I have played one. The drone strings are underneath the fingerboard, as several people have noted. The one I played had a less curved bridge and a wider neck than "regular" fiddles. I don't know whether this is true of all Hardangers or just some, including the one I played. If you can play "regular" fiddle, you can play Hardanger. After saying all this, I have to be honest and tell you that I don't particularly like the way the Hardanger sounds.