Hurdy-gurdy Hurdy-gurdy The hurdy-gurdy is a stringed instrument that produces sound by a hand crank-turned, rosined wheel rubbing against the strings. The wheel functions much like a violin bow, and single notes played on the instrument sound similar to those of a violin. Melodies are played on a keyboard that presses "tangents"—small wedges, typically made of wood—against one or more of the strings to change their pitch. Like most other acoustic stringed instruments, it has a sound board and hollow cavity to make the vibration of the strings audible. Most hurdy-gurdies have multiple drone strings, which give a constant pitch accompaniment
Vielle à roue et à manche The instrument has also been mislabeled "strohfiddel" in modern times, since the caption at the bottom of Plate XXII uses this term (literally "straw fiddle"), but that term actually refers to the xylophone pictured next to the dulcigurdy. Praetorius does not appear to give a specific name for the instrument, instead lumping it in with the keyed hurdy-gurdy next to it as "Bauern-Lyren" or "peasant lyres." Vielle à roue et à manche The vielle à roue et à manche (called dulcigurdy by some luthiers) is a modern term for an early music instrument, of unknown original name, of the hurdy-gurdy