The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #155538   Message #3659946
Posted By: Jack Blandiver
13-Sep-14 - 04:10 PM
Thread Name: bowed psaltery layout
Subject: RE: bowed psaltery layout
A Ukelin is essentially a bowed psaltery with some chords added

It's the other way round - a bowed psaltery is a Ukelin with the chords removed, the Ukelin being the pre-folkera antecedent (c. 1920s) of the bowed psaltery (c. 1960s), a faux-folk instrument often marketed as being somehow medieval.

Probably the worst instrument ever invented, I've never heard any bowed psaltery jokes, but then again I've lead a very sheltered life, though not so sheltered I haven't winced as a bowed psaltery made an appearance at a singaround to accompany a traditional song by way of fey folksy authenticity. What on earth are we doing???

Forgive me, but it's not just the once when taking out of my Karadeniz Kemence (AKA Black Sea Fiddle) at a folk club someone in-the-know has told me that it's a bowed psaltery ('Ah! A bowed psaltery! A real medieval instrument!'). Er... no, and no. But it is real, unlike the bowed psaltery.