Musical instruments London

Mid-east Mfg.  Cittren 9 String Walnut (also cithren), is a plucked  string instrument  from the family of box necked lutes. It exists in a variety of designs, which is why the cistern is not regarded as a particular instrument, but rather an instrument family. The typical cittern still found in many museums is a form in which the neck becomes thicker toward the body, giving the body a slight incline shape when viewed from the side. Originally, the cittern belonged mainly to the medieval drone-style instruments, with the so-called Italian tuning (gg hh d’d’ e’e’) or the French tuning (aa ggg d’d’ e’e’) and in the 16th century was played using four courses: the melody would be played on the 4th or 3rd course, while the next lowest strings were open strummed drones. Polyphonic music evolved during the Renaissance period. The cistern can be used as a pure melody instrument, an accompanying instrument, or as a polyphonic solo instrument. The cittern we manufact...

Two goat skin heads are tied to a wooden frame with thread rope. A thread snare is tied to one head. The Playing surface is about 11.5″. The drum is about 4.5″ deep. Each drum is shipped with a playing sticks. This is an historic reproduction designed by The Early Music Shop of Bradford, England. The English word “tabor” is derived from the Latin word for drum. Today we use the term tabor or refer to the two headed squat drums associated with the Fife and Drum. The thin shell of the tabor, looks like a frame drum shell with two heads. The shell is traditionally tin so the light weight instrument could be carried, and played, for long periods of time. The heads are usually rope tuned with a snare on one side. Players usually hang the drum from the forearm while using one stick to strike the snared head. The tabor is suspended by a strap from the forearm, somewhere between the elbow and wrist. They should never be played on a drum stand; which would muffle the sound. Today Tabors have a...

Two goat skin heads are tied to a wooden frame with thread rope. A thread snare is tied to one head. The Playing surface is about 8.75″. The drum is about 4.5″ deep. Each drum is shipped with a playing sticks. This is an historic reproduction designed by The Early Music Shop of Bradford, England. The English word “tabor” is derived from the Latin word for drum. Today we use the term tabor or refer to the two headed squat drums associated with the Fife and Drum. The thin shell of the tabor, looks like a frame drum shell with two heads. The shell is traditionally tin so the light weight instrument could be carried, and played, for long periods of time. The heads are usually rope tuned with a snare on one side. Players usually hang the drum from the forearm while using one stick to strike the snared head. The tabor is suspended by a strap from the forearm, somewhere between the elbow and wrist. They should never be played on a drum stand; which would muffle the sound. Today Tabors have ...

This cylindrical drum has two heads, one with a snare. When the drum head is struck with the drum sticks, the snare adds a vibration, or rattle, to the drum’s din. The Renaissance style drums have a tension rim holding the skin head, and the snare is on the bottom head. This style of drum is a traditional military drum with a long history. They were used to mark time for marching or to signal during confrontations. In England during Renaissance, side drums like this were known as a tabor. In England, the shallow tabor, associated with the American war of independence, is sometimes called a tom tom. In France, during the 18th century, they were known as tambours , or tabret, and were well associated with the political resistance and rebellion against the French monarchy. As a military instrument this drum was often used in combination with a wooden or metal pipe. Both instruments were played by one individual, like a one-man-band. The 3-hole pipe was held and played with one hand, whi...