Download Article

Download Article

Lyres are a category of stringed instruments known since the earliest civilizations. The Aboriginal Greeks and Romans played lyres, and after the fall of Rome the instrument became popular with Celtic and Germanic tribes in Europe.

A lyre is technically different from a harp in that the strings run parallel to the soundboard rather than perpendicular.

Tuning a lyre, though basically simple, tin can seem overwhelming for beginners, both in technique and in pick of tuning. These instructions apply primarily to the 6-string Anglo Saxon (or "Germanic") lyre, but can also exist applied to other half-dozen-string lyres, the v-string Finnish kantele or Russian gusle, and other like instruments.[one]

  1. 1

    Found the basic key of your lyre. Do this by tuning your lowest string until it is tense enough to produce a clear notation with footling/no buzzing, just not and so tight that it feels about to break.[2]

  2. 2

    Now, pick a tuning appropriate to your needs, but transposed (if necessary) to the cardinal of your lyre. That is, if your deepest string is comfortable at "1000", the Thou equivalent of the CDEFGA tuning would be GABCDE.[3]

    Advertisement

  3. 3

    If yous have a modern metal zither pegs, only turn them with a peg-fundamental to tighten. If you accept friction pegs (traditional wooden or bone tapered pegs), push advisedly but firmly towards the crosspiece while turning, otherwise the peg will slip after you lot allow it go. If yous have trouble turning the peg and getting information technology to stay, google up "peg dope" for ideas of what materials to apply to change the grip of your peg.[four]

  4. 4

    To hit the notes of the tuning you lot've selected, a beginner will probably want to employ an online tuner, or a store-bought chromatic tuner or tuner app on a smartphone. If you lot have a good ear for intervals, you may also be able to tune by ear.[5]

  5. 5

    Understand that most tuners are fix to tune by "Equal Temperament", the modern style of tuning where an musical instrument will sound skilful in any cardinal, but not quite perfect in any of them. Since a lyre often plays in only one key at a time, consider tuning to "Simply Intonation" based effectually the key notation of your lyre. Several of the improve smartphone tuners have an option to melody by JI (brand sure to designate the keynote of your instrument around which all the tuning will be based).[6]

    6. Advertizing

Add together New Question

  • Question

    What is the highest note of the lyre called?

    Community Answer

    The highest note is chosen the nete.

  • Question

    What is the note on the fourth cord of a 10 cord harp?

    George Malen

    George Malen

    Community Answer

    The note on the quaternary string is a G (in the key of F). The tuning is (Due east,F, F#, G, One thousand#, A, A#, B, C, D).

  • Question

    How often do you demand to restring a lyre, more specifically a soprano lyre? Information technology usually has a lot more strings than the accurate one (35-47 strings).

    Community Answer

    It depends. If your instrument is in good shape and the cervix is non bent out of shape, you lot don't need to supersede them very ofttimes. Depending on how much you play, it can be annihilation from one week to a couple months. A good rule of thumb is to supercede them whenever it gets hard to keep them in tune.

Ask a Question

200 characters left

Include your e-mail address to get a message when this question is answered.

Submit

Advertisement

Video

6-string lyre tunings

The following tunings are used on the Anglo-Saxon (or Germanic) lyre, but are also possible on other 6-string instruments. The cardinal of C is used in these examples, simply for your particular lyre you should melody your strings to whatsoever pitch is appropriate, and tune to the same intervals as shown.

  • C-D-E-F-G-A, diatonic major or Hucbald tuning (after the ninth C. monk who documented it): this tuning is useful for playing standard melodies such as are common for modern Western music. It's a complete diatonic scale except in that information technology lacks the 7th, which is arguably the about sacrificable note for well-nigh purposes. This tuning also lends itself decently well to playing basic modern chord progressions.
    • In G: G-A-B-C-D-E
    • In D: D-E-F#-G-A-B
      •
    • In A: A-B-C#-D-Eastward-F#
  • C-Due east♭-F-G-B♭-C, pentatonic minor: As well nicknamed the viking tuning, this tuning is both limiting and liberating, equally information technology's tough to play many modernistic melodies, but also easy to play fourth and fifth intervals, with a nice octave. No gap betwixt notes is less that a whole step, so this scale is defined as "anhemitonic", and has no "anomalous intervals". Historically-informed musician Ben Bagby uses this tuning for his performances of "Beowulf."
    • In G: G-B♭-C-D-F-G
    • In D: D-F-1000-A-C-D
      •
    • In A: A-C-D-Due east-One thousand-A
  • C-D♭-F-Thousand-A♭-C, Icelandic hemitonic:
    • In Yard: G-A♭-C-D-E♭-G
    • In D: D-E♭-1000-A-B♭-D
      •
    • In A: A-B♭-D-East-F-A

Scales used and promoted by individual modern lyre players.

  • C-D-Due east-F-G-G#, diatonic major diminished 6th ?: allows some interesting dissonances, and has an "unearthly" vibe to it.
    • In One thousand: 1000-A-B-C-D-D#
    • In D: D-Eastward-F#-M-A-A#
      •
    • In A: A-B-C#-D-E-F

Many of these scales are variants on the above popular scales. Many are not commonly used on the Anglo Saxon lyre, but present theoretical useful tunings.

  • C-D-Due east♭-F-Yard-A♭, diatonic pocket-size: similar concept to the diatonic major, with a lowered third and 7th.
  • C-D-E-G-A-C, pentatonic major: Unlike the pentatonic minor, the pentatonic major has no 4th or 7th (which would make information technology a hemitonic scale) only is anhemitonic like the small. It sacrifices the fourth of C, but D, Due east, and Thousand all take fourths available.
    • In G: G-B-C-D-F#-G
    • In D: D-F#-G-A-C#-D
      •
    • In A: A-C#-D-E-G#-A
  • C-East-F-G-B-C, hemitonic major: the pentatonic pocket-sized scale, with the tertiary and seventh raised to make it a major scale, and now hemitonic.
  • C-Due east♭-F-F♯-G-B♭, minor blues hexatonic: not traditional, but an interesting one to endeavor.

Glossary

  • diatonic: a "standard" modern calibration going up by half- and full-tones in steps to create a scale. A 6-string lyre does not accept enough strings to do a full diatonic scale (7 tones), so will skip one note. Generally those labeled "diatonic" skip the 7th, the final notation of the scale.
  • pentatonic: a scale with v notes. On a 6-string lyre, a pentatonic scale will take an octave between the lowest and highest strings, since the scale is completed prior to the 6th string.
  • hexatonic: a scale with half-dozen notes. A half-dozen-cord lyre has simply enough strings to practice a full hexatonic calibration, but no loftier octave.
  • hemitonic: a pentatonic scale in which there are some notes with but a one-half-step gap between them. The opposite of this is anhemitonic, a scale where all notes have at least a total-step between them. Anhemitonic is considered "standard" in pentatonic scales and generally implied vice specified.

  • Depending on the string guess and length on your instrument, these exact tunings may not be viable. However you can transpose the tunings and achieve similar results. That is, if CDEFGA would be far likewise tight on your instrument, peradventure your everyman cord is comfortable at G, so you can just tune to GABCDE and play the same tablature and chords, just at a lower pitch.

  • If your harp has a moveable bridge the length of the strings will also touch the tone.

Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

Advertizing

  • As y'all're tuning up to hit a note, keep checking the tension on your string and see if information technology'southward cooked-spaghetti-floppy or cheese-cutter-wire-tight. If then, you probably need to transpose, equally above, or consider changing gauges of strings. Playing with all your strings at the breaking point, particularly on a steel-strung instrument, can cavern in your soundboard.

  • If you're a footling high, instead of tuning down to your note, tune below information technology and come back upwardly. It'due south easy for a string to skid and get of tune as information technology'southward sliding downward, and yous might find your tuning sour 10 seconds later as it adjusts. But if you go below and melody upwardly, it'll stay overnice and tight.

Advert

References

About This Article

Cheers to all authors for creating a page that has been read 79,699 times.

Did this article aid you?