A different drummer

Michal Müller is an authentic free spirit. He happens to play the zither, which he has made into the perfect vehicle for his Muse. It would be hard to run into his music in the U.S., which is a pity. I got lucky: his second CD, Ziegether was mailed to me by a friend. I don't think this was a recording I would have bought on my own: on the surface it is "popular" music, a genre I avoid. That would have been my loss, as it is a favorite, and has been a favorite for everyone I have played it to.

So, it was a special pleasure to meet him, talk with him, and listen to him play and sing. He is a tall, wiry man with a continual look of delight on his face: a smile for everything and everyone. He talks with his entire body. He is not an intellectual in the sense that he thinks and analyzes everything. Rather, he feels, experiences, and responds with his playing and singing. I wish I could be more like that.

I asked him how he approached his distinctive arrangements on the zither. His style is not "traditional," but it is entirely natural to the instrument. I don't think I've heard any of the "oom-pa-pa" accompaniment that is so natural to the zither. He told me that he focuses on the bass line, which he exploits so well, and filling in to give the music an overall rhythmic texture. He hasn't bothered to write down his music and now with a house and family he doesn't have much time for that.

I was interested to learn that he uses the Viennese tuning. Those not familiar with the zither might be astonished that there are different tunings for the zither. It is the same instrument, simply strung a little differently. The Munich tuning (which I have learned) seems to dominate and is well suited for transcriptions because the "free strings" provide a complete chromatic progression and the fretted strings are tuned like a viola (with a double string: C-g-d-a'-a'). The Viennese tuning emphasizes the bass in the free strings and has what I would describe as a "re-entrant" tuning with the fretted strings: C-g-g'-d-a'. The baroque guitar and theorbo also use such re-entrant tunings. The Viennese tuning makes it easier to do thirds in the middle voices and the tuning can be effective in creating richer chords and special effects.

As Michal says, the tuning is not important – he doesn't ask a student what tuning he is using – but the music is. The Viennese tuning happens to work for him. Michal did play some more traditional zither music in the Seminar concert. He clearly mastered that style. But, in making his own music, his zither marches to the beat of a different drummer.


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