A Whiter Shade of Pale (i.e., white oak)

That beautiful flamed white oak I was given last month is shaping up into two new instruments, both that I should be able to finish before I start running around getting ready for Summer craft shows and art festivals.

The psaltery (right) will be done first, within a week or two, since it doesn't require as much carving. The picture in the photo is one of dozens from the Spanish 13th century Cantigas de Santa Maria illuminated manuscript, this one showing people playing small trapazoidal psalteries. This image was my inspiration for creating the white oak psaltery shown in the photo. The Cantigas de Santa Maria, sponsored/funded by Alfonso X, is one of the greatest illumunated manuscripts from the 1200s, and it is also one of the most complete surviving "paper" works from that era. Most of the illuminations are of figures playing various instruments of that time. It is of incredible historical importance on the evolution of musical instruments in Europe

The other white oak instrument I'm currently working on is a small Epinette des Vosges. It is based on one that sold several years ago that I found on a musical instrument dealer's web site. It is reported to be from 1850, and the measurements given show it as being a very small instrument, barely 19 inches long. It is a board zither without a raised fingerboard. The frets are attached directly to the soundboard. This is an old style that dates back to the scheitholts of the 1600s. Frets on board zithers were either wire "staples" or wood (like on early Norwegian langeleiks). I, of course, used modern fret wire, but it is very small and similar in thickness to the wire staples used on the early board zithers.

There are a few more instruments I'm just getting started on, and I'll report on them as they start taking shape. There are also several new "types" of instruments and folk art waiting in the wings. In other words, they're still in the planning stages. Tune in later. Film at 11.

April Fool's has passed...

It's the beginning of the fourth month of the year, and I managed to get by the 1st without getting zinged by any April Fool's jokes. However, April still brings with it all the remodeling construction that's been going on around our house for the last month. Because of that, it's been hard to focus on many of my projects. However, I was able to finish three bowed psalteries last month as well as several "whistles" with hand-carved heads on the ends of them.

I've made a list this month of everything I want to work on and complete. It's probably a little too ambitious, but I have to plan out my creative direction as much as possible.

The first item on my list is to work on four more mini-hognose psalteries. That way I'll have six to take to Bellevue, Washington, in July and the San Francisco Fine Craft Show in August. The picture shows several frames I just assembled.

Mini-hognose psalteries are wonderful sounding small steel-strung lap or hand-held instruments that can play two full diatonic octaves, great for old ballads, folk music, or for just meditating to improvisational meanderings.The sound is bright but soothing.

Even though I completed several bowed psalteries, I still have to make the bows. I cut out seven bow blanks from cherry and salvaged purpleheart and zebrawood, and started shaping a couple of them today.

Another project I've listed is to continue working on one of my original pieces, the rebekulele. This is a 13th-14th century rebec-shaped instrument that's set up to play like a ukulele. It's coming along, but there's still a lot of carving to do on the tiki body.

As for folk art pieces, I'm in the process of shaping around 20 spoons and spurtles and getting them ready for carving.

All in all, I've got a lot of work to complete before I can get cracking on my larger, more complex projects. There is a lot more to come.

Stay tuned.