The Alpine Dulcimer or Raffele (Raffelzither)

by Tom Leoni

The History of the Alpine Dulcimer

Like the American dulcimer, the Alpine dulcimer draws its origins from an instrument family that is present in virtually all cultures. Stretching one or more strings over a sounding board seems to have been a common idea regardless of time or geographical location. Most notably, ancient Greek philosopher Pythagoras talked about a monochord, a single-stringed instrument not dissimilar to a lap dulcimer in appearance; but rather than being employed strictly for music, the monochord was used in Pythagoras' philosophical school to determine the exact numerical proportions between musical intervals.

In the middle ages, when instrumental music started gaining its own dignity alongside the vocal tradition, a whole host of plucked musical instruments were born or developed--from psalteries to lutes, from harps to citoles. Within this larger category of instruments, the Scheitholt can be considered to be the most direct ancestor of the Appalachian dulcimer: This was a rectangular box about 20 inches long and 3 inches wide, with a nut on one end and a bridge on the other, and with two or three strings stretched over it. Like with the dulcimer, the sound was produced by striking all strings with a plectrum (or quill) with the right hand, while the left-hand fingers controlled the pitch by stopping the strings at various points along what we would call a fretboard.

By the 1700s, some versions of this instrument had started developing more strings, some to be fretted, some to be used as open-sounding drones. Although it is somewhat an oversimplification, this is when two distinct instrument subcategories branched out from the Scheitholt. One, retaining three strings, crossed the Atlantic to become the Appalachian dulcimer we know. The other used an increasing number of open strings, eventually becoming the Austro-German concert Zither of The Third Man fame.

The instrument we call Alpine dulcimer is the European cousin of America's own mountain or Appalachian dulcimer. Known in German as Raffelzither or simply Raffele, the Alpine dulcimer can be heard in the mountain regions of Austria--particularly the Tyrol and South Tyrol, which straddle the border between Austria and Italy. It is used primarily in folk music and dances, alone or most often in conjunction with other string instruments such as the classical guitar, upright bass, harp and Hackbrett (Alpine hammered dulcimer).

Form and Features of the Alpine Dulcimer

The Alpine dulcimer or Raffele is somewhere in between an Appalachian dulcimer and a concert Zither. While retaining only three strings, it features a body-shape reminiscent of that of a smaller concert Zither. And, although it can be played on the musician's lap, it is generally played table-top, and it features three small feet for that purpose. The strings are tuned by means of metal tuning pins and a separate tuning wrench, much like a concert Zither or an old-Virginia-style dulcimer.

Its sound is like that of a regular dulcimer, but its shorter string length and higher string tension makes it an octave higher, brighter and slightly louder.

Also like the Appalachian dulcimer, the Alpine dulcimer is generally fretted diatonically. Our model features a 1 ½ and a 6 ½ fret, with all the other intervals being diatonic. While the American dulcimer's most common tuning is d-a-d, the Alpine version's standard tuning is d-a-a, with the two "a" strings being tuned in unison.

Among other common points with its American cousin, the Alpine dulcimer is played with a pick, with all the strings struck together (downstroke generally away from the player). While finger-picking style is of course technically possible, it is not strictly within the Alpine tradition for this particular instrument.

With its bright and lovely sound, the Alpine dulcimer will stand out both in and outdoors, and will blend well with other string-band instruments.

Elisabeth Lloyd playing the sprightly Raffele Schottisch on a Keith Young Raffele, accompanied by Tom Leoni.
Read about this original tune and the performance.
Finally, our Alpine dulcimer gives you the option to tune the first string a fourth up to d, thereby giving you instant access to standard Appalachian dulcimer repertoire at a mere turn of a tuning wrench, which is included with the raffele.

We hope you'll try our Raffele, a Tyrolean classic made with American craftsmanship here in the USA, for sale at a reasonable price.

Our thanks to Tom Leoni for researching and writing this article. He is an excellent historian and also an excellent musician and teacher. He and Elisabeth Lloyd form a popular duo, Liab' und Schneid, that plays authentic Alpine Volkmusik from Austria, Bavaria and South Tyrol. They can be heard at restaurants, Oktoberfests and other venues in the Washington, DC area. -Keith Young

This item is no longer for sale.