Cimbalom player Jenő Lisztes Photo: Supplied / Jeno Lisztes
The cimbalom: possibly the fastest percussion instrument in the East - of Europe, that is.
Hungarian virtuoso Jenő Lisztes is bringing his hammers to the Auckland Town Hall this week to perform in a one-off cimbalom showcase.
Luckily for Lisztes, he didn't have to bring his own instrument, as your typical concert cimbalom weighs around 100 kilograms. The Auckland Philharmonia has its own ready for him to use.
Lisztes told RNZ Concert host Bryan Crump that cimbalom playing runs in the family, as far back as his great-grandfather's generation.
His father made a living performing in restaurants around Budapest, but Lisztes focussed his career mainly on the concert hall.
Lisztes also told Crump about the origins and the shape of the cimbalom. It's a bit like an inside-out piano with exposed strings which the musician hits with a pair of hammers. In the hands of someone like Lisztes, it can play as many notes per second as ten fingers can on a keyboard.
Crump asks if the cimbalom evolved out of the piano. Lisztes says it's far more ancient than that, originating in Persia - perhaps thousands of years ago.
Even the Bible mentions a cimbalom, he says.
Whether it's much like the cimbalom he plays, he doesn't know, but that's what the Bible calls it.
Back in the present day, Lisztes says the cimbalom is disappearing from the Budapest restaurant scene, but he hopes his concerts will encourage others around the world to take up the instrument.
