Hammered dulcimer
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MasterworksHammeredDulcimer.jpg
MasterworksHammeredDulcimer.jpg
Hammered dulcimers have two or sometimes three bridges, and are played by striking the strings with small "hammers". The hammers are sometimes covered with leather to create a softer sound.
Versions of this instrument have been used throughout the world. In Eastern Europe a larger descendant of the hammered dulcimer called the cimbalom is played and has been used by a number of classical composers, including Zoltán Kodály and Igor Stravinsky, and more recently by Blue Man Group. The kim is a Thai hammered dulcimer. The Chinese yangqin is a type of hammered dulcimer that originated in Persia. The Santur and Santoor are found in the Middle East and India, respectively.
The instrument has seen somewhat of a revival in America in the American Folk music traditions. It is also still played in Wales, East Anglia, Northumbria, the Middle East, China and Thailand.
Names of hammered dulcimers from around the world
- Austria - hackbrett
- Cambodia - khim
- China - yangqin
- Germany - hackbrett
- Greece - santouri
- Hungary - cimbalom
- India - santoor
- Iran - santur
- Italy - salterio
- Korea - yanggum
- Laos - khim
- Spain - salterio
- Thailand - khim
- United States - hammered dulcimer
External links
- The Hammered Dulcimer Page (http://www.rtpnet.org/~hdweb/)