Now he released an online course on this topic. On YouTube you can watch the introductional video which I enclose here. So if you ever wanted to build your own bouzouki this one's for you.
Alternatively, you can scan this QR code.
Many thanks in advance to everyone who would like to support me with a small donation.
It seems that many people are interested in converting a guitar into a bouzouki. This does not appear to be particularly difficult. To get around the problem of string suspension with the pins, you can, for example, attach a new tailpiece. Of course, two additional holes have to be drilled in the head of the guitar. You can either simply drill two holes at the top of the headstock. Or you can go to the trouble of filling in the six existing holes and drilling eight new ones, which certainly looks much better.
Then the bridge insert and saddle need to be converted to 8 strings. Particular care should be taken when working on the saddle.
In any case, it should be noted that the fingerboard is very wide compared to a bouzouki, which will certainly not appeal to everyone. Personally, I would find it too wide. I am also not a fan of the sound of the gizouki, or whatever you want to call it. But that is all a matter of taste.
Here's a website where a guy called Keith Hempsey shows his conversion of two guitars.
Brent Matusik tries to compare both instruments. This is a discussion which is often heard. And what is the difference between Octave Mandolin and Short Scale Bouzouki? Well ...
Look at the video and maybe afterwards you might be a little bit more confused?
In my opinion it is all about the tuning you use. Call it whatever you want.
Please tell me, what are you looking for, what information do you need for your playing the bouzouki. Any questions, any hints what you would like me to post here?
And do you know of any hidden treasures on the web which I haven't covered here? Please let me know and I will try to post it. If you have anything to contribute to this blog please feel free to get in contact.
Currently there are 3 handmade bouzoukis for sale on the German market. I don't know the luthiers who built them. If you know anything about them please comment.
This is a list of the most viewed posts in Jan 24. If you have missed one... It seems that most visitors just look for the latest posts and don't click on the links on the right. Might be a mistake (?) There are lots of things to discover if you have the time to browse through the older ones.
There's a new course on OAIM: Bouzouki Skills. Tutor Alan Reid teaches a lot of right hand techniqes. Yesterday I subscibed again and in the next weeks I'm going to watch the movies. Seems to be very interesting.
So if you are looking for some new input have a look at the free video introduction and subscribe to watch the course in total. You'll also have access to all the other courses as well, so come on, why don't you do it?
By the way, Alan also is on patreon, where he posts lots of instruction videos for bouzouki.
https://www.patreon.com/alanreid/postsHere are the details of this course:
These are the most watched post in the last month. Have a look an be inspired. Maybe look at the keywords on the right side to find more interesting posts. And keep commenting!
Someone named Cruel Folk compares a Fylde and a Sobell bouzouki. Can't tell what my favourite is. I only once played on a Sobell. I'd really like a comparism of these two with my Foley. Or better not, cause I love my Foley.
So these are the 10 most often watched posts during the last 30 days for your information.
Still lots of readers are looking for chord or chord charts. So if you look here you'll find lots of chord charts or videos where chords are explained.
https://irish-bouzouki.blogspot.com/search/label/Chord%20Charts
you might look also here:
So this are the most watched posts on my blog during the last 12 months. Interesting that most people are looking for chords or information on building a bouzouki.
Please tell me, what are you looking for, what information do you need for your playing the bouzouki. Any questions, any hints what you would like me to post here?
Do you know of any hidden treasures on the web which I haven't covered here? Please let me know and I will try to post it.
Just found this video on youtube. Eamon Coughlan gives an insight to the Irish Bouzouki.
You find him on bandcamp: https://eamoncoughlan.bandcamp.com/
In this video he covers the following topics:
00:00 - Intro
00:31 - Background / Origin of the instrument
04:57 - Tunings and Versatility
09:55 - Irish Bouzouki vs Octave Mandolin vs Cittern
13:00 - Instrument Range
14:06 - My Bouzouki (Where I got it, Cost)
15:05 - Demos (Background Information on Tunes)
15:56 - Demo I - Irish (Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór)
18:26 - Demo II - Swedish (Byggnan)
Well, I'm a bit late with this information, but better late than never ...
Eoin O'Neill offers an online workshop for Bouzouki at the O'Flaherty's Retreat 2020. It runs from Out. 18th until Nov 8th, so it is already online. It cost 150$ and you'll get 9 Lessons each lasts around 25 - 30 minutes You can register here:
The online workshops are available until December, so enough time to learn from/with Eoin. I'm so happy to have the opportunity to learn the way Eoin plays. This might be the only good thing about Corona.
