Strings
Strings
Strings comprise a group of ancient instruments used all over the world that produce sound by the vibration of strings. They are generally plucked, bowed, or strummed, and both the strings themselves and the bodies of the instruments are traditionally made of various types of wood and animal skin, hair, and sinew. At Gandharva Loka we try to focus on the more diverse string instruments of the world such as the sitar and erhu, but are well known for our diverse ukulele and travel guitar selection as well.
-
Autoharp
The Autoharp belongs to the Zither family, but has a sophisticated mechanism which makes it an easy string instrument to learn. In the beginning it might seem unusual to play, but soon proves to be simple. One hand operates with the help of a system of buttons and a number of buffers. So when playing […]
Read more... -
Balalika
The balalaika is a Russian instrument theorized to have been developed from certain Central Asian instruments. The first recorded mention of it is in a police file from the 17th century, and early illustrations from the 17th and 18th century portray it with anywhere from two to six strings. Nowadays, it generally has 3 strings, […]
Read more... -
Banjo
Instruments that lead to the development of the banjo were first fashioned by African slaves as equivalents of similar African instruments. Today, the banjo is most often associated with bluegrass, country, and Irish music. They can have 4 to 6 strings, and the body is fashioned of wood, with a piece of skin or plastic […]
Read more... -
-
Berimbau
The berimbau is a single-string Brazilian percussion instrument, a musical bow made from the biriba tree. Its origin is generally accepted as being Africa, as very similar instruments are played in parts of southern Africa. The berimbau was eventually incorporated into the practice of the Afro-Brazilian martial art capoeira, where it commands how the capoeiristas […]
Read more... -
Bouzouki
Brought to Greece by immigrants from Asia Minor in the early 20th century, the bouzouki quickly became a central feature in Greek music, and about 50 years later, it made its way to Ireland, where it enjoys similar popularity. The main physical differences between the two models are the more rounded shape and flat back […]
Read more... -
Charango
The charango belongs to the family of plucked instruments. It was developed in the 16th century from the chitarra battente of the Spanish and Portuguese conquerors. Originally, the dried shell of an armadillo was used as the resonating body; nowadays it is often replaced by a wooden body. The construction of a Charango is quite […]
Read more... -
Cimbalom
A concert hammered dulcimer from Eastern Europe, . These instruments are larger and more complex than the average hammered dulcimer and offer and incredible range of pitch.
Read more... -
Domra
The design of the domra was patented and introduced into the Russian orchestra in 1896. It generally has three strings, although four stringed models also exist, and is played with a plectrum. Most often, it is used to play lead melody in balalaika ensembles.
Read more... -
Dotara
An ancient instrument from India which is used more as a percussive accompaniment by wandering holy men. The single stringed form is called an ektara, and the double stringed form is called a dotara.
Read more... -
East Asian Zither (Gu Zheng, Dan Tranh, Koto)
East Asian zithers are large trapezoids, often with a slightly arched surface. The resonating box is made from wood and has several movable bridges. In order to tune the instrument, the strings are first tuned to the same tension, and then these bridges are moved into the appropriate position. Today, they generally have between 12 […]
Read more... -
Ektara
An ancient instrument from India which is used more as a percussive accompaniment by wandering holy men. The single stringed form is called an ektara, and the double stringed form is called a dotara.
Read more... -
Erhu
The Erhu is also known as the “Chinese violin”, and is found in almost every Chinese orchestra, but is also played in small ensembles or as a solo instrument, as it has a exceptional range of tonal expression. The construction is lightweight and delicate. The small resonating chamber is hexagonal and covered with skin (usually […]
Read more... -
Esraj & Dilruba
The esraj is mostly played in Bengal, Bangladesh and central India, and has been for about 200 years. In the north it is known as the Dilruba, whose construction is also slightly different. The dilruba is bigger and has a larger sound box, therefore the sound is louder and more sonorous. The esraj charms the […]
Read more... -
Gopichand
The gopichand is commonly used in Kirtan chanting, which is a Hindu devotional practice of singing the divine names and mantras in an ecstatic call and response format. Thus it is used by Sadhus, or wandering holy men. The gopichand is the most ancient form of stringed instrument found in the Eastern parts of India, […]
Read more... -
Guitar and Travel Guitar and Lap Guitar
Guitar-like instruments have been in use for over 5,000 years. The name guitar originates from the Spanish language (Guitarra) and was then transferred to German. It reaches back to the old Greek word Kithara which describes a lute instrument of Greek antiquity. Nowadays, it is one of the world's most widespread and recognizable instruments. Certainly […]
Read more... -
Guitar Banjo
The Guitarbanjo comes from Africa, and became a very popular string instrument in America. It is easy to play and suitable for many music styles. Therefore various sizes and types developed like the Guitarbanjo, the five-stringed Banjo, Ukulelebanjo, Mandolinbanjo and others. The Guitarbanjo has six strings and a large sound box made from metal. Guitarists […]
Read more... -
Hammered Dulcimer
This instrument is found in many forms across Eurasia. These include the large Hungarian cymbalom, the Chinese yanqin, the Indian santoor, and the Middle Eastern santoor. It is the forerunner of the piano, and anyone who has looked inside a piano will likely notice the similarities in construction. In the case of the hammered dulcimer, […]
Read more... -
Harp
The harp is one of the oldest musical instruments known to mankind, and has been included in innumerable myths and probably originally came from the Mediterranean region, spreading out from there into Europe, Asia, and Africa. It is generally tuned in a simple major scale, often starting with F or C, and many models include […]
Read more... -
Kantele
In its classical form, the Finnish Kantele consists of a wooden resonating body in the shape of a wing. The body is made from a specially crafted Birch trunk. Five strings from horse hair tuned in pentatonic scale cover the body. Modern Kanteles can have up to 36 metal strings and offer a system of […]
Read more... -
Kinnor
Kinnor is the hebrew name for an ancient Israelite lyre mentioned in the Bible and commonly translated as 'harp'. Although uncertain, historians of musical instruments say it is similar to the Greek cithara, which was in use among the Semitic peoples. A symbolic representation of the kinnor appears on ancient Hebrew coins. The kinnor has […]
Read more... -
Kotamo
A combination of three instruments – the monochord, koto, and tambura, which comes with a stand to allow easy playing of all three.
Read more... -
Lyre
The lyre is an instrument that resembles a harp, and it is played mostly with one hand. It belongs to the family of stringed instruments where the strings are not plucked like a harp, but the fingers rather pass gently over them. It is generally regarded as having come from the Mediterranean area, like the […]
Read more... -
Mandola
As the name suggests, the mandola is related to the mandolin, like the viola to the violin. The relations in size and tuning definitely are the same as in the violin family. The mandola originates from the lute and has seen several changes of name and construction. Nowadays the mandola is not as popular as […]
Read more... -
Mandolin
Mandolins belong to the family of Guitar-like plucked instruments. Either they have a round body, as is traditional in Southern countries, or a flat one. The latter is quite common in Irish music. We offer both types: there are simple low budget instruments or models of high quality from various brands.
Read more... -
Monochord and Monolini
The Monochord was developed in Ancient Greece and was used to illustrate mathematical properties of musical pitch, most famously by Pythagoras. The name, meaning “one string” is slightly misleading, as they generally have two or more. If you slowly pass your hands alternately over the strings without a break, you get a long-lasting sound that […]
Read more... -
Morin Khuur
The Morin Khuur, also known by the name “Horse-head Fiddle”, is the most important musical instrument of Mongolia and considered a symbol of the nation. Its sound is described as expansive like the wind in the grasslands. It also imitates the neighing of the horses that are typical of this country. Therefore the scroll is […]
Read more... -
Mountain Dulcimer
The Appalachian, or mountain dulcimer, first appeared in the homes of Scottish immigrants in the Appalachian mountains. Beyond this, the etymology of the instrument is unclear, although many theories exist. It is considered one of the easiest stringed instruments to play. Generally, the technique is to lie it flat across the lap and pluck or […]
Read more... -
Oud
The Oud is an ancient pear-shaped stringed instrument commonly used in Greek, Byzantine, North African and Middle Eastern music. Construction of the oud is similar to that of the lute. The modern oud and the European lute both descend from a common ancestor via diverging paths but is readily distinguished by its lack of frets […]
Read more... -
Pipa
The Chinese Pipa belongs to the short neck lutes. Since its development in the Han Dynasty almost 2,000 years ago, it has became a popular solo and concert instrument. People unfamiliar with the instrument may be surprised by the weight when handling one for the first time, as it is solid rather than hollow. On […]
Read more... -
Psaltery
The psaltery likely originated somewhere in the Mediterranean around the time of the Greek empire, and the bowed version pictured above emerged in the 19th century. The strings are played between the pegs with a bow. The chromatic type has 20 strings with a scale from C´ to G´´. On the right side there are […]
Read more... -
Rabab
The rebab is a type of string instrument so named no later than the 8th century and spread via Islamic trading routes over much of North Africa, the Middle East, parts of Europe, and the Far East although it is particularly synonymous with Afganistan.
Read more... -
Santoor
The santoor is the earliest form of the hammered dulcimer, generally believed to have originated in Iran. In a slightly altered form, it is also a very prominant feature of Indian music, and can be found mentioned in early Hindu texts.
Read more... -
Sarangi
Famous for its incredible adaptability due to the flexible tuning and tonal range, the sarangi is a relatively small bowed instrument from India with three primary gut strings and 35-37 sympathetic metal strings and a wooden body with a skin head stretched over the resonating bowl.
Read more... -
Sarod
There are many theories surrounding the origin of this instrument. One is that it was adapted from an Afghan rabab after an Afghan musician came to India in the 18th century and became the court musician of a king. Another is that it is the combination of a veena, rubab, and a sursinger. In either […]
Read more... -
Semsemia
The Semsemia (also spelt Simsimiyya) is a plucked lyre from the Middle Eastern countries of Egypt, Jordan and Yemen. Traditionaliy played by the Bedouin eople as a social instrument, in Egypt the Semsemia is used to accompany song and dance and is known to be particularly synonymous with the cities of Port Said and Ismaïlia. […]
Read more... -
Setar
The setar originated in pre-Islamic Persia and is likely the inspiration behind the modern strum stick. Although it now has four strings, the name means "three string" (se – three, and tar – string), because up until the 18th century – when a fourth string was added by a prominent player – it did in fact have three […]
Read more... -
Shamisen
The shamisen is one of the most popular and widely played instruments of Japan. As is the case with several other instruments, this lute originates from Chinese string instruments, and began to be used in Japan at the end of the 16th century. The rather small resonating box is mostly covered with skin from cats […]
Read more... -
Sitar
The Western Hemisphere came into contact with the Indian Sitar via Beatles guitarist George Harrison, who studied under legendary sitarist Ravi Shankar. The Sitar emerged in its modern form in the 18th century during the Moghul empire. 6 or 7 main strings pass over the curved and movable frets while 11 to 13 resonating strings […]
Read more... -
Sound Cradle
The Sound Cradle is a modern therapeutic instrument. Either in lying or sitting position you can enjoy a remarkable sound experience. The solid semi-circular cradle bowl is covered with strings on the sides, 18 strings per side. It is constructed in such a way so as to be used as a cradle, a tunnel, a […]
Read more... -
Strum Stick
Essentially a modern version of the Iranian setar – a very simple and charming strummed instrument that is also easy to take with you on vacation!
Read more... -
Swardmandal
The swarmandal or Indian harp is an Indian zither that is today most commonly used as an accompanying instrument for vocal Hindustani classical music of North India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. The name combines swara (notes) and mandal (group), representing its ability to produce a large number of notes; it is also known popularly as Sur-mandal. […]
Read more... -
Tambura
A typical instrument in Indian classical music since approximately the 15th century is the tambura or tanpura. Similar in shape to the sitar, the tambura consists of a large round resonating body made from a gourd with a long hollow neck. Most often, the tambura has 4 strings, but models with 5 or even 6 […]
Read more... -
Tar
A Persian instrument that first appeared in its current form in the 18th century during the reign of the Ottoman Empire. The name means “string” (which is likely the root of the names of other instruments, such as the guitar and sitar). It is made from carved wood and lamb skin. The tar was also the […]
Read more... -
-
Ukulele
The ukulele is a Hawaiian instrument adapted from guitars brought to the islands by Portuguese immigrants. The name, which roughly translates to “hopping flea”, was possibly inspired by the quick movement of the fingers over the strings. It is considered an excellent instrument to begin learning to strum on, and has an exceptionally sweet and charming […]
Read more... -
Veena
There are various types of veena that differ in construction and sound. The most popular form is the Saraswati veena, named for the goddess with which it is associated, whose photo you can see above. The neck and resonating body of high quality are carved from one piece of Jackwood. The upper resonator serves rather […]
Read more...
Follow Us