In order to play musically and express themselves, a violin player must spend years perfecting their intonation and bowing technique. In contrast, a hurdy gurdy player achieves much of their sonic expression and stylistic refinement in the selection, preparation and set-up of an instrument, investing time and technical skills before playing to ensure good sound and function. These technical skills start with the most basic set-up such as tuning and applying rosin and cotton, and can extend all the way to constructing your own instrument. Building chiens lies somewhere between these two extremes. If you have a damaged or poorly constructed instrument, it could drastically improve sound and playability! Even if you have a well built instrument, going DIY allows you to experiment with different trompette sounds and responses, and reduces dependency on your musical instrument maker if a chien breaks or goes missing…
Barnaby Walters • How to Build a Chien
