The talharpa, also known as a tagelharpa (tail-hair harp), hiiu kannel (originally hiiurootsi (which meant Vormsi island located on the halfway to Hiiumaa) kannel) or stråkharpa (bowed harp), is a two to four stringed bowed lyre from northern Europe. It is questionable whether it was formerly common and widespread in Scandinavia. Historically, it has been played in the Estonian-Swedish areas and in Western Estonia, particularly among Estonian Swedes who came to Estonia around the 10th century from the Swedish part of Finland; they likely brought the instrument with them (later Swedish settlers in Estonia did not know nor use the talharpa.)[1] It is similar to the Finnish jouhikko and the Welsh crwth. Jouhikko, a close relative of talharpa, is still known in Finland.[2]
The name talharpa probably comes from a dialectical form of the word "tagel" – horsehair – from which the strings were made.[3]
- ^ Cronshaw, Andrew (1999). "Baltic States: singing revolutions". The Rough Guide to World Music. Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). London: Rough Guides Limited. p. 18. ISBN 1-85828-635-2.
- ^ Montagu, Jeremy (2007). Origins and Development of Musical Instruments. Scarecrow. p. 174. ISBN 9780810877702.
- ^ Andersson, Otto (1930). The Bowed Harp. Translated and edited by Kathleen Schlesinger. London: New Temple Press p. 111