The Bowed Lyre– Jouhikko, book+ CD. 3rd edition, 2020. Texts are in English and Finnish.

The first edition of The Bowed Lyre–Jouhikko was published in year 2007. The lyre was played with a bow in Europe as early as the Middle Ages. In the area around the Baltic Sea, there is historical evidence of both bowed and plucked lyres. In Estonia and Eastern Finland the bowed lyre survived into the 20th century. This book contains 98 tunes collected by music collectors on the Estonian mainland and islands, as well as in the Finnish provinces of Savo and Karelia. They are complemented by a CD of 46 bowed lyre tunes originally recorded on phonograph and parlograph cylinders, or direct-to-disc. These recordings give us a unique opportunity to listen to the performances of seven traditional players from as long as a hundred years ago. The book provides information on the history of the bowed lyre, musicians and their playing styles. It also offers an introduction to playing technique, advice on maintenance of the instrument and an overview of its contemporary use.

Publishers: Tmi Rauno Nieminen, SIBELIUS ACADEMYxUniversity of the Arts, KANSANMUSIIKKI-INSTITUUTTI