Kokle (Latvian pronunciation: ['kʊ͡ɔk.le]; Latgalian: kūkle) or historically kokles (kūkles) is a string instrument from Latvia. It belongs to the Baltic box zither family, which also includes the Lithuanian kanklės, Estonian kannel, Finnish kantele, and Russian krylovidnye gusli. The earliest archaeological evidence of kokles in modern Latvia dates to the 13th century. The first written record about playing the kokle appears in the early 17th century. The first known kokle melody was written down in 1891. The first recordings of kokle music on gramophone records and in movies were made in the 1930s. Both the kokle and its traditional playing style are part of the Latvian Culture Canon.

Etymology

Finnish linguist Eino Nieminen [fi] suggests that the name of the instrument, as well as the names of similar instruments in nearby regions (such as Lithuanian kanklės, Finnish kantele, Estonian kannel, and Livonian kāndla), may come from an early Baltic language form called kantlīs or kantlēs. This term is believed to have originally meant "the singing tree," which traces back to an ancient European language root meaning "to sing" or "to make a sound." However, Lithuanian scholar Romualdas Apanavičius [lt] proposes a different idea. He believes the name kokles might instead come from an ancient European root meaning "a vessel" or "a handle (of a sword)," which could be connected to the Russian word gusli.

Construction

The kokles has a hollow, trapezoid-shaped body (ķermenis or korpuss) that is usually carved from a single piece of wood (vienkocis). This body is covered with a thin, decorated wooden soundboard (skaņgaldiņš). A unique feature of the kokles is that its strings do not rest on a bridge, which makes the sound quieter but more varied. Tuning pegs (tapas), made of wood or metal, are placed into the wide end of the body. At the narrow end, a metal rod (stīgturis) holds the strings in place, creating a slightly fan-shaped arrangement. The strings are made of brass or steel. Traditionally, the instrument had 6–9 strings, but later versions have 10 or more.

Playing

The way of playing the kokles is different from most other plucked string instruments, such as the zither, harp, and guitar. There are also differences in how the kokles is played between two regions in Lithuania: Latgale and Kurzeme. In Kurzeme, the kokles was usually played while sitting on a chair, bench, or stool without armrests. The instrument was placed horizontally in the player's lap with legs slightly apart. It could also be played by laying it flat on a table. In Latgale, the size and shape of the kokles allowed it to be placed vertically in the lap. The shorter side of the instrument rested against the player's stomach, and both arms were placed on the kokles for support and stability.

Strumming is done using the index finger of the right hand. The left hand is used to mute unwanted strings by gently placing fingers on them. In Latgale, another muting method involves inserting fingers between the strings. However, this method limits the movement of the left arm. The left hand can also be used to pluck the strings.

Tuning

The kokles is tuned using a diatonic scale, with some lower strings traditionally acting as drones, which are strings that produce a continuous, low note. In the late 1800s, Andrejs Jurjāns recorded a tuning for 5-stringed kokles as D-G-A-H-C. Jānis Poriķis, a traditional suiti kokles player, used tunings such as D-C-D-E-F-G-A for 7-stringed kokles and D-C-D-E-F-G-A-H-C for 9-stringed kokles. As kokles were built with more strings and Latgale-style kokles became more common, the drone strings no longer served their original purpose and instead extended the lower range of the instrument. Since the 1980s, the most popular tunings for 11-stringed kokles are G-A-C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C (GA) and G-A-C-D-E-F-G-A-B♭-C (GA-b♭).

Types

In his book The Baltic Psaltery and Playing Traditions in Latvia (Kokles un koklēšana Latvijā), Latvian music researcher Valdis Muktupāvels identifies three types of traditional kokles: Kurzeme kokles (Kurzemes kokles), Latgale kokles (Latgales kokles), and zither kokles (cītarkokles). He also describes three types of modern kokles: the 15-stringed Krasnopjorovs-Ķirpis diatonic kokles (Krasnopjorova-Ķirpja diatoniskās kokles), the concert kokles (koncertkokles), and the 13-stringed Linauts-Dravnieks-Jansons kokles (Linauta-Dravnieka-Jansona kokles). The concert kokles and the 15-stringed kokles were designed in Latvia during the 1940s to 1960s. The 13-stringed kokles were created by members of the Latvian American community in the 1960s.

In the Kurzeme region of Latvia, traditional kokles are usually smaller and lack a "wing," but they often have more detailed carvings and decorations. These kokles typically have fewer strings than those from the Latgale region. For example, those in western Kurzeme and Selonia usually have 5 to 6 strings, while those in the Suiti area have 7, 8, or 9 strings.

On May 17, 2015, during Latvia’s presidency of the Council of the European Union, a Kurzeme kokle made by craftsman Jānis Rozenbergs was given to the Musical Instruments Museum in Brussels.

In the largely Catholic Latgale region, kokles are often built with a "wing," a part that extends beyond the pegs. This wing helps strengthen the sound of the instrument and can also be used as a handrest. Estonian researcher Igor Tõnurist suggests the wing may have been developed before the 14th century for a similar instrument called the Baltic psaltery in areas like Pskov and Novgorod. Later, the wing was adopted by neighboring groups, such as the Setos, Vepsians, and Latgalians. Compared to Kurzeme kokles, Latgale kokles are larger, heavier, and have more strings (sometimes up to 12). They also have simpler decorations.

In the Augšzeme–Vidzeme region, both types of kokles, as well as hybrid models (such as kokles with small wings), were made.

At the end of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century, kokles traditions were influenced by Western zithers from Germany and other Central European countries. This led to the creation of zither kokles, which have larger cases, steel tuning pins, and more strings (17 to 30).

The first large "concert kokle" with 25 strings and a range of three-and-a-half octaves was built in 1951 by Romāns Ķirpis for the soloist of a Latvian folk music orchestra, Helēna Kļava-Birgmeistere. This model was the first to include devices for changing string pitches to adjust keys. A few years later, concert kokles saw new design improvements, and these changes spread to music schools and amateur groups in Latvia.

For many years, concert kokles were made at the Riga Musical Instrument Factory using leftover materials from piano production. After Latvia regained independence, the factory closed, and there were no specialized kokle makers until the mid-1990s. At that time, Imants Robežnieks, who had previously worked at the factory, began making and repairing kokles again after receiving many requests from players. Since then, he has been the only professional maker of concert kokles in Latvia.

In mythology

Valdis Muktupāvels considers kokles to be the most important Latvian instrument for society and the economy. In myths, kokles may be connected to the sun and sky, as they are sometimes called "Kokles of Dievs" (Dieva kokles) or "golden kokles" (zelta kokles). Traditionally, sun designs were carved on the flat part of the instrument. Kokles, playing kokles (koklēšana), and kokles players (koklētāji) are mentioned in 274 Latvian dainas. Mythological kokles players include Jānis [lv] and other unnamed sons of Dievs, as well as Saule, who is said to play kokles while sitting in the Austras koks.

In modern music

In the 1930s and 1940s, during the first kokles revival, new music inspired by folk traditions and orchestral versions of folk songs began to appear. However, it was only recently that kokles music expanded beyond traditional folk styles. Examples include the experimental post-folk band Iļģi, the electronic folk collaboration between Biruta Ozoliņa and DJ Monsta, Laima Jansone’s free improvisations and jazz fusion in the project "Zarbugans," and the heavier folk metal sound of Skyforger, which includes kokles accompaniment.

In 2002, record label Upe released a double CD by ethnomusicologist Valdis Muktupāvels titled "Kokles." The first disc, "Muktukokles," includes nine original kokles compositions by Muktupāvels, two arrangements of traditional songs with other instruments (sarod, tambura, and tabla), and vocals by Rūta Muktupāvela. The second disc, "Tradicionālās kokles," features 24 traditional tunes and dance melodies from Kurzeme, Suiti, and Latgale regions.

In 2016, record label Lauska released a CD titled Trejdeviņi koklētāji (Thrice-Nine Kokles Players), which includes performances by well-known Latvian kokles players (such as Valdis Muktupāvels, Laima Jansone, Biruta Ozoliņa, and Ansis Jansons), Baltic psaltery players from Estonia and Finland, and Latvian concert kokles ensembles. The collection includes 13 compositions ranging from traditional styles to ethno-jazz and ethno-baroque genres. A bilingual Latvian-English booklet was included, providing information about the musicians, their compositions, and a brief history of kokles.