The ukelin is a stringed musical instrument that became popular in the United States during the 1920s. It is a type of psaltery that is played with a bow and has strings similar to those on a zither. The name "ukelin" comes from the words "ukulele" (a small guitar-like instrument first made in Portugal but later popularized in Hawaii) and "violin." The instrument lost popularity before the 1970s because it was hard to play, and many people returned it to the manufacturer before they had finished paying for it.

History

It is difficult to know the exact history of the ukelin, as several similar instruments were made in the 1920s. Paul F. Richter applied for the first known ukelin patent in December 1924, and it was approved in April 1926. The Phonoharp Company, which joined with Oscar Schmidt, Inc. the same year, began making ukelins in 1926. However, an instrument very similar to the ukelin had a patent filed in 1923, a year before Richter’s. This patent, filed by John Large, was approved after Richter’s patent was already granted. Another similar instrument had a patent filed by Walter Schmidt in 1925. Because these patents were filed close to each other in time, it is unclear who invented the first ukelin.

Violinist Henry Charles Marx was among the first to sell an instrument he called a violin-uke. He created many instruments for his company, Marxochime Colony, to produce. He is believed to have been the first to make the instrument, but his design was soon copied by the International Music Company, which sold it under the name ukelin. The Phonoharp Company sold Richter’s design before joining with Oscar Schmidt in 1926. Marxochime and Oscar Schmidt International, Inc. sold their instruments through traveling salesmen who visited homes in rural areas. These salesmen bought the instruments from the company and then sold them at higher prices, often allowing customers to pay over time. Prices increased as the economy improved after the Depression. Customers were sometimes told they were buying the instrument at a lower price than in music stores, but there is no proof the instruments were sold in music stores. The instruments were usually sold for $35 to $40.

Playing

The ukelin has sixteen melody strings and sixteen bass strings, which are divided into four groups for playing chords. Each group contains one large bass string and three smaller melody strings. The instrument is placed on a table in front of the player. The melody strings are played with a bow held in the right hand, while the bass strings are plucked or strummed using the fingernails of the left hand or a pick. The ukelin is tuned to a C major scale and cannot play chromatic notes unless it is specifically tuned to do so. This limits the types of music it can play. To help amateur players, the strings are labeled with numbers. Booklets that came with the ukelin used tabulature notation, which shows string numbers instead of musical notes on a staff, to teach how to play simple songs.

Decline

Ukelins were sold to people who believed the instrument was easy to play, but this was incorrect. They were also limited in the types of music they could play because they were designed as diatonic instruments. As a result, many were returned, leaving manufacturers with large piles they could not sell. Salesmen gave false information about the instruments, causing customers to feel they had been tricked into buying something of little value. Oscar Schmidt, Inc. stopped producing the ukelin in 1964 after the new owner, Glen Peterson, found that some salesmen had engaged in dishonest business practices. Meanwhile, declining interest in musical instruments, partly due to the introduction of television as a family entertainment option, led Marxochime to stop making the violin-uke. Production of the instrument ended in 1972.