From the Composer ~ aka “Nerd’s Corner” II ~ the Ancient Instruments!

I spent a lot of time reading online material about the culture of the Iceni tribe of ancient Brittania as I was writing Queen Boudicca a Metal Opera. Although the history of this era is very sparse, consisting almost entirely of Tacitus’ account in his book The Agricola, there are also archeological records of surviving artifacts from Iron age Britain which tell us something about what it was like to live in that time.

The bone flute (I bought one)is one of the most ancient of instruments, made from a leg bone of a deer usually, examples having been found in cave excavationsdating back many thousands of years.

The bullroarer (I made those) are also extremely ancient instruments, they were made by virtually every aboriginal culture (including Native American), usually for rituals and to invoke “demon” or “spirit” voices. Look for them in the Demons Above segment of the Omens suite.

But there were two instruments that, once I discovered their existence, I felt I absolutely had to have for the Metal Opera. They are the Carnyx and the Warrior’s Lyre.

The sound of the Carnyx was reported to have petrified the ancient Greeks when the Celts (Celtic tribes existed in all of western Europe, not just in what is now the UK) attacked some 300 years before the rebellion led by Boudicca. These instruments, loosely based on the Deskford Carnyx, are 6 feet tall and have bells shaped like the head of a wild boar, and if that ain’t “Metal” I don’t know what is! We have 6 of these babies (5 used in the production and one spare) and I think it is safe to say you are not likely to see that at any other Metal show anywhere!

If you are thinking that these must have been difficult to source, you are absolutely correct. It would have been impossible for me to afford these had I not constructed them myself with the help of my brother Dave Schlink in the “Forge of Doom” ( otherwise referred to as his garage where he does auto body work).

As much as I like the Carnyx trumpets, I have to say that the instrument that is my favorite is the reproduction of the Trossingen Warrior’s Lyre. The original that ours was modeled after was dug up in Trossingen Germany and dates back to the 5th century (young whipersnappers compared to Boudicca’s clan). Although not directly traceable to the Iceni, this design is very similar to the Sutton Hoo lyre dug up in the UK. The reason we chose the Trossingen model is that it was much simpler in design and more like what a real Warrior might carry on his back on the March than the fancy ceremonial design of the Sutton Hoo lyre.

It is often said that the lute was the pedecessor of the modern guitar and, if you are talking about the classical style of guitar playing, this assumption is compelling. However, my experience constructing and playing our lyre has made me doubt that. Contrary to what one might think, these lyre were not usually played by finger picking (think modern harp playing, angels and stuff). The most common method of playing these lyre was the “stop and strum” technique. In other words the player puts his or her hand through the opening in the frame and “stops” then they do not wish to be heard and then “strums” across the strings with a pick. Imagine someone standing up playing a lyre in this way, then imagine someone sitting down in a tuxedo playing a lute using only finger pickingmin the modern classical style.

Which one brings to mind Green Day, or a modern singer/songwriter to you? Surpisingly, to me and probably to you as well, the Warrior’s lyre would seem to be the Great Great Grand Daddy of our modern folk, rock, and even Metal guitar styles!

Ever think of where the ubiquitous term “lyrics” comes from? It derives from ” the words sung to the playing of the lyre”

So to conclude, even an old Nerd like myself can learn surpring things about the origins of music by looking backwards.

Music Nerds of the World unite, and come to Queen Boudicca a Metal Opera, and you might learn something surprising likemI did!

Bob Schlink

Here’s a bonus video of Bob melting lead for the Torc recreation!