YediTekrar - 1-19-2006 at 03:48 PM
Hello. I know this doesn't involve oud(s), but, since it involves an obscure Middle Eastern stringed instrument, this is the only place I know of
that can help me.
I ordered a rababa off of Ebay, after much consideration. I selected the seller with the highest rating, etc. The item itself is in good condition
(it arrived today). The problem is that it came strung with a guitar string, of all things. The string was also too loose to bow. Trust me, I
tried.
What kind of string would one use for this instrument? It's a one-string Syrian rababa, apparently. How do I thread and wind the string to tune
it?
Any help AT ALL is appreciated. I'm poor now, thanks to my university screwing me over, and I can't afford to buy one from anyone here, so buying a
second instrument is out of the question...
kasos - 1-20-2006 at 08:13 AM
Hi. I've faced similar issues with E bay instruments. Basically, don't sweat it, just experiment with any different strings you can put your hands
on until you find something that makes it playable (for you, not some 'ideal' player), then spend some time researching what the 'proper' type of
string would be.
If you're anything like me, you will eventually find not just one, but two or three reasonable alternatives, each with its own set of strengths and
disadvantages. It's part of what makes it an adventure, and keeps the process interesting.
The way I look at it, the same issues of distance, rarity, etc., that make it hard to find the "correct" string also make it hard for anyone to
reasonably criticize you for using 'something practical' in the meantime. The sound will change, of course, once you get the 'right' strings, but
you will still gain valuable experience and knowledge of the strengths and limitations of your instrument through the process of experimenting. You
will also gain basic playing skills, such as bowing technique and finding the right pitches, skills that will remain operative once you sort the
string situation out (scale length won't change, whatever type of string you use). Also, you can spend as little or as much money on the process
as you wish, depending on your current budget.
Remember that, particularly with folk instruments, there is usually a tradition of almost infinite local variation, and more importantly, a deep
commitment to 'making do', whatever that should be in the circumstances. Whatever it is you wind up trying, odds are that someone before you has
tried something similar, and worked hard to make music out of it.
Now, as to specific advice for this instrument....Although I own quite a few non-western bowed instruments, I don't yet own this type of rababa (if I
remember correctly, this is the type with a piece of hide as a soundboard, stretched between a sort of support frame, with no sound box - it's on my
list for eventual acquisition, too....) I don't know what the truly 'authentic' choice should be in this case, but I would think a gut string, if
you can find one long enough, would be both a historically reasonable (for the region, generally) and a playable choice, especially until you get
more specific information. Try a music shop that sells cello strings - a violin string is quite a bit shorter, and might not work, depending on the
dimensions of your instrument. If the gut cello string is just too long, cut it down to size (this is basically what they do for the Cretan lyra,
which is a much smaller instrument than the cello but uses cello strings).
(***nb. DON'T get a steel cello string, see below...)
If you can't find a gut string, or if they're outside your current budget range, then a 'softer' sort of string composition, such as silk wound or
nylon wound guitar string, would probably be preferable to a steel guitar string. I've also occasionally tried oud and saz strings, scavenged from
some of my plucked instruments of this type- I've become quite partial to the sound I've gotten from the saz strings in such situations, these seem to
have a loose, but not too loose sort of flex to them, and they bow fairly well. I've currently got saz strings of one type or other on my coconut
resonator (wood top) rebaba, as well as on my Yugoslavian gusle (wooden back, hide top - it's just a guess, but because of the wide hide top, I'd
think it would probably sound somewhat similar to your rebaba), and I find them quite playable in this form.
The other alternative, if you're particularly adventurous and open-minded, is to try another traditional material, which is horse hair.
Historically, it appears this was the material originally used for strings for the first bowed instruments (not just for the bow). Certain regions
continue to use horsehair as the main string material - I have a morin khuur, a mongolian cello-range instrument strung in this way, and it works
well, even surprisingly well....no echo/sustain (the hair doesn't continue to vibrate once you stop bowing) but very lively and rich while being
bowed. There's a small background hiss from hair against hair, which has its own charm, once you get used to it.
The use of horse hair used to be quite widespread - it's still traditionally used not just in Mongolia, but also as far afield as Yugoslavia, for the
aforementioned gusle..... I've got some extra horsehair, and I'm thinking of eventually stringing the gusle up in this way - though with some
reluctance because I really like the sound of the saz string I've currently been using..... I suppose what I really need is two gusles, one with a
traditional stringing, and one with non-traditional.... Just to emphasize that I'm quite sincere in saying that the experiments have their own
charm, and 'authenticity' isn't always the only way to go....
At any rate, I would think that trying horsehair on your rebaba would not be inappropriate, particularly since your version of the rebaba has some
historical association with the bedouins - I, at least, would find it quite plausible that the bedouins would have used horsehair, at one point or
other....
Whatever you wind up doing, make as few apologies as possible for your choices - it's all about making music, not about bragging rights....
Take care, Mark
PS - I'm curious what you wind up doing in terms of fingering technique - I don't think you've got a fingerboard to press the string into, so your
options are to finger it with the pad of the finger, from the top or side (like an erhu) or with the fingernail, from the side (like a Turkish
kemence, Cretan Lyra, Yugoslavian gusle, Bulgarian Gadulka, and East Indian Sarangi). I couldn't say which is traditional in the case of this
instrument, but I would suggest trying both, and seeing which works the best for you.
kasos - 1-20-2006 at 08:28 AM
Just one more thing...What exactly do you have to work with, in terms of a peg? - I'm happy to offer advice on stringing it (educated guesses, really,
since I don't own this particular type of instrument) but I'd need some specifics. If you want, you can send me a U2U.... Regards, Mark
oudmaker - 1-20-2006 at 09:07 AM
Could you put a picture?
Dincer
YediTekrar - 1-20-2006 at 08:34 PM
I have to answer this tomorrow; I'm utterly exhausted.
Elie Riachi - 1-22-2006 at 09:20 PM
I think the bidwans used goat hair for the rababah string as well but I am not certain. As for fingering I know that it is done from the side and
seems to me by the pad of the finger but it could have been by the nail. I have seen some decoration or wall hanger rababahs (not for play) which had
the loose string and had no way of tuning.
YediTekrar - 1-24-2006 at 03:32 AM
I'm going to talk to the professor of strings and the professor of ethnomusicology at my university. I will report back with findings. 
kasos - 1-24-2006 at 09:36 PM
Sounds like a great idea... If you've got resources like that nearby, by all means use them.... Best of luck, Mark