The Schrammelguitar is the "Viennese Contraguitar"

[Melos Antigos]

Hi!

 

Just a note on Contraguitars ...

 

The Contraguitar (in German Kontragitarre) is typically remembered for 2 main styles of music:

 

1) Schrammelmusic which is Viennese Music, where the guitar is usually used to accompany two violins (or different instruments). The name Schrammel comes from the brothers Johann Schrammel and Josef Schrammel, who played violin and were accompanied by Anton Strohmayer on a Contraguitar.

Here one talks about the Schrammelguitar!

Some good videos of the guitar in use for this repertoire:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6oYfd9-2o0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sXG4kx-MFI

Played by the fantastic "Philharmonia Schrammeln".

 

 

2) Tyrolean folk music (this is not Schrammelmusic!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJmML4wF6w0

This is not Schrammelmusic, but a folk tune as it is typical in southern Bavaria or Tyrol... so one should call the guitar Contraguitar (the video uploaders made the "mistake" of saying Schrammel guitar)

 

 

[Rob MacKillop]

I liked the first video very much, although I could not hear the guitar much at all. Very nice music. Can you give dates for these 'Schrammel' guitars?

[Lars Hedelius-Strikkertsen]

To me it sounds like the violin is playing with steel string like the modern violin. That could be the reason for not hearing the guitar very well. The funny thing is, in the danish language we have lot of words that comes from the german language and the  Austrian language is very much like German. In Denmark we have also the words Schrammel but its spelled dinfferently (skrammel). In DK the word actually means something not very good. Its not easy to find the exact word in english but in DK the word is negative.

Regarding the music. whos the composer and when is it composed, I can hear that its 19th century but at what time did this music developed

[Lars Hedelius-Strikkertsen]

I did some research on my own.http://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Datei:Rudolf_Krziwanek_-_...

here is a picture on the famous Schrammel-quartet taken at 1879. So this answers my question regarding time and composer.

[Melos Antigos]

But don't try playing this music... I've tried and get lost.

 

You really have to be Austrian! ;)