Hardingfele (hardangerfele) - musical instrument - history, photo, video. Hardingfele (hardangerfele) - musical instrument - history, photo, video Violin, instrument of the devil, why

Musical instruments are a way to transform people’s feelings and experiences into music. Ancient people attributed magical properties to them, believing that musical instruments allowed them to come into contact with the other world and were an effective method of influencing human consciousness. However, anyone can check this for themselves. Let's listen and enjoy!

1. Tanbur

Tanbur is a stringed wooden instrument with a long neck and a resonating pear-shaped body. It is also known as tanbur, setar and tar. The ancestor of the modern guitar originated in Mesopotamia before spreading throughout South and Central Asia several thousand years ago. It was believed that tanbur music heals, calms and gives a person inner balance. This instrument was used in religious rituals in Africa and the Middle East. With the music blaring, the dancers were plunged into a state of frenzy and madness, while their spirits were purified.

2. Sea shell forge

This musical wind instrument is made from the shell of a sea mollusk or large sea snail and has been used in cultures ranging from the Caribbean and Mesoamerica to India and Tibet, as well as New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. A horn was blown to produce a loud trumpet sound. Among Caribbean tribes, the instrument was central to rituals of hunting, war, and prayer. In Fiji, the shell horn was used to announce the arrival of guests in the village or during funeral rites. In India, where the horn was a sacred symbol of the god Vishnu and symbolized female fertility, people were immersed in a trance to its sounds.

3. Ocarina

The ocarina is a small, portable wind instrument that is believed to have originated in 10,000 BC. Traditionally they were created from bone or clay, but sometimes there were versions made of stone, wood and metal. This instrument consists of a hollow chamber with a protruding horn, which has 4-12 holes that are pressed with your fingers to produce various sounds.

Ocarinas were used in the rituals of Mesoamerican cultures, where they were used to produce beautiful, surreal sounds. It was believed that this instrument helps to talk with gods, birds and animals. People, listening to the music of the ocarina, plunged into a mysterious, trance-like state.

4. Mbira

The mbira is a portable instrument created by the Shona tribe, who lived in what is now Zimbabwe over 1,000 years ago. The musical instrument consisted of several metal teeth or plates mounted on a wooden resonating plate. Mbira was one of the main attributes in the Shona religion. It was believed that with its help it was possible to maintain contact with the rumors of ancestors. Mbira, talk and consult with them. The instrument was also used in the Bira ceremony, during which spirits were summoned to learn the wisdom of the tribe and tried to control the weather.

5. Lip harp

The mouth harp is a plucked instrument consisting of a frame with a vibrating reed made of metal, reed or bamboo. The harp is clamped with the teeth and played on the “tongue” with the fingers. The first mention of the mouth harp appeared in fourth century China, and its more modern design took hold in many European, Oceanic and Asian cultures during the 13th century. The mouth harp has been used for centuries in shamanic rituals, as well as the spells of the Mongol and Siberian tribes. It was mainly used to induce trance and heal illnesses.

6. Gong

The gong is a metal percussion instrument that was invented in China in 3500 BC. It was later adapted by various cultures throughout Southeast Asia and Africa. This is a large suspended disc of metal, usually bronze or brass, that is struck with a hammer to produce sound. Gong playing was associated in ancient Buddhism with healing rituals, prayer and meditation. In Chinese culture, gongs were often considered sacred, and it was believed that if a person touched a gong, they would be blessed with happiness, good fortune, and good health.

7. Didgeridoo

The indigenous peoples of Northern Australia developed this strange wind instrument over 1,500 years ago, and it is still used today. The didgeridoo is a long wooden tube made from the trunk of a eucalyptus tree that has been eaten away by termites. The trumpet emitted a low, eerie hum, which was considered the voice of the Earth. The didgeridoo was traditionally used to accompany song and dance during Aboriginal ceremonies, providing them with a connection to nature and the unseen spirit world.

8. Violin

The violin, a wooden string instrument played with a bow, is mentioned in the Old Testament. The ancients believed that communication with God was symbolized by the voices of angels, while communication with the devil occurred through the sounds of musical instruments. As a result, the image of the devil as an “evil violinist” was finally established in Christianity.

2. Drums

Drums are present in almost all ancient human cultures. They have been used for tens of thousands of years in prayer rituals, wars and dances. More than 8,000 years ago in ancient Mesopotamia, the sacred sounds of drums were played during ancestral meetings, ceremonies and battles. In various parts of Africa, talking drums were used as a means of communication because the music could be heard from great distances.

10. Whistle of Death

This elegant and scary musical instrument comes from the ancient Aztec culture, where it was used for a variety of creepy and frightening purposes. Hollow whistles were usually carved from bone or stone (sometimes precious) in the shape of a skull. The shape of the death whistle demonstrated the emotions it was intended to instill in listeners: fear and awe. The whistle made a terrible "screaming" sound. This musical instrument was widely used in ceremonies dedicated to the god of the wind - Ehecatl and Mictlatecutli, the embodiment of the "Wind of Death". Aztec priests used these whistles during human sacrifice rituals, where their sound was believed to help guide the victim's soul to the afterlife and appease the gods.

If you have a piano at home that has already served its purpose, you should not rush to send it to the landfill. You can use one of the .

Author: Dmitry Stein
Few know the legends about the great composer and violinist Niccolo Paganini, who sold his soul to the devil for an unusual violin. Every story about this man ends differently. History recognizes that a person achieved everything on his own and died of illness, but the legends have survived to this day. In general, judge for yourself.
From childhood, his father taught him music, seeing talent in his son. The violin was Niccolo's only joy; he could play it for hours. With age, fate was not kind to young Niccolo. He had no education and often wrote with errors. Niccolo worked part-time in simple taverns in order to somehow feed himself. He wore rags and was sometimes not allowed into decent establishments where people from noble families usually spent time.
But a particularly difficult, damned day fell for him on a cold autumn morning. The rain was pouring down like buckets. The artist’s old, battered shoes were so wet that they squelched with every step. Paganini himself was wet to the skin. He again played the whole day in a tavern for pittance. At the end of the day, he allowed himself to drink a mug of ale and play cards with some young gentlemen. As a result, he lost the pennies he earned and the violin.
Niccolo tried to convince young people to return his instrument, because this is the only thing he can make money with. But they responded by laughing at poor Niccolo and leaving the tavern. The unfortunate musician sat at the table until late at night and did not know what to do or what to do.
- Excuse me, are you upset about something? – asked a man with rough features. He was wearing an unusual gray raincoat and black hair, which was surprisingly dry, because the sound of rain could be heard outside, but Niccolo did not pay attention to it.
- I lost the instrument that somehow fed me. Now I don’t even have money for a new violin.
- Would you like to get a new violin? – asked the man. Niccolo perked up at his words.
- But...I don’t have money or anything else valuable. – Niccolo said.
The stranger moved closer to the violinist and quietly whispered:
- You have something else that I need.
- What is this? – asked the curious Niccolo.
“Soul,” answered the stranger.
- Soul? – Niccolo asked. – Can a soul be worth something?
- Believe me.
The stranger took out the case and put it on the table. Opening it, the musician saw the cloth in which the instrument was wrapped.
Having unrolled the velvet, a violin appeared before the musician’s eyes, which he had never seen before. The four strings were already stretched and tuned. A long board made of solid hard wood was curved in cross-section so that when playing on one string the bow would not catch adjacent strings. The lower part of the neck is glued to the neck, which goes into the head, consisting of a peg box and a curl. The maestro could only dream of such a violin.
“I agree to keep it,” Niccolo answered, continuing to gently stroke the wonderful violin. He still couldn't stop looking at her.
Finally, distracted from her, he saw that he was sitting alone. He didn’t care anymore, because he had a magic violin, which, alas, did not have the signature of its creator.
The next day, Niccolo came to another tavern and started playing. When he played, everyone listened to his wonderful melody. Paganini himself was surprised that he played so well. People from the street stopped to listen to who was playing so wonderfully. On this day, he received his first ovation and decent money, which helped him change his clothes and play the violin for important gentlemen.
A few years later, Paganini was already performing in England, France, and Germany. Everyone idolized and loved him. No artist was as popular as Paganini.
One day, the violin broke. The most eminent masters could not restore it, so he took the Guarneri violin and still continued to play just as successfully, but the health of the musician himself was already undermined. The violin that the stranger gave him was lost. Until his death, Paganini never parted with the Guarneri violin. He bequeathed it to the museum of his hometown of Genoa. There she can still be seen today under the name “Widow of Paganini.” Only if you go to Genoa
An outstanding violinist arrives and is allowed to play it.

Original: http://cs606024.vk.me/v606024843/1326/e59ukdz4Tnc.jpg

In 1782, on the outskirts of the Italian city of Genoa, in Black Cat Lane, a boy was born, who was named Niccolo. Nature endowed him with regular facial features. Especially beautiful were his agate-black eyes, sparkling even in the darkness, and his hair, curled in ringlets. True, the baby’s legs were slightly crooked and his feet were not big enough for his height. But, not to mention us mere mortals, probably even the god of beauty Apollo himself had some shortcomings.

Artist Contabile

Who was the first to realize that the boy had a great future ahead of him? His father is Antonio Paganini, a former longshoreman who became a small shopkeeper. He was a strange man. A heavy, domineering character, rudeness in dealing with his family, and a craving for wine somehow coexisted in him with common sense and insight. He also loved to play the mandolin in his spare time. On this basis, he had quarrels with his wife. As soon as he picked up the instrument, she went away from the house so as not to hear the many hours of monotonous strumming, and his playing did not bring pleasure to the neighbors.

One day, Antonio, while playing, quite clearly heard the voice of four-year-old Niccolo: “Dad! You're being fake here. ..” Antonio almost choked. He wanted to slap his son across the head, but something held him back. From his wife, he heard more than once that Niccolo is not indifferent to music, he faints when the bells of the neighboring church ring and sounds golden, like the bronze that makes them, float down the dirty alley... Having endured his son’s reproach for falsehood, Antonio handed him a mandolin and said: “Well, show me, brat, how to play here...” The kid, who had perfect pitch, played it right in the blink of an eye...

Artist A. Uglov

This and other cases convinced Antonio that he had not a son, but a real treasure, and that considerable benefit could be derived from his gift. Having strained himself, he bought a tiny violin for Niccolo. Having shown how to hold it on his shoulder, how to move the bow along the strings, he relied on his son’s natural abilities for the rest. Going to the shop, Antonio locked his son in his room alone with the violin. Many years later, Niccolo would write the following lines about his father’s “music lessons”: “He left me without food and forced me to double my efforts with hunger, so I had to suffer a lot physically, and this affected my health.” And this is putting it mildly - let's add from
myself. Exhausted by his daily music lessons, the boy fell ill and fell into catalepsy - a state on the verge of life and death. His parents considered him dead, put him in a coffin and prepared to bury him, when suddenly their little son moved...

He was called the Devil's fiddler
Still looking at Niccolo as his luck in life, Antonio hired music teachers for him. But it seems that the boy doesn’t really need them. One of them, listening to his play, threw up his hands in amazement and said: “I can’t teach you anything...” And he refused to study with the miracle child. Another teacher admitted to Niccolo: “I didn’t find a single mistake in your playing, not a single violation of the purity of form...” Once a rich Genoese, a great lover of music and owner of rare violins, offered the boy a bet: “If you play something unfamiliar to you thing from the sheet, I will give you a Guarneri violin.” They say that Niccolo looked at the rich man in surprise with his
beautiful black eyes, opened notes unfamiliar to him and played them without stopping and without a single mistake. So he became the owner of a violin that was worth a lot of money... At the age of eleven he gave his first public concert. People were shocked by his virtuoso playing. He was soon recognized as the most skilled violinist in the world. This title remains with Paganini to this day.

Music, music... For some reason it is believed that it is always good for everyone. But is it? She played an ambiguous role in Paganini’s life. This is how one book describes his first appearance on stage: “He appeared holding a violin in one hand, a bow in the other, with a pale face, trembling with excitement. However, the very first blow of the bow, like an electric spark, brought him back to life. Music, as if escaping from captivity, filled the cathedral, taking with it the boy’s musical soul. The ecstasy that he experienced was so strong that by the end of the performance Niccolo became completely exhausted, literally froze and almost fainted..."
Several years passed - and the boy who looked like an angel became a young man. And what? Everyone in the audience is taken aback when some awkward creature with a violin in hand, resembling both a man and a monkey, hurriedly steps onto the stage. Through long black hair, black eyes glowing like coals peek through. The maestro is so thin that his black tailcoat dangles on him as if on a hanger, his long legs are thin and crooked, wearing incongruously large shoes... Of course, at times Paganini deliberately played along with the public, portraying a mysterious, demonic personality, emphasizing the absurdities of his figure. Having started playing, he forgot about everything in the world, and then people witnessed an even more amazing phenomenon: Paganini and his violin seemed to turn into one being! He became part of her, and she became part of him. The musician’s entire body, including the heart, muscles, bones and even sweat glands, which cooled the excessive overheating of the body, everything adapted to playing the instrument.
violin, everything worked for the music!


This will help the violinist from Genoa cross the line between the possible and the impossible in the performing arts. “What he has in common with other violinists is only a violin and a bow,” one music connoisseur will say about him. In fact, no one except Paganini could play one string as if it were four, or four as if it were one. For him, the same note could sound in three octaves at once. Paganini's violin produced trills indistinguishable from birdsong. Sometimes she seems to be competing with her master
in her capabilities, she suddenly uttered some words in a human voice.

Artist N. Shuvalov
It is not difficult to imagine what was happening in the hall when Paganini spoke. As soon as he extracted the first sounds of magical beauty from the violin, everyone immediately forgot about the awkward figure of the musician: before them appeared a perfect man, combining a wondrous gift and irresistible charm. “The sounds unfolded calmly, majestically rising and growing... - this is how the German poet Heinrich Heine, who was once present at a Paganini concert, described his impressions - and everything around
unfolded in breadth and height, forming a colossal space, accessible only to the spiritual, but not the bodily gaze. In the middle of this space was a shining ball, on which stood a gigantic, proud, majestic man playing the violin. What kind of ball was this? Sun? I don't know. But I recognized Paganini in the man’s features. He was a man-planet, around whom the entire Universe revolved with measured solemnity, in a divine rhythm...”

These are the words of the poet. But there was a lot of prose in Paganini’s life. He did not get along with his father, who still looked at him as a source of income. The violinist married a beautiful woman, but in his family life he turned out to be an unhappy person to the point of tears. But the musician’s main problem was health. His passionately feeling soul and incomparable talent were enclosed in a fragile shell. Illnesses (starting from the day when he was almost buried in a grave alive) haunted Niccolo all his life. At a time when music connoisseurs, admiring his playing, were thrilled with pleasure, Paganini himself experienced hellish pain in his curved spine. Many times he was put to bed by his sick kidneys. It happened that attacks of this disease began right during the game: he felt his kidneys like two hot stones driven into his back. But he didn’t leave the stage. And at the same time, no one in the hall knew that the miracle of his playing was at the same time a cry of pain and suffering.
Paganini became physically weaker year by year. He often lost consciousness. Sometimes his throat would bleed. His once handsome face quickly became covered with wrinkles and rough lines. By the age of forty-seven he had lost almost all his teeth. “Is the violin harmful to your health?” — one person asked him sympathetically. “Not anymore,” Paganini replied with a sad smile. “She took all my strength...”

Of course, the violinist’s answer is nothing more than a bitter joke. But it’s not for nothing that they say that there is some truth in every joke. The violin played almost the same role in the fate of the great musician as his stern father. Innocent in itself, a set of wooden plates and strings, she, like a beautiful, but insidious sorceress, managed to give him everything that a person could want for himself: wealth, worldwide fame, the worship of millions... And she took everything that she could from him: youth, beauty, health, life...

This is said for the edification of those who are living today and, perhaps, are very annoyed that they have not been given any great talent. Really, there’s no need to be too sad about this. Having great talent is great happiness, but, as a rule, mixed in half with great suffering. An example of this is the fate of the boy Niccolo, who was born in the alley (what a symbolic name!) of the Black Cat...

Amazing sound for centuries violins fascinated people. Its melodic sounds pleased the ears of spoiled aristocrats in fashionable salons and forced ordinary people to dance at simple village holidays.

Devil's creation

The first violins appeared on earth only during the Renaissance (XIV-XVI centuries). Legends associated with them immediately appeared. The most famous of them says that the creator of the first instrument was none other than the devil himself. One day, the prince of darkness saw a beautiful girl on earth and fell passionately in love with her.

However, the charming woman did not respond to the feeling of the unclean, although he promised her fabulous riches for love. Then the angry devil turned the intractable beauty into a violin, giving his creation the seductive shape of his beloved. Since then, the violin has enjoyed special protection from dark forces, and with it, skilled violinists and craftsmen who create instruments.

In Sweden, there are many legends about the river spirit - Stromcarl, a virtuoso violinist who plays beautiful melodies over the water. Legends say that the music of this spirit is amazingly good and his violin can make even lame old people dance.

They used to say (and still say) about skilled musicians: they play like a strömcarl. It was believed that if a person wanted to listen to the amazing play of the inhabitant of the waters, he must sacrifice a black lamb to him.

And violinists who wanted to learn skill from Stromkarl left their instruments overnight under river bridges, where, according to rumors, the ghostly virtuoso lived.

Damn parties

In many countries, people were wary of the violin. It was believed that it was the playing of this instrument that the devils enjoyed during their feasts.

But there’s just one problem: it’s hard to find a good musician among the evil spirits. That is why many European fairy tales talk about how cunning devils go to great lengths to lure skilled violinists to their feasts, and sometimes deceive them and take away the instrument itself.

Thus, legends say that the devil, who wanted to get a good violin, took the form of a village musician and in the evening sometimes watched for his “colleague” who was returning home from work. Word by word, an acquaintance began, and at some point the evil one invited his new friend to exchange violins.

The devil's instrument looked very expensive, and therefore many poor fellows immediately agreed to exchange. But when he came home, the poor musician found in the case not a luxurious violin, but a dry branch.

But in order to lure the violinist to the damn feast, the evil one pretended to be a rich man and offered the rural virtuoso to make good money.

And only when he arrived at the customer’s house did the poor violinist realize what kind of “party” he was at. To evade the terrible “clients”, the musician needed to show remarkable ingenuity. But it also happened that he had to please devils and witches with music for an eternity.

The "red" violin that takes life

However, the most famous mystical legend associated with this instrument is the story of the “red” violin.

For several centuries, a legend has been circulating in Europe that a certain violin maker, mourning the death of his beloved wife, added her blood to the varnish with which he covered a new violin.

After this, the violin turned bright red, and the soul of the deceased moved into the instrument. In the first years of its existence, the “red” violin did not harm anyone. And then this happened.

The instrument accidentally fell into the hands of a boy violinist. The soul of a woman, enclosed in an instrument, awakened an unprecedented talent in the boy. Evil forces were going to listen to his game and, in the end, drank the child’s life without a trace.

When he died, the instrument was buried with him. However, the next day it turned out that the grave of the unfortunate man had been excavated, and the violin had disappeared. Since then, it has been “traveling” throughout Europe, choosing its owner, but every person who is “lucky” to touch the “red” violin will face terrible misfortunes and painful death.

Master's riddles

Of course, a wary attitude towards the violin also concerned its creators. At all times, people looked at violin makers with distrust, and legends were made about the most outstanding of them during their lifetime. Although it should be noted that the personalities of these people posed many riddles to those around them.

The violins created by the great Antonio Stradivari, even three centuries after his death, have no equal. But even a careful study of these instruments did not reveal the secret of their divine voices. Stradivari's creations did not differ from other violins either in the quality of the wood, or in size, or even in varnish.

But for a long time it was believed that an amazing varnish made according to a special recipe gives an incomparable voice to the instruments of a great master. But a few years ago, some brave researchers conducted an almost barbaric experiment. The varnish was completely washed off from one of the Stradivarius violins, but even after this sacrilege it still sounded the same.

A few centuries ago, the following version was born, trying to explain the phenomenon of the master. Allegedly, in childhood, little Antonio was blessed by the Lord himself, giving him the talent to create instruments whose voice would remind people of the Kingdom of Heaven.

At the same time, the future great master received a wonderful ointment from the Almighty, which he later added to the varnish for his violins. And it was this secret ingredient that allegedly gave Stradivarius instruments a divine sound.

Servants of the Prince of Darkness

Quite different rumors circulated in European countries about the violins of Giuseppe Guarneri, nicknamed del Gesu. It was rumored that this master, bound by an agreement with the Jesuit order, was forced to sell some of his instruments to them for a small price.

Frustrated by such injustice, Guarneri made a deal with the devil, according to which he received freedom, and his violins acquired unprecedented power of influence on listeners. Since then, the sounds of del Gesu's instruments have fascinated people and allegedly awakened dark feelings and desires in their souls.

An interesting fact is that it was the Guarneri violin that for many years was the faithful companion and assistant of the most “demonic” virtuoso in the history of mankind Niccolo Paganini.

Legend has it that this brilliant musician, suffering from the humiliations of hopeless poverty and seeking recognition, gave his soul to the devil in exchange for a magnificent violin, which later brought him wealth and fame.

According to another legend, Paganini won Guarneri’s brainchild at cards in a roadside tavern from a strange man who, not at all regretting the loss, said goodbye to the young man and predicted great glory. Be that as it may, Paganini’s music did not leave anyone indifferent. Ladies at his concerts cried and fainted, and even men were not shy about their tears.

However, rumors about a deal with the devil constantly haunted the brilliant musician, which was partly facilitated by his peculiar appearance and eccentric behavior. And if during Paganini’s life few people dared to make accusations against him, then after the musician’s death the Roman Catholic Church categorically opposed his burial according to the Christian rite.

For 47 years, the body of Niccolo Paganini sought refuge in all the cities of Italy, until, finally, in 1897, his exhausting posthumous journey ended in one of the cemeteries of Parma.

These terrible wanderings of the remains of the great virtuoso gave rise to new legends. Thus, the inhabitants of the island of Saint-Honoré, where Paganini’s body found refuge for some time, say that after the remains of the musician left their lands, amazing blue lilies grew on the coastal rocks. The very spirit of the musician remained forever on these shores, and now on stormy nights you can hear the voice of his violin through the noise of the wind.

And the faithful companion of the “demonic” virtuoso is now in Paganini’s homeland - in the town hall of Genoa. And once a year, one of the young talented musicians takes it in his hands to play for the whole evening in front of listeners in memory of its first famous owner.

Elena LYAKINA