One year of playing my Carbon gurdy by WW
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- Опубліковано 16 лип 2024
- Hey everyone,
I hope you enjoyed my little review. If you have any questions, feel free to ask them.
Ron
Wolfgang Weichselbaumer: weichselbaumer.cc
I am playing his Carbon/Viola RTP model
Excellent video - thanks for taking the time to make it. You also included the description of perhaps the bane of all Luthiers - players often think that just because it is made by the better known Luthiers that somehow there isn't a learning curve of setup and playability of any given instrument, and it's counterpart - that the Luthiers are generally very willing to help those who purchase their instruments get to know their instruments. Just excellent, thanks again.
Thank you for your kind words. Glad you liked it.
Exactly, I think we as musicians have to be open minded towards our instruments. And one of the best parts is that there are so many nice people out there, who are willing to help.
I have found this and your other videos so incredibly helpful as I'm working out if the Viola RTP would be a good fit for me. I think like you the thought of that last half octave is very tantalizing for me. Maybe one day he will also make the Carbon body for the Tenor model. If there was a chance of that sometime in the future it would definitely give me pause.
Thank you so much for putting together such a thoughtful video Ron! I look forward to all those in the future!
Hey, thank you!
Finding the right instrument is a hard task, but I think the Carbon would definitely not be a bad choice. Especially considering all the possibilities you have on that instrument. You could basically do anything, and depending on your needs, you can use them.
The Carbon as a Tenor would be quite funny, indeed. We'll see, maybe one day!
Cheers. :)
Great video, I'd love to try a WW someday, they have a really enchanting sound.
Thank you. Never stop dreaming! As long as you work for it, they will work out. :)
Keep it up Ron
Nice video! I love the sound! It looks and sounds so delicate! Also I think that adjusting things on your new instrument is part of getting to know each other! 😊 And was this a hint that you will get a new one soony? 😱✨
Thank you, Fabi! =)
Maybe, maybe...who knows.. ;)
Oh thank you for this review Ron! I was looking for the WW walnut Viola. What are the big differences between these two models? And what about the price difference? :) Does it worth waiting longer to save for it?
Thank you. There are major differences between those two models. Not only in sound, but also in the features. The walnut viola has more keys for example. But the viola is almost twice as expensive. If you're a beginner to medium player, I would definitely suggest the carbon. But saving and waiting sounds like a good plan nonetheless!
I would love to hear your thoughts on playing faster tunes on the Carbon. A lot of my training has been in traditional dance folk music with fast cranking, and my Carbon tends to go into harmonics when I go faster. I'm finding that more pressure on the keys helps, but I'd love to know if you have any technique tips.
Hey, sorry for the late reply. I definitely know your issues too well. But that's actually a common problem on modern gurdies, sadly especially on the Carbon. You could try to play around with pressure, cotton and rosin of course, but the result will be, that the sound is a lot harsher when turning slowly - which is a deal breaker for me. Pressing the keys harder works, yes, but also...those are just band aids. I've come to the conclusion the string jumping into harmonics is just a part of the instrument and adds flair to it. In the beginning I thought a lot more about it, nowadays I hardly do anymore. In other words: try to live with it. As harsh as it sounds, it's meant in the best way possible. After all you're playing an acoustic instrument and not a digital one. And that's the price you have to pay for authenticity.
Wonderful Video Ron! :) I do have a question!
You mentioned your Gurdy has additional Keys! But many Gurdys don't even have a high F/F# key. How is Wolgang's solution to that?
Thank you, David! :)
Actually, more and more modern luthiers build a high f/f# in their gurdies. And in one of the shots you can see the upper scale of my keyboard. The solution is quite simple. Two keys for a f and a f#. the f# is the second last key in the upper key row. :)
Do you come from a rich background,?as you seem quite young to have saved for this hurdy,I presume it's a very high end,cost hurdy,how much did it cost? How many capos are on it.i have a number of hurdys but it took me years ,to get them, I wanted one when I was 16 but I had to wait until I was 37 to be able to afford one, imagine all those lost years when I could have improved my playing,I find the problem these days is good basic hurdys are becoming so expensive that once again they are becoming the toys of thr rich and wealthy, especially in the uk,which I think is rather sad, these new ones such as yours even more so,😔 I have become over the years very wise to the hurdy gurdy,from all aspects and see that this instrument is once again a 💰 money making machine unfortunately more than a sound machine,and becoming an elitist symbol of the moneyed classes unfortunately,far from its once peasant associations of the poorer classes,if you don't reply I'll understand your one of the moneyed elite and I'm not in your financial category.From the 😠 😡 angry hurdy gurdy man.
Ahw, sad to hear you had to save for so long! I do think the current gurdy market is relatively affordable compared to five years ago, especially with builders like Robert Mandel, MM Instruments, and the Nerdy Gurdy that produce good-quality instruments for less than 2000 euros. Especially the Aplo model from MM Instruments or the Nerdy Gurdy are ridiculously cheap compared to previous prices :) You can have a good basic hurdy for around 1000 euros now, compared to at least 2500 before. And about the rising prices in the UK, it may have to do with the changes in taxes of importing goods now that they're not part of the EU anymore so no more free movement of goods, which means increased taxes.
So far I can say from personal experience that the gurdy is regaining its status as an instrument for anyone :) I have multiple friends who are either still students (like myself), or currently being on welfare due to health issues that were able to buy such a gurdy! Not the top-notch extremely expensive ones like this carbon gurdy, but study, traditionally made ones that you probably also prefer. I myself have an alto gurdy and my friend has a soprano, so we can play a lot of duets together, and even adapt violin/viola duets to our gurdies :)
@@BlitzsieLDiscoLSnow thank you for your very kind andf thoughtful reply,,yes I have heard of some of the cheaper models you have referred to,all made outside of UK,unfortunately, I have a chris allen,nighout, I waited 2 years for it ,and picked it up in Wales, uk ,when I got it home I found he had accidentally drilled a small hole in the wrong part of the pegbox ,for one of the bourdon strings and did not even bother to fill it , when I phoned him up he never apologised ,he just said arrogantly " oh its only one mistake!"I felt like returning it back to him,but I had waited so long for it,plus the floral inlay was upside down,but he said it can be either way up but I never saw his nighout models, illustrated, with an inverted floral design only mine well it plays OK and I filled the hole with filler, it's a lute back soprano model ,but as it cost me then 3, 2oo pounds sterling including the Kingham case it put me off having confidence in so called good hurdy gurdy makers,I bought it in2016,and I would never buy from him again ,another hurdy gurdy maker told me ,Chris allen,sometimes rushes his work due to too many back orders,and mistakes sometimes are made I think in hindsight I should have asked him for a discount or just asked for my money back but as I said it plays well ,3melody strings ,a lever capo on the trompette,and sympathetic strings,well what do you think of that tale,what would you have done if you were me ? It's a bit of a hurdy gurdy horror story but it's true,could you please tell me how much did you pay for your hurdy, I also have a early music shop henry 3rd model uk made and a alter wind box symphony model from mail order USA cost me 8oo pounds sterling it has two .melody strings and I trompette and I mouche both of these have simple flag capos ,overall its OK but a little too quiet,however there is a trap door facility for inserting a electronic amp ,but I do t know what kind of amp fits in there.yhsnks again and I hope you will reply again,regards.victorious.
@@victorknezevich7281 oh! I've heard of Chris Allen. He makes some lovely gurdies. If I were in your situation I'd also have kept the gurdy. They're is such a high demand that the luthiers work under so much pressure, so little mistakes like that slip in. And as long as it's not a structural problem affecting the sound then it doesn't matter (at least to me) and it makes your gurdy unique! The only one with a reversed floral inlay! :D I waited one and a half year for mine, but that was because I bought it from a new luthier whose waiting list hadn't grown long yet. As of now, the waiting list is almost three or even four years for most luthiers. What kind of music do you play? :)
@@BlitzsieLDiscoLSnow once again thank you for your considerate 🙏 😊 reply,you are may I say, a kind ,optimistic,creative inspiring, personality, if I could give you a hug I would, I've been playing hurdy gurdy for over 20 years ,I also play irish folk flute and flagolet, I use to play with a few village pub irish bands in my younger days,sing and write my own folk tunes ,songs, I also play moraharpa,.made by an Austrian lady called tabea krah,which I bought in November 2020 mail order from folkfriends in Germany ,just before uk left eu I also play a nyckelharpa, made by a uk maker ,I like the ethereal sounds all these instruments make ,I have other unusual instruments eg keyed dulcimer ,a harp,a gusle,and Turkish saz ,a dilruba,and a sitar amongst other instruments OK I have a large collection but its taken me years to collect them,I like micro tonal notes and semi tones,but on hurdys these are usually not included,did you know alterwind USA will fit a third row of keys into their hurdys,so that you can play chords ,as well as melody's I Iike weird ethereal tunes and medieval sounding tunes I also have a organistrum based on a 14th century rutland manuscript its probably alto in its vibrating melody string length and really sounds medieval,with 3 capos on one of the drone strings, has movable tangents so that although it's diatonic,it can switch notes from sharp to flat to increase its playing versatility, the maker of this organistrum is the last small, commercial hurdy gurdy maker in the uk who is a highly skilled but only makes 3 styles of traditional hurdy a box symphony diatonic for 1 , 000 pounds sterling, a organistrum, diatonic for 1, 500 pounds sterling and a henry court trapezoidal baroque hurdy gurdy ,chromatic for 2,500 pounds sterling ,all his gurdys use wooden tangents but they are well made plus he uses wood tuning pegs but once again we'll made and turned using a tourn a gauche ,his waiting list is only 8 months and I have met him personally he actually upgraded a vrabel hurdy I had and delivered it to me , he is like gold dust here in the UK ,such a nice person who does not overprice his work,he is the last of the old school makers here, and is not greedy, I'm so glad I found him ,his repair prices for gurdys is affordable compared to Chris allen his orgsnistrum he made me is perfect in construction sound and construction,I tell you he is like the uk version of gordiy- Ukraine, in skill and fair price,compared to Chris allen and clare dougge ,who have 3 to7 year waiting lists and are highly expensive.Hope you like and enjoy all this information 😉 I don't normally bother to make such an effort in writing,but for you it was worth it. ❤ 💖 ❣ 💕 💘