kantelemusic.com

Compleat Chords for the Kantele has been revised and is once more in print!

Fishbone book cover
Compleat Chords book cover
   
My kantele instruction book, written in English, contains lessons for 5 and 10 string instruments. Each lesson is illustrated with color photos, and I've also included some basic chord charts, info on caring for your kantele, and my arrangements of approximately 36 traditional Finnish folk tunes and songs. This book features the winning entries for the 2005 Pikebone Kantele Songwriting competition as well as 50 other original and traditional songs for five string kanteles. All tunes can be played by changing just one string from F to F#. There are tunes for beginners as well as for more advanced players. This book contains extensive chord charts (420 charts, total) for all the major and minor keys, including charts for pentatonic tunings in all the keys. In addition, there is information on tuning your kantele, a small glossary of musical terms, and 45 mostly original songs and tunes written and arranged for five and ten strings.


Online kantele playing guides for 5 and 10 strings

Kantele maker Michael King has posted some video playing guides on YouTube which you can access here. They're easy to follow and understand and really useful - whether or not have a teacher to show you how to play. Check them out!

Note: If you're looking for a good music program, you might want to check Myriad Software. It's what I use. Download and try their software for free. "Virtual Singer" will sing folk songs in Finnish - and their new Sound Database contains samples of my ten string kantele made by Erkki Okkonen.