Hurdy Gurdy

In 2023 I finally took the plunge and decided to buy a Hurdy Gurdy. I had been wanting to get back into music (since playing piano as a kid), but I wanted to try something that has not been done very much. I had seen several people playing Hurdy Gurdy online, and this instrument always interested me. Aside from loving medieval aesthetics (could you tell from this page?), I also am in love with drone music. I grew up with scottish music at home, and from there I got into Scottish Bagpipes and Uilleann Pipes. Playing Bagpipes also crossed my mind, but I thought it'd be much harder to learn.

Then it happened. I went to a sort of medieval festival called historic festival Zoetermeer (place in the Netherlands). Here, I saw someone play for the first time in real life. Up until then, I had still been considering the nyckelharpa instead. The nyckelharpa is featured in a few of my favorite World of Warcraft OSTs, and I fell in love with the clacky sound of the keys. I realized the nyckelharpa would probably be harder to learn than the Hurdy Gurdy, and they sound similar enough anyway. So, I decided to get my first Gurdy.
Of course, learning how to play the Hurdy Gurdy isn't easy either, as you might expect. You might imagine there aren't many teachers around, and finding a luthier is equally difficult. Moreover, the road toward the Hurdy Gurdy is littered with obstacles, both expected and unexpected. This page serves as a diary of sorts of my trials and tribulations on the road to Gurdyhood. If you wish to know more about my struggles, or are interested in starting your own journey, do continue reading...