Futfök

The futfök is a Gnomish bass instrument operated with the feet. The warm, low, booming sound of the futfök is a characteristic element of gnomish music.
A futfök consists of a large wooden cone, nearly four feet wide at its base, with a short neck protruding out of the top, out of which radiate thick gut strings that stretch nearly to the bottom of the instrument. Around the base of the instrument are pedals that operate felt-wrapped wooden mallets that hit the strings. The entire instrument is roughly five feet tall, and too heavy for all but the strongest gnome to carry more than a few steps without help. When the futfök was first invented in the eighteenth century of the Age of Integrity, it was built directly into the stage of the concert hall or venue. Starting in the early Age of Complexity, modern futföks began to be built with five short legs protruding from the base with wheels attached to them. The wheels are attached to locking mechanisms that keep them in place during a stationary performance. (Since the advent of wheels, a few gnomish marching bands have tried to adapt the futfök, but it has thus far proven too unwieldy to adequately replace the aychifut.)
The futfök is an incredibly difficult and physically taxing instrument to play solo, unless its pedals are reconfigured so that the three or four needed to play a simple bass line are all reachable by one seated gnome. (An adept futfök player, also known as a futföker, must have the technical knowledge to rewire and reconfigure the pedals for the correct setup.)
More frequently, multiple members of an ensemble will be seated next to the futfök, while simultaneously singing and/or playing a handheld instrument. In a traditional gnomish root rock band, a futfök sits at the center-back of the stage, shared between the rhythm melodeon player and the tin-whistler. In flowerviolence, the futfök is considered a percussion instrument, and typically positioned behind the sets of tabors and to the left of the lion's roar.

Item type

Musical Instrument