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How To Play glockenspiel Or Bell Lyre - playing

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The row of sharped notes on its left side make it possible
to play music written in all the principal keys. When you play
in a sharp key such as G (1 sharp), D (2 sharps) and so on,
you play the left-hand notes as sharps. For flat keys you play
them as flats. A# is played for Bb, D# for Eb, G# for Ab,
and so on.

Playing the Glockenspiel

The most usual form of glockenspiel is mounted on a single
holster. This fits over the shoulders *and around the body and
must be supported near its base stem with the left hand. The
right hand does the playing, striking the notes with a small
mallet, which may have a wooden or glass head.

Some glockenspiels are made with a double harness. This
leaves both hands free, and they play with two mallets.

You should hold the mallet stick near its end and, when
playing, have the palm of your hand facing the glockenspiel.
Strike from the forearm, rather than the wrist, as this makes a
better tone, and try always to hit the centers of the tone bars.
Draw the mallet head back quickly the instant you make a
note. If you leave the mallet head on the tone bar, it will
deaden the tone. As you do this, shift your glance to the next
tone bar to be struck and put the mallet in position near it,
ready to make the next note.

The important thing is quick, confident action—light but
brisk striking of the bars to get a clear, vibrant tone.

You can control the loudness or softness of the tone to some
extent by loosening or tightening the screws that hold the tone
bars. If you loosen the screws the bars can vibrate more freely
and will produce a louder tone. For soft playing, you can
tighten the screws a little to reduce the vibrations. You should
make sure that all the bars are adjusted to the same tone vol-
ume before you start to play in public.

Music written for the piano, violin or voice can be played
on the glockenspiel and once you learn the notes you can begin
to pick out tunes and melodies of all kinds.
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