I love ye olde storytelling forms. Peter Pringle is a masterful bard with a fantastic voice for oration and a wonderful accompaniment to my favorite esoteric instrument, the hurdy-gurdy. The ancient tale of Beowulf, which bears, I cannot stress this enough, NO relation to 2007's waking CGI nightmare film, is still riveting to this day and a true epic. Pringle's rendition of this story excerpt is beautifully executed and pretty much true to medieval instrumentation, right up until it gets to the theremin's interlude. Though it's surprising, this strange union of two otherworldly instruments works in perfect tandem.
The hurdy-gurdy is an instrument able to play melody, harmony and rhythm all on it's own. It was considered a perfect instrument in its heyday, an essential tool of the minstrel in bringing the word of god to the public. I also consider it a perfect instrument and I don't even think I've ever heard the word of god, nor have I ever been a member of the public. I also think that the theremin is a perfect instrument, so finding this video felt like a little Christmas miracle.
Everything Peter Pringle has on his channel is a treat, full of storied instruments and interesting stories. Check him out and give this bard's tale a listen.
