you get a thumbs-up to your comment. (...still giggling).

[@wizardmix]

Paul Lambert :) I actually like the way it sounds.

[@LesterSmith]

+Evan J Damn! I almost snorted hummus and chips out my nose reading that. :D

[@paullambert7840]

Lester Smith I know, right? It's hilarious.

[@alphonsbretagne8468]

+Evan J Made me laughing so hard! Thank you!

[@paullambert7840]

Eerily beautiful. I see a lot of negative comments about the instrument, but it's really a soulful, sad, elegant sound.

[@bveracka]

+SvartSjel I absolutely agree there. He's playing in C minor and the instrument obviously lends itself to eerie minor key parts. If you tried to play a song in C major like Beethoven's 9th, your opinion would differ.

[@doyoulikeveggies]

>Beethoven's 9th >C major ?????

[@bveracka]

Dylan (laughs) Sorry about that confusion! I should've just said "any major key piece" as this instrument obviously lends itself to 'darker' sounding pieces. I *believe* I confused #9 with the 8th symphony. I don't listen to classical music as often as I once did, and it's been many years since music appreciation classes I'm in a world/ethnic/cultural music phase these past few years.

[@doyoulikeveggies]

*F major

[@indigoskywalker]

absolutely, it is perfect for the score

[@johnmadden5933]

9 years later I keep coming back to this, it's a hauntingly beautiful piece, on a hauntingly beautiful instrument.

[@TheSCIOnce]

I find myself back here every couple of months. It almost haunts me I adore it.

[@0prahTV]

how to be hated by your neighbors 101

[@averagecornenjoyer6348]

or loved :)

[@tealosophy]

Hurdy Gurdy from hell

[@gzvchan7596]

tru dat

[@nobaloneymahoney7940]

well the name of the song is, The Devil May Call

[@yamagishisan]

ha

[@absolutcabbagery3661]

A helldy gurdey if you will

[@lord21112]

Hi 2020

[@eshock753]

We're one step closer to having an entire orchestra composed of hurdy gurdys. We just need something deeper than the Wheelharp, and something slightly higher pitched than the normal hurdy gurdy.

[@shaunweiss8949]

Viola organista. It is like an entire bowed string section as a piano.

[@jamesrosewell9081]

I think my ears would bleed

[@calliopeshif7581]

​@@jamesrosewell9081from the sheer beauty of it all?

[@videoboy331]

Sounds like a bagpipe trying to be a string instrument😂😂

[@777fiddlekrazy]

the intonation is off!

[@Raxerm]

I hear that too, but I feel like it just adds to a dissonans that still gets resolved occassionally at the tones that happen to be better in tune with eachother

[@pablitoandsons]

you didnt understand the joke

[@EadsJasper]

lmao good one

[@KarMa-lx6oq]

LOLOLOLOL. No offense, but maybe a accordian instead.

[@WatchdogGoon]

This sounds like someone choking on a harmonica. I love it!

[@walpurgis943]

this thing sounds like an orchestra of tortured violins playing a lullaby for Mephistopheles it's just abhorrent and screechy and discordant I love it.

[@thegod.-.1550]

Making-a-Mulligan boi

[@Ucceah]

it's quite posssibly the rarest, most demanding, and least pleassant string instrument out there.

[@whalesong999]

Like cellos who are suffering some depression .....

[@heathermiller6046]

@Making-a-Mulligan That made me laugh so hard 😄 I love the description

[@lord21112]

Hi there it is 2020

[@Nevatis_]

I love how dark it sounds

[@belladonnanightshade4693]

I NEED ONE. There's something beautiful about how ugly it sounds

[@zorakandbrac]

Belladonna Nightshade 2edgy4me

[@LoverOfManTits]

@@zorakandbrac wow you're so funny

[@JohnBomboy]

Idk if you're still around. But I genuinely love people like you. I personally could barely stand it. But that's just me and that's okay. The fact there's people out there that can appreciate these and other kinds of things is what keeps creativity going. God knows I make music and sounds people would find grotesque. So I can't say this instrument is bad. Only that I'm not a fan. But good on you, man. Follow that joy and happiness. 👍

[@NicholasMarkovich]

Everybody in the comments is hating the sound of this instrument, but I think it's beautiful.

[@SuperStev007]

agreed

[@thatonethattalksalot7656]

Nicholas Markovich it's the way the guy is playing it that is making everyone hate it! if he played something sad or beautiful out of this thing then people would really appreciate it!

[@User-xn8cx]

Nicholas Markovich yea it's really cool sounding instrumental very unique

[@PhoenyxRysing]

It is really pretty...Rather dark and sorrowful, but it could just be what he's playing. Reminds me a bit of 'The Impossible Planet' form Doctor Who.

[@zorakandbrac]

Dani Stevens unique doesn't necessarily mean good.

[@spidaminida]

That would be magnificent incidental music for a horror film...

[@Kevn3000]

It's like they took the screeching blackboard sounds and made a melody.

[@Kevn3000]

It kind of scares me a little bit actually

[@MoviMakr]

+Kevin R. Serrano It sounds like a burning gypsy caravan.

[@Kevn3000]

I have no idea what a gypsy caravan is or what it sounds like so I can't compare.

[@markpettigrew3482]

+Kevin R. Serrano -- I can see why the demo is given by a film composer. From Wikipedia: The wheelharp is a musical instrument with bowed strings controlled by a keyboard and foot-controlled motor, similar to Leonardo da Vinci's Viola organista, a keyboard-operated string instrument for continuously sounding strings by rubbing the strings with spinning wheels, powered by a treadle controlled by one foot of the musician. Created by Jon Jones and Mitchell Manger, the wheelharp debuted at the 2013 NAMM Show in Anaheim, California. According to the Wall Street Journal, it "looks and works like a cross between a harpsichord and a hurdy-gurdy: a motor driven wheel spins, rubbing against strings when the player depresses a key."

[@MoviMakr]

Kevin R. Serrano A caravan is a group of people traveling in mobile homes. Gypsies tend to enjoy music with accordions and fiddles. My simile was comparing the sound of those burning instruments and the screams of people to the sound of this instrument.

[@theblockbros1]

Every atmospheric black metal intro needs this

[@duncangrant4580]

I'm afraid the sound this instrument produces brings back memories of the 'music' produced by the junior school orchestra my children used to play in...

[@Fixti0n]

It sounds awefull!, where can i get one?

[@toxichipnotic9943]

+Fixti0n Some off music stores will carry them or you can find a person to make a custom one. Ive always loved the hauntingly horrific beauty a wheelharp can bestow into ones soul, its always made me calm :)

[@happypiano4810]

Ha!

[@InstrumentManiac]

Interesting instrument! Although limited in dynamic and vibrato control you gain essentially an entire string quartet in one instrument. It also has a bellow quality to it without being a wind instrument which is cool

[@ludwigvonbeethoven2105]

Cool to have seen you here

[@betoneiracromadarebaixada8187]

It sounds like the pain of every living creature being turned into a song, it's nothing less than extraordinary

[@loughkb]

I'm torn between the coolness of this unique instrument and the imagination it took to create, and the sound that it makes. Which, honestly, has dethroned Bagpipes as the most nerve grindingly uncomfortable noise man has made. ;-)

[@Brok3nC4rrot]

you take that back about bagpipes

[@Omfgwhtavid]

bagpipes are shit

[@danieljones23]

Actually, if you listen to some other recordings of music on this instrument, it is actually quite beautiful. I think it may sound terrible here because of the chords he uses, and probably the way he is playing it. After all, the piece he is playing is the theme from "Devil May Call," so it is entirely probable that he is playing that way on purpose.

[@fujiyokocookiecutter]

I think it just needs more rosin.

[@DrHokeyPokey]

It's like the opposite of "if it's stupid and it works..."

[@monkeygirl1894]

I personally like it. Of course, it may not be the instrument of choice for most songs, but things dark and creepy, this would work wonders for.

[@thatonethattalksalot7656]

Brittany McCarty this instrument would be best to play for any theme. not just for the darksided creepy and eirieness, but this would definitely replace bagpipe memorials soon!! it just depends on the touch of its player!

[@williamdevlin5233]

A lot less portable than bagpipes.

[@moorooster223]

it would sound great for darker stuff, but I don't think you could make it sound elegant.

[@chaejuru8596]

Don't forget, it was build by hand. This could be the beginning of an elegant instrument. But god damn, does it sound ugly! lol

[@nater1625]

Excuse me? This sounds like the things used to make the Fallout 4 soundtrack, which was absolute fantastic.

[@samwallaceart288]

This would go good in a Tim Burton movie

[@thatonethattalksalot7656]

Moo Rooster and it would sound great for a beautiful wedding song too! yeah!!

[@Satchmoeddie]

That depends on who you are marrying. Anyone marrying my ex, and I'll come and play for free!

[@TheSlugJones]

This needs to be used in some horror games/movies. Lovely, creepy, eerie, haunting. Love it.

[@jamsistired]

I love the sounds it’s so screechy like an old tortured machine that is desperately trying its hardest to play its melody and share its message, despite the roughness and decay

[@BobertJunior1025]

Everyone hating on the instrument because it doesn't sound perfect and clear. Why would we need another instrument that can do that? We have plenty of them already.

[@hezechiahjones8365]

But we also don't need a music that sounds like scraping a chalkboard.

[@BobertJunior1025]

crazyguywithasword Maybe you dont.

[@Jack-rn3rm]

Instruments should range from clear sounding to scratchy and metallic. It's all subjective and will change from time to time, from genre to genre.

[@arthasmenethil9605]

Music is supposed to be beautiful. This isn't. It's a cool idea but it just doesn't SOUND good. This sounds like dragging 1.000.000 cats down a highway, it's horrendous.

[@Jack-rn3rm]

Saying music is supposed to be beautiful is such a shallow and uneducated way of viewing music. Music is meant to invoke feeling. Do you find a horror score beautiful? Music sets the mood. Whether it is horrendous or calming, Music being beautiful is a very western idea anyway, if you have ever heard music from other areas of the world you will find they don't sound as beautiful to you. To them, its the other way around.

[@TheFatPunisher]

what a painful instrument..

[@VibeSensational]

haha i get it.. because it's like depressing and stuff

[@piercethepotato7287]

k.

[@Greg07623]

The Fat Punisher: Obviously you never heard my Concerto for Wheelharp and Yoko Ono. It's said that one hearing would drive people to jump off the nearest bridge as it sounded a squeaking chalkboard accompanied by a bag of cats being rapidly twirled around.

[@slmeyers464]

Okay, you deserve many, many more thumbs up for that. Concerto for Wheelharp and Yoko Ono! I have a very shrill ol' rescue Turkish Angora who would like to be first chair for your bag of cats.

[@TheFatPunisher]

Yeah I've heard of Yoko Ono...unfortunately

[@shadow64100]

It's beautiful, it's a very emotional instrument. It's like it's telling a story, it somehow just connects with your mind to create this deep pain filled story that could bring you to tears and leave you without any words for explanation. I love the sound

[@kyleethekelt]

It sounds like a cross between a hurdy-gurdy and a nyckelharpa. It also reminds me of an early synth, though electronica could never quite replicate the sound of a good analogue instrument. Wonderful.

[@gantmj]

Bagpipes are angelic compared to this sound.

[@moonrazk]

I'm pretty sure that if he practiced more a better sound would come out of it.

[@VibeSensational]

gimmie

[@yeetman4953]

gantmj weelharp with distortions would sound metal as all hell

[@scottjampa6374]

@Die Please- Plug it into a Sunn Model T and see what happens

[@gusjohnnson9641]

Why does everyone hate on the bagpipe :( I play the bagpipes and I love it.

[@uzzwickg3415]

holy shit, i love the sound, so atmospheric

[@EvilNoobKitty123]

Oh my god that instrument is so terrifying that its amazing! I WANT IT!!!

[@Madison-bw7rn]

It's terrifying but beautiful.

[@rippspeck]

Sounds like a distorted accordion layered with a cello to my layman's ears. Great sound!

[@haleygregg674]

Well it could be a cello or a base in different areas of the song

[@kavaldzhia]

sounds like a string quartet trying to play after being pushed off of the dock

[@keepyourshoesathedoor]

Drowning on the titanic.

[@DavidMartins1]

That blew me away. That has to be one of the most amazing sounds produced by an instrument...

[@cosmalad]

I really like the general vibe of this instrument. Its "tortured" sound adds a level of melancholic depth I've been searching for in bizarre instruments for uears now.

[@woodstoney]

That instrument would be soo perfect for some of those psychological horror / terror types of productions. I'm almost sure Stephen King would have a use for one in his movies. Very cool in it's own right.

[@frenchiecocorico1]

Around 1490, Leonardo da Vinci designed such a wheel stringed instrument played by a keyboard that he called 'Viola organista'. (violin-organ). However, it was unsure he could really built what he only drew. .In 1600, the german engineer Hans Hayden built its look like harpsichord 'geigenwerk' (violin machine) where the strings of a harpsichord were gathered by groups of 8 over separate bridges and wheels. All the wheels were moved simultaneously by a rocking pedal. When a key is pressed, a lever pull down the related string in contact with the related rotating wheel. A historical copy built in 1625 by the spanish monk Fray Raymundo Truchado is on exhibition at the Royal Museum of musical instruments in Brussel (Belgium). In our times the Japaneese maker Akio Obuchi started to build and improve the Geigenwerk in the 1990's. His website included a full explanation and history about this instrument; Two years ago a polish harpsichordist built successfully such a Geigenwerk with which he gave public concerts.

[@mq9demo]

How come the only nationality you forgot to capitalize was Polish?

[@frenchiecocorico1]

Matthew Latawiec Because M.Slawomir Zubrzycki's Viola Organista copy it's not an important step in the history of this instrument but an outdated and late devellopment like this Wheelharp which aren't original inventions. Here below is the link of M Zubrzycki website where he explained the conditions of his rebuilding copy. You could notice that he was inspired by: I- Hans Hayden Viola Organista from 1575 but depicted in Michael Praetorius Syngtama Musicum published in 1600, II- the Viola Celi built by Fray Raymundo Truchado in 1625 now on exhibition at the Royal Museum of musical instruments in Brussels, III- above all by the description of the Viola Organista copy from Hans Hayden model that the polish Jan Jarmuciewicz published in the 1880's. For my own point of view the most important was the revival of this instrument M Akio Obuchi has done in the modern times from 1993 www.zubrzycki.art.pl/Viola%20Organista_En.htm .

[@c_farther5208]

I've never heard an instrument so haunting and beautiful. Thank you for sharing this with us.

[@hydraxisfrimon9785]

LOVE IT!!! Like wind blowing across an amazing landscape of exposed souls yearning to speak. Fabulous!!!

[@safety_dirt]

Sounds awesome! Definitely needs more rosin and new strings, but this instrument is amazing and could be very beautiful. Very creative!

[@TheNavalAviator]

Like a square-waved synth.

[@shiningarmor2838]

John Wayne I thought it was closer to a saw wave

[@TheNavalAviator]

Shining Armor Right!

[@EverloyalSGK]

I love this. I can imagine this being used well in a piece where you want something to sound both eerie and heartrending. Dark, yes, but beautiful in its own unpolished way.

[@antoniolopes8776]

Fabulous! Thanks for posting and greetings from Portugal.

[@micahfoley9572]

"Hey, I kinda got my hands full, and i have to be at the recital hall in, like, 5 minutes. Would you do me a huge favor and tune my whee..." "Hell no."

[@FooBarBash]

The melody underneath is so beautiful. But it sounds so grating.

[@felixbonigk9162]

Damn. That's fantastic! Love the sound. Archaic and apocalyptic.

[@kellyburket6955]

I can't imagine this being a pleasurable instrument to listen to, but surely has a place in horror movie's background music/sounds.

[@jrzzrj]

can you imagine one of these in every home parlor used for family sing a longs?

[@LuisEduardoGalindo]

+J.R. Zippie yes interesting, but the image i get is that of Superman Bizzaro World like...

[@creamofthecrop4339]

Would make a great horror/sci-fi discovery movie

[@PGFTopera]

Very intriguing, frightening somehow and fascinating sound. I love this. Thank you !

[@nsalaza]

This is one of the coolest instruments I've seen in a long time!

[@JonasClark]

This sounds like it's something someone listening to a soundtrack would have a difficult time identifying. To anyone saying it sounds terrible, this piece seems to have been written to have a horror edge; find other videos of the Wheelharp, and it sounds like a deep bass cello or other bowed string instrument.

[@keithturbin6768]

oh yeah,i almost forgot. YOUR DADS GOING TO BE PISSED when he sees what you did to his piano

[@jennamiles7974]

XD

[@MagnusMoerkoereJohannesen]

Wow, I love that distorted, ever-so-slightly sinister sound of it! Absolutely fascinating, and atmospheric as all get-out!

[@frostbot117]

That creates such an eerie sound, pretty cool.

[@TheDeffend]

i am in a great deal of pain

[@TheDeffend]

but it's certainly a beautiful piece of machinery

[@bobu5213]

Yeah I don't really like the song he chose either.

[@MarcusWarnerMusic]

Fantastic instrument! Have to say the composition didn't do it justice at all, I think so many more awesome sounds could have been made with it, but oh well.

[@zee339]

they burned the harp to the ground after this video, so now we will never know.

[@neilbradley9035]

seriously?

[@zee339]

Neil Bradley oh yes!

[@bastidepp2]

oh those darn humans!

[@hizkias2679]

asdfghjkl i wasn't expecting to see you here, you're one of my favorite composers!

[@winnerwinnerchickendinner8042]

For a film score this would be perfect which is what it was created for. I'm not sure why so many people dislike it, it is unnerving on purpose, and does a brilliant job at doing what it was made for.

[@bullerfugl]

I absolutely love it, its like something inside my heart is screeching to come out

[@GIGeorge23]

Sounds so fucking Godspeed you! Black emperor.

[@daad3210]

Its good, But Does it Djent?

[@shiningarmor2838]

diego ayala It goes to drop C, maybe

[@josephbrandenburg4373]

Lol, drop C don't djent. Try more like double-drop Q.

[@rodrigomacias]

A meshuggah song with this instrument would be sick!

[@Anonymouzor]

never have i heart an instrument that capture minor key so much

[@jocosesonata]

I feel like this is the type of instrument that befits a surreal and somber psychological thriller. It's not there to soothe or comfort, but to accentuate an air of apathetic dread, and an atmosphere of one long agonisingly slow discord. Akin to a horrible train wreck happening only in the barest increments that could last centuries. Also, it reminds me of _Everywhere at the End of Time._

[@ctimur]

Holy WOW!

[@charlesalindogan9751]

the best Theme sound for horror movies 😀

[@sundaymoon000]

what a mysterious and magical sounding instrument.. I love this. could hear it more often.

[@ColonelKlink100]

I've just found a new favorite instrument.

[@parkjammer]

Great for horror shows... the actors and the audience would simply beg for death after being subjected to it for more than a few minutes.

[@amirehosseyni]

Also very deep spiritual eastern asian scenes ! ^_^

[@amirehosseyni]

Really ? That much XD ?

[@KhanggiTanka]

thats such a beutifull sounding instrument man that gave me shivers

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

NicholasPikeMusic It's basically a Bowed Harpsichord, it has Reverse Colored Keys (Black Naturals & White Sharps).

[@lars1588]

I've only heard this kind of sound from certain digital synthesizers. Fascinating to see an acoustic instrument produce it.

[@Slackdragon]

Sounds like nightmares.

[@tomclanys]

Wasn't that used in some of Fallout 4 soundtrack? Minutemen songs. I really love how it sounds!

[@jasonsummit1885]

This is one of the coolest instruments I've never seen before this video.👍

[@kellenredx]

Absolutely beautiful sound, I love it!

[@ssabykoops]

The Witcher 4 , Should use this for creating its theme music

[@frankiewilson-simm5573]

For all of you out there complaining about how "harsh" and "creepy" this instrument sounds, open up your brain and think for a second. This instrument is supposed to sound like this. It's meant to sound medieval and rustic. So maybe next time before you post how harsh it sounds, remember that maybe it's intended for a reason.

[@chaimewhhuguinssh2771]

Medieval music is actually pretty beautiful. It's a fun idea but it sounds bad.

[@R2MI7]

I love this instrument, it's amazing ! :o

[@snertalert286]

I'm addicted. This instrument would be great for dark, yet elegant, themes. Ack! I want to hear more of it!

[@dsjykf1427]

So how long will it be for a metal band to start playing with one of these?

[@aloysiusdevadanderabercrombie8]

I honestly kind of like the sound.

[@Abelhawk]

Sounds awesome!

[@ypaexio4263]

...

[@chickdrumstick1443]

Imagine the creativity in the minds who we least expect it. Amazing!

[@crunchb3rry]

Reminds me of Assassination of Jesse James

[@fos427]

Wheelharp hero anyone?

[@animalprincess35]

i actually find this piece quite charming, in its own way. a haunting, melancholy song, accompanied by the genuine and organic sound of the instrument. chilling, almost.

[@skiie]

Great you have every tone of "alarm clock" mastered

[@michaelkhan]

what does hans zimmer have to say about this instrument?

[@smiljanicn]

Hi would say, "I can do better with my Access Virus" lol

[@beepot2764]

Talk about a niche instrument lol.

[@2nd3rd1st]

This one? Try getting this big boy into any niche.

[@FoundryStreetJason]

So much work and craftsmanship went into this instrument.

[@micahh9351]

how they made ufo sound in movies. but seriously, coolest stringed instrument ive seen. its like a giant hurdy gurdy

[@EinFreundOderNicht]

My ears are bleeding a lil

[@isetta4083]

Good.

[@Flapjackbatter]

Now we all know the reason guitars are popular and that thing is not.

[@isetta4083]

Because this is dark and sorrowful and isn't good for shitty pop and overplayed rock?

[@billiecipher5755]

i love this so much! ahh the sound!!

[@Campo_]

This sounded amazing! I love interesting instruments making interesting music!