Harmonium Handbook: Owning Playing and Maintaining the Devotional Instrument of India

After a pilgrimage to India in 1998 Satyaki Kraig Brockschmidt had the opportunity to visit the Bina factory in Delhi and began importing harmoniums on a regular basis. But after being flown halfway around the world most harmoniums arrived at his home in Seattle in less than perfect condition. This gave him abundant opportunities to explore the fine details of the instrument and to find solutions to a wide variety of technical problems. THE HARMONIUM HANDBOOK provides detailed instructions in how to play maintain and repair this popular devotional instrument. It also reveals the colourful history of free-reed instruments such as the harmonium which dates back to the time of Marco Polo. The story behind the modern version of the harmonium is a fascinating testimony to the love skill innovation and intermingling of many of the world's great cultures. THE HARMONIUM HANDBOOK reveals: ¨ The history of the Indian harmonium from Ancient China to Europe and America ¨ The essentials of owning and caring for Indian harmoniums helping them give many years of service ¨ How to play the harmonium in a variety of styles from the simple to the complex including single-note melody melody with a drone chords and other more advanced methods (a complete appendix of chords and chord inversions is provided)