LUTHIEROS
Start Your Lyre Journey
A Welcome Note with All You Need to Know
Before Handling Your Instrument
for the First Time
Welcome to the Lyre Ecosystem, dear lyre student. We sincerely thank you for supporting our shared dream of making the lyre of Classical Greece (i.e., the ancient lyre) accessible to the worldwide music community.
Starting your lyre journey can be exciting (and overwhelming sometimes), but you will soon realize it is highly rewarding! It takes time to adapt to the lyre if you are new to string instruments or even if you have some experience with strings but are new to ancient-inspired musical instruments. These first steps are one of the main reasons to choose a reputable luthier, and we will explain why.
Why is My Lyre Untuned?
First, why did my lyre come untuned, you may ask. The reason is simple: a tuned lyre puts constant pressure on the yoke, the arms, and the soundbox of the instrument, which is equivalent to 7 kgs per string (approximately). This means that if you have a 7string lyre, the constant pressure on the instrument, if perfectly tuned, is almost 50 kgs!
That is not an issue if the lyre is in an environment with stable conditions (such as a home with a more or less stable temperature, humidity levels, etc.) When the lyre is traveling, though, that constant pressure can literally ruin an instrument, as the conditions are changing fast and vastly. For the reasons above, it is highly suggested to always untune your lyre when traveling, especially with an airplane or through environments with big differences (for example, when you go from a beach city up to the mountains, and vice versa).
How to Tune My Lyre?
Having established why an experienced luthier (or musician) has to untune a lyre before traveling, your next question should be: How can I tune it correctly without previous experience?
Having a LUTHIEROS lyre makes things quite simple. Along with the SEIKILO Ancient World Music Channel on YouTube, we have prepared a series of videos to help a newcomer. Moreover, we offer exclusively to the new lyre players a free premium course to LyreAcademy.com, a course that comes with access to a Private Student Group on Facebook, where you can ask lyre virtuosos, such as Lina Palera, and get personalized feedback.
There are rare cases, though, in which these videos and the academyâs content are not enough to help a new lyre player familiarize herself with the lyre, gain the needed confidence to handle her instrument and focus on the lyre journey. In these cases, send us an email, and we will arrange a video call with a member of our team to help you further!
So, here are some videos that can help you get started!
Your First Steps as a Lyre Student
It is now time to start your journey as a lyre student, with a lot of content to kick-start (accessible for free for every LUTHIEROS lyre owner) by the prestigious Lyre Academy! Here are the steps you need to take:Â
- Visit LyreAcademy.com and register for a free account here: https://lyreacademy.com/my-account/
- After registering, head to your courses page (at https://lyreacademy.com/my-classes/), and you will see that you have access to Lyre 100, which has all the essentials you need to know.
- Next, send an email to info@lyreacademy.com and ask for your LUTHIEROS free premium course (we suggest starting with Lyre 101). It might take one day or two to check you are a LUTHIEROS lyre owner, but most of the time, the procedure is quite fast.
- After registering for the premium lyre course, you can apply to become a member of the LyreAcademy Private Students Group on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/647168049474146.
There, you can post your questions, and a vibrant community will help you with suggestions. Moreover, your tutor and lyre virtuoso, Lina Palera, will reply via video with personalized feedback (there are also weekly live sessions)!
What if something Goes Wrong?
Finally, what if a string is snapped or a key is broken during the process, you may ask? Again, choosing a reputable luthier can make a hell of a difference!
For example, every LUTHIEROS lyre comes with an additional set of strings and one or two spare keys as a gift. These thoughtful additions, even if a newcomer lyre player never asked for them, can make the difference, enabling them to actually, you know, make mistakes!
Constantly Enhancing
a Lyre Playerâs Experience
Last, we recognize that it is crucial to be able to contact your luthier now and in the future to receive mindful guidance and get the most out of your lyre. Based on our experience so far, LUTHIEROSâ support has proved to be extremely helpful. You can always reach us at info@luthieros.com!
Whatâs more, we are always open to suggestions, as we are constantly trying to enhance the experience of the new lyre player by preparing new videos and guidelines, adding new gifts, et cetera.
The last addition to our effort to help you navigate the lyre ecosystem more effectively, making your lyre experience even better, is the book The Lyre-Player: In the Footsteps of Apollo. We decided to include it as a gift with every new lyre order, so donât forget to take a good look on it!
Get in touch with us
We are here to help you get the most out of your lyre and enhance your lyre learning experience!
No matter when you might need something, remember that you can always contact us at info@luthieros.com for extra help.
If you want to ask something related to lyre playing or the preparation of your lyre, get in touch with the LyreAcademy team at info@lyreacademy.com
Last, stay tuned and keep yourself inspired by subscribing to the SEIKILO YouTube Channel and its weekly videosâ premieres at https://www.youtube.com/seikilo
