String instrument strings, or play them by rolling the bell of a brass instrument such as a trombone on the array of strings. However, these are relatively rarely used special techniques. Other keyed string instruments, small enough for a strolling musician to play, include the plucked autoharp, the bowed nyckelharpa, and the hurdy-gurdy, which is played by cranking a rosined wheel. Steel-stringed instruments (such as the guitar, bass, violin, etc.) can be played using a magnetic field. An E-Bow is a small hand-held battery-powered device that magnetically excites the strings of an electric string instrument to provide a sustained, singing tone reminiscent
The Hurdy Gurdy Man The Hurdy Gurdy Man The Hurdy Gurdy Man is the sixth studio album (seventh overall) by Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released in the US in October 1968 (Epic Records BN 26420 (stereo)), but not in the UK, because of a continuing contractual dispute that also prevented "Sunshine Superman" and "Mellow Yellow" from being released there. A songbook of lead sheets to the album was nonetheless issued in both countries. Donovan wrote and recorded much of "The Hurdy Gurdy Man" in late 1967, not long after recording the songs that would form "A Gift from a Flower to a Garden".