String instrument

Some string instruments

Inmusical instrument classification,string instrumentsorchordophones,aremusical instrumentsthat produce sound fromvibrating stringswhen a performer plays or sounds the strings in some manner.

Musicians play some string instruments, likeguitars,by plucking thestringswith their fingers or aplectrum (pick),and others by hitting the strings with a light wooden hammer or by rubbing the strings with abow,likeviolins.In somekeyboardinstruments, such as theharpsichord,the musician presses a key that plucks the string. Other musical instruments generate sound by striking the string.

With bowed instruments, the player pulls a rosined horsehair bow across the strings, causing them to vibrate. With ahurdy-gurdy,the musician cranks a wheel whose rosined edge touches the strings.

Bowed instruments include thestring sectioninstruments of theorchestrainWestern classical music(violin,viola,celloanddouble bass) and a number of other instruments (e.g.,violsandgambasused inearly musicfrom theBaroque musicera andfiddlesused in many types offolk music). All of the bowed string instruments can also be plucked with the fingers, a technique called "pizzicato".A wide variety of techniques are used to sound notes on theelectric guitar,including plucking with the fingernails or a plectrum, strumming and even "tapping"on the fingerboard and usingfeedbackfrom a loud,distortedguitar amplifierto produce a sustained sound.

Some string instruments are mainly plucked, such as theharpand theelectric bass.Other examples include thesitar,rebab,banjo,mandolin,ukulele,andbouzouki.

In theHornbostel–Sachsscheme ofmusical instrument classification,used inorganology,string instruments are called chordophones. According toSachs,

Chordophones are instruments with strings. The strings may be struck with sticks, plucked with the bare fingers or a plectrum, bowed or (in the Aeolian harp, for instance) sounded by wind. The confusing plenitude of stringed instruments can be reduced to four fundamental type: zithers, lutes, lyres, and harps.

In most string instruments, the vibrations are transmitted to the body of the instrument, which often incorporates some sort of hollow or enclosed area. The body of the instrument also vibrates, along with the air inside it. The vibration of the body of the instrument and the enclosed hollow or chamber make the vibration of the string more audible to the performer and audience. The body of most string instruments is hollow, in order to have better sound projection. Some, however—such aselectric guitarand other instruments that rely on electronic amplification—may have a solid wood body.

Classification

Inmusicology,string instruments are known as chordophones. It is one of the five main divisions of instruments in theHornbostel–Sachsscheme ofmusical instrument classification.

Hornbostel–Sachs divides chordophones into two main groups: instruments without aresonatoras an integral part of the instrument (which have the classification number 31, also known as 'simple'); and instruments with such a resonator (which have the classification number 32, also known as 'composite'). Most western instruments fall into the second group, but thepianoandharpsichordfall into the first. Hornbostel and Sachs' criterion for determining which sub-group an instrument falls into is that if the resonator can be removed without destroying the instrument, then it is classified as 31. The idea that the piano's casing, which acts as a resonator, could be removed without destroying the instrument, may seem odd, but if the action and strings of the piano were taken out of its box, it could still be played. This is not true of theviolin,because the string passes over a bridge located on the resonator box, so removing the resonator would mean the strings had no tension.

Curt Sachs also broke chordophones into four basic subcategories, "zithers, lutes, lyres and harps."

• Zithersincludestick zitherssuch as themusical bow,tube zitherswith a tube as the resonator such as thevaliha,raft zithersin which tube zithers are tied into a single "raft",board zithersincludingclavichordandpianoanddulcimer,andlong zithers(described as combination of half-tube and board zithers) includingSeandGuzhengfamilies.
• Lutesare stringed musical instruments that include a body and "a neck which serves both as a handle and as a means of stretching the strings beyond the body."The lute family includes not onlyshort-necked plucked lutessuch as thelute,oud,pipa,guitar,citole,gittern,mandore,rubab,andgambusandlong-necked plucked lutessuch as thetanbura,swarabat,bağlama,bouzouki,veena,theorbo,archlute,pandura,sitar,setar,but alsobowed instrumentssuch as theYaylı tambur,rebab,erhu,and entire family ofviolsandviolins.
• Thelyrehas two arms, which have a "yoke" or crossbar connecting them, and strings between the crossbar and the soundboard.Sachs divided this into thebox lyresuch as the Greekkitharaand thebowl lyrewhich used a bowl on its side with skinsoundboard.
• Theharpwhich has strings vertical to the soundboard.

Earliest string instruments

Bow Harp or Harp Lute, West Africa

Musical bowshave survived in some parts of Africa.

Dating to aroundc. 13,000 BC,a cave painting in theTrois Frèrescave in France depicts what some believe is amusical bow,a hunting bow used as a single-stringed musical instrument.From the musical bow, families of stringed instruments developed; since each string played a single note, adding strings added new notes, creatingbow harps,harpsandlyres.In turn, this led to being able to playdyadsandchords.Another innovation occurred when the bow harp was straightened out and abridgeused to lift the strings off thestick-neck,creating the lute.

This picture of musical bow to harp bow is theory and has been contested. In 1965 Franz Jahnel wrote his criticism stating that the early ancestors of plucked instruments are not currently known.He felt that the harp bow was a long cry from the sophistication of the civilizations of western Asia in 4000 BC that took the primitive technology and created "technically and artistically well-made harps, lyres, citharas, and lutes."

Archaeological digs have identified some of the earliest stringed instruments inAncient Mesopotamiansites, like thelyres of Ur,which include artifacts over three thousand years old. The development oflyreinstruments required thetechnologyto create a tuning mechanism to tighten and loosen the string tension. Lyres with wooden bodies and strings used for plucking or playing with a bow represent key instruments that point towards later harps and violin-type instruments; moreover, Indian instruments from 500 BC have been discovered with anything from 7 to 21 strings. In Vietnam, a 2,000 year old, singularly stringed instrument made of deer antler was also discovered.

Lutes

See:History of lute-family instruments

Hellenistic banquet scene from the 1st century AD,Hadda,Gandhara.Lute player far right.

Spanishsteleof a boy with apandura.

Musicologists have put forth examples of that 4th-century BC technology, looking at engraved images that have survived. The earliest image showing a lute-like instrument came fromMesopotamiaprior to 3000 BC.Acylinder sealfromc. 3100 BCor earlier (now in the possession of the British Museum) shows what is thought to be a woman playing a stick lute.From the surviving images, theorists have categorized the Mesopotamian lutes, showing that they developed into a long variety and a short.The line of long lutes may have developed into thetambursandpandura.The line of short lutes was further developed to the east of Mesopotamia, inBactria,Gandhara,and Northwest India, and shown in sculpture from the 2nd century BC through the 4th or 5th centuries AD.

During themedieval era,instrument development varied in different regions of the world. Middle Eastern rebecs represented breakthroughs in terms of shape and strings, with a half a pear shape using three strings. Early versions of the violin and fiddle, by comparison, emerged in Europe through instruments such as thegittern,a four-stringed precursor to the guitar, and basiclutes.These instruments typically used catgut (animal intestine) and other materials, including silk, for their strings.

Renaissance to modern

Viol,fideland rebec (from left to right) on display atAmakusa Korejiyokanin Amakusa, Kumamoto, Japan

String instrument design was refined during theRenaissanceand into theBaroque period(1600–1750) of musical history.Violinsandguitarsbecame more consistent in design and were roughly similar to acoustic guitars of the 2000s. The violins of theRenaissancefeatured intricate woodwork and stringing, while more elaborate bass instruments such as the bandora were produced alongside quill-pluckedcitterns,and Spanish body guitars.

In the 19th century, string instruments were made more widely available through mass production, with wood string instruments a key part of orchestras – cellos, violas, and upright basses, for example, were now standard instruments for chamber ensembles and smaller orchestras. At the same time, the 19th-century guitar became more typically associated with six-string models, rather than traditional five-string versions.

Major changes to string instruments in the 20th century primarily involved innovations in electronicinstrument amplificationand electronic music – electric violins were available by the 1920s and were an important part of emerging jazz music trends in the United States. Theacoustic guitarwas widely used inbluesandjazz,but as an acoustic instrument, it was not loud enough to be a solo instrument, so these genres mostly used it as anaccompanimentrhythm sectioninstrument. Inbig bandsof the 1920s, theacoustic guitarplayed backing chords, but it was not loud enough to play solos like thesaxophoneandtrumpet.The development of guitar amplifiers, which contained apower amplifierand aloudspeakerin awooden cabinet,letjazz guitaristsplay solos and be heard over a big band. The development of theelectric guitarprovided guitarists with an instrument that was built to connect to guitar amplifiers. Electric guitars havemagnetic pickups,volume control knobsand an output jack.

In the 1960s, larger, more powerful guitar amplifiers were developed, called "stacks". These powerful amplifiers enabled guitarists to perform in rock bands that played in large venues such as stadiums and outdoor music festivals (e.g.,Woodstock Music Festival). Along with the development of guitar amplifiers, a large range of electroniceffects units,many in smallstompboxpedals were introduced in the 1960s and 1970s, such asfuzz pedals,flangers,andphasersenabling performers to create unique new sounds during thepsychedelic rockera. Breakthroughs in electric guitar and basses technologies and playing styles enabled major breakthroughs in pop and rock music in the 1960s and 1970s. The distinctive sound of the amplifiedelectric guitarwas the centerpiece of new genres of music such asblues rockandjazz-rock fusion.The sonic power of the loudly amplified, highlydistortedelectric guitar was the key element of the earlyheavy metal music,with the distorted guitar being used inlead guitarroles, and withpower chordsas arhythm guitar.

The ongoing use of electronic amplification and effects units in string instruments, ranging from traditional instruments like the violin to the new electric guitar, added variety tocontemporary classical musicperformances, and enabled experimentation in the dynamic and timbre (tone colour) range of orchestras, bands, and solo performances.

Types of instruments

A woman playing some kind of string instrument while riding a horse,Tang dynasty

Construction

String instruments can be divided into three groups:

Lutes

Instruments that support the strings via aneckand a bout (gourd), for instance a guitar, violin, orsaz

Harps

Instruments that contain the strings within a frame

Zithers

Instruments that have the strings mounted on a body,frameortube,such as aguqin,cimbalom,autoharp,harpsichord,piano,orvaliha

It is also possible to divide the instruments into categories focused on how the instrument is played.

Playing techniques

Further information:List of string instruments

All string instruments produce sound from one or morevibrating strings,transferred to the air by the body of the instrument (or by a pickup in the case of electronically amplified instruments). They are usually categorised by the technique used to make the strings vibrate (or by the primary technique, in the case of instruments where more than one may apply.) The three most common techniques are plucking, bowing, and striking. An important difference between bowing and plucking is that in the former the phenomenon is periodic so that the overtones are kept in a strictly harmonic relationship to the fundamental.

Plucking

Main article:Plucked string instrument

Plucking is a method of playing on instruments such as theveena,banjo,ukulele,guitar, harp,lute,mandolin,oud,andsitar,using either a finger, thumb, or quills (now plastic plectra) to pluck the strings.

Instruments normally played by bowing (see below) may also be plucked, a technique referred to by the Italian termpizzicato.

Bowing

Main article:Bowed string instrument

Bowing(Italian:arco) is a method used in some string instruments, including theviolin,viola,cello,and thedouble bass(of theviolin family), and the oldviolfamily. Thebowconsists of a stick with a "ribbon" of parallel horse tail hairs stretched between its ends. The hair is coated withrosinso it can grip the string; moving the hair across a string causes astick-slip phenomenon,making the stringvibrate,and prompting the instrument to emit sound. Darker grades of rosin grip well in cool, dry climates, but may be too sticky in warmer, more humid weather. Violin and viola players generally use harder, lighter-colored rosin than players of lower-pitched instruments, who tend to favor darker, softer rosin.

Theravanahathais one of the oldest string instruments. Ancestors of the modern bowed string instruments are therebabof the Islamic Empires, the Persiankamancheand theByzantine lira.Other bowed instruments are therebec,hardingfele,nyckelharpa,kokyū,erhu,igil,sarangi,morin khuur,andK'ni.Thehurdy-gurdyis bowed by a wheel. Rarely, theguitar has been played with a bow(rather than plucked) for unique effects.

Striking

The third common method of sound production in stringed instruments is to strike the string. The piano andhammered dulcimeruse this method of sound production. Even though the piano strikes the strings, the use of felt hammers means that the sound that is produced can nevertheless be mellow and rounded, in contrast to the sharp attack produced when a very hard hammer strikes the strings.

Violin family string instrument players are occasionally instructed to strike the string with the stick of the bow, a technique calledcol legno.This yields a percussive sound along with the pitch of the note. A well-known use ofcol legnofor orchestral strings isGustav Holst's "Mars" movement fromThe Planetssuite.

Other methods

Theaeolian harpemploys a very unusual method of sound production: the strings are excited by the movement of the air.

Some instruments that have strings have an attachedkeyboardthat the player presses keys on to trigger a mechanism that sounds the strings, instead of directly manipulating the strings. These include thepiano,theclavichord,and the harpsichord. With thesekeyboard instruments,strings are occasionally plucked or bowed by hand. Moderncomposerssuch asHenry Cowellwrote music that requires that the player reach inside the piano and pluck the strings directly, "bow" them with bow hair wrapped around the strings, or play them by rolling the bell of abrass instrumentsuch as atromboneon the array of strings. However, these are relatively rarely used special techniques.

Other keyed string instruments, small enough for a strolling musician to play, include the pluckedautoharp,the bowednyckelharpa,and the hurdy-gurdy, which is played by cranking a rosined wheel.

Steel-stringed instruments (such as the guitar, bass, violin, etc.) can be played using a magnetic field. AnE-Bowis a small hand-held battery-powered device that magnetically excites the strings of an electric string instrument to provide a sustained, singing tone reminiscent of a held bowed violin note.

Third bridgeis a plucking method where the playerfretsa string and strikes the side opposite the bridge. The technique is mainly used on electric instruments because these have a pickup that amplifies only the local string vibration. It is possible on acoustic instruments as well, but less effective. For instance, a player might press on the seventhfreton a guitar and pluck it at the head side to make a tone resonate at the opposing side. On electric instruments, this technique generates multitone sounds reminiscent of a clock or bell.

Electric string instruments, such as theelectric guitar,can also be played without touching the strings by usingaudio feedback.When an electric guitar is plugged into a loud, powerful guitar amplifier with aloudspeakerand a high level ofdistortionis intentionally used, the guitar produces sustained high-pitched sounds. By changing the proximity of the guitar to the speaker, the guitarist can produce sounds that cannot be produced with standard plucking and picking techniques. This technique was popularized byJimi Hendrixand others in the 1960s. It was widely used inpsychedelic rockandheavy metal music.

Changing the pitch of a vibrating string

Main article:Mersenne's laws

There are three ways to change the pitch of avibrating string.String instruments are tuned by varying a string's tension because adjusting length or mass per unit length is impractical. Instruments with afingerboardare then played by adjusting the length of the vibrating portion of the strings. The following observations all apply to a string that is infinitely flexible (a theoretical assumption, because in practical applications, strings are not infinitely flexible) strung between two fixed supports. Real strings have finite curvature at the bridge and nut, and the bridge, because of its motion, is not exactly nodes of vibration. Hence the following statements about proportionality are approximations.

Length

String fingering is proportional and not fixed,as on the piano

Pitch can be adjusted by varying thelengthof the string.A longer string results in a lower pitch, while a shorter string results in a higher pitch. Aconcert harphas pedals that cause a hard object to make contact with a string to shorten its vibrating length during a performance.The frequency is inversely proportional to the length:

$f\propto {\frac {1}{l}}$

A string twice as long produces a tone of half the frequency (one octave lower).

Tension

Pitch can be adjusted by varying thetensionof the string. A string with less tension (looser) results in a lower pitch, while a string with greater tension (tighter) results in a higher pitch. Pushing a pedal on apedal steel guitarraises the pitch of certain strings by increasing tension on them (stretching) through a mechanical linkage; release of the pedal returns the pitch to the original. Knee levers on the instrument can lower a pitch by releasing (and restoring) tension in the same way.A homemadewashtub bassmade out of a length of rope, a broomstick and a washtub can produce different pitches by increasing the tension on the rope (producing a higher pitch) or reducing the tension (producing a lower pitch). The frequency is proportional to the square root of the tension:

$f\propto {\sqrt {T}}$

Linear density

The pitch of a string can also be varied by changing thelinear density(mass per unit length) of the string. In practical applications, such as withdouble bassstrings or basspianostrings, extra weight is added to strings by winding them with metal. A string with a heavier metal winding produces a lower pitch than a string of equal length without a metal winding. This can be seen on a 2016-era set of gut strings for double bass. The higher-pitched G string is often made of synthetic material, or sometimes animal intestine, with no metal wrapping. To enable the low E string to produce a much lower pitch with a string of the same length, it is wrapped with many wrappings of thin metal wire. This adds to its mass without making it too stiff. The frequency is inversely proportional to the square root of the linear density:

$f\propto {1 \over {\sqrt {\mu }}}$

Given two strings of equal length and tension, the string with higher mass per unit length produces the lower pitch.

String length or scale length

The length of the string fromnuttobridgeon bowed or plucked instruments ultimately determines the distance between different notes on the instrument. For example, a double bass with its low range needs ascale lengthof around 42 inches (110 cm), whilst a violin scale is only about 13 inches (33 cm). On the shorter scale of the violin, the left hand may easily reach a range of slightly more than two octaves withoutshifting position,while on the bass' longer scale, a single octave or a ninth is reachable in lower positions.

Contact points along the string

The strings of apiano

In bowed instruments, the bow is normally placed perpendicularly to the string, at a point halfway between the end of the fingerboard and the bridge. However, different bow placements can be selected to changetimbre.Application of the bow close to the bridge (known assul ponticello) produces an intense, sometimes harsh sound, which acoustically emphasizes the upperharmonics.Bowing above the fingerboard (sul tasto) produces a purer tone with less overtone strength, emphasizing thefundamental,also known asflautando,since it sounds less reedy and more flute-like.

Bowed instruments pose a challenge to instrument builders, as compared with instruments that are only plucked (e.g., guitar), because on bowed instruments, the musician must be able to play one string at a time if they wish. As such, a bowed instrument must have a curved bridge that makes the "outer" strings lower in height than the "inner" strings. With such a curved bridge, the player can select one string at a time to play. On guitars andlutes,the bridge can be flat, because the strings are played by plucking them with the fingers, fingernails or a pick; by moving the fingers or pick to different positions, the player can play different strings. On bowed instruments, the need to play strings individually with the bow also limits the number of strings to about six or seven strings; with more strings, it would be impossible to select individual strings to bow. (Note: bowed strings can also play two bowed notes on two different strings at the same time, a technique called adouble stop.) Indeed, on the orchestralstring sectioninstruments, four strings are the norm, with the exception of five strings used on somedouble basses.In contrast, with stringed keyboard instruments, 88 courses are used on apiano,and even though these strings are arranged on a flat bridge, the mechanism can play any of the notes individually.

Similar timbral distinctions are also possible with plucked string instruments by selecting an appropriate plucking point, although the difference is perhaps more subtle.

In keyboard instruments, the contact point along the string (whether this be hammer, tangent, or plectrum) is a choice made by the instrument designer. Builders use a combination of experience and acoustic theory to establish the right set of contact points.

In harpsichords, often there are two sets of strings of equal length. These "choirs" usually differ in their plucking points. One choir has a "normal" plucking point, producing a canonical harpsichord sound; the other has a plucking point close to the bridge, producing a reedier "nasal" sound rich in upper harmonics.

Production of multiple notes

Arab string musical instrument on display at theDebbane Palacemuseum,Lebanon.

A single string at a certain tension and length only produces one note. To produce multiple notes, string instruments use one of two methods. One is to add enough strings to cover the required range of different notes (e.g., as with thepiano,which has sets of 88 strings to enable the performer to play 88 different notes). The other is to provide a way tostopthe strings along their length to shorten the part that vibrates, which is the method used in guitar and violin family instruments to produce different notes from the same string. The piano and harp represent the first method, where each note on the instrument has its own string orcourseof multiple strings tuned to the same note. (Many notes on a piano are strung with a "choir" of three strings tuned alike, to increase the volume.) A guitar represents the second method—the player's fingers push the string against the fingerboard so that the string is pressed firmly against a metal fret. Pressing the string against a fret while plucking or strumming it shortens the vibrating part and thus produces a different note.

Some zithers combine stoppable (melody) strings with a greater number of "open" harmony or chord strings. On instruments with stoppable strings, such as the violin or guitar, the player can shorten the vibrating length of the string, using their fingers directly (or more rarely through some mechanical device, as in thenyckelharpaand the hurdy-gurdy). Such instruments usually have a fingerboard attached to the neck of the instrument, that provides a hard flat surface the player can stop the strings against. On some string instruments, the fingerboard hasfrets,raised ridges perpendicular to the strings, that stop the string at precise intervals, in which case the fingerboard is also called afretboard.

Moving frets during performance is usually impractical. The bridges of akoto,on the other hand, may be moved by the player occasionally in the course of a single piece of music. Many modern Western harps include levers, either directly moved by fingers (on Celtic harps) or controlled by foot pedals (on orchestral harps), to raise the pitch of individual strings by a fixed amount. The Middle Eastern zither, theqanun,is equipped with small levers calledmandalthat let each course of multiple strings be incrementally retuned "on the fly" while the instrument is being played. These levers raise or lower the pitch of the string course by a microtone, less than a half step.

Sympathetic strings

Main article:Sympathetic string

Some instruments are employed withsympathetic strings—which are additional strings not meant to be plucked. These stringsresonatewith the played notes, creating additional tones. Sympathetic strings vibrate naturally when various intervals, such as theunisonsor theoctavesof the notes of the sympathetic strings are plucked, bowed or struck. This system is used on thesarangi,thegrand piano,thehardanger fiddleand therubab.

Sound production

Acoustic instruments

See also:Musical acoustics

The Moroccanloutaruses a soundboard made of goatskin.

A vibrating string strung on a very thick log, as a hypothetical example, would make only a very quiet sound, so string instruments are usually constructed in such a way that the vibrating string is coupled to a hollow resonating chamber, asoundboard,or both. On the violin, for example, the four strings pass over a thin wooden bridge resting on a hollow box (the body of the violin). The normal force applied to the body from the strings is supported in part by a small cylinder of wood called thesoundpost.The violin body also has two "f-holes" carved on the top. The strings' vibrations are distributed via the bridge and soundpost to all surfaces of the instrument, and are thus made louder by matching of theacoustic impedance.The correct technical explanation is that they allow a better match to theacoustic impedanceof the air.

It is sometimes said that the sounding board or soundbox "amplifies" the sound of the strings. In reality, no power amplification occurs, because all of theenergyto producesoundcomes from the vibrating string. The mechanism is that the sounding board of the instrument provides a larger surface area to createsound wavesthan that of the string and therefore acts as a matching element between the acoustic impedance of the string and that of the surrounding air. A larger vibrating surface can sometimes produce better matching; especially at lower frequencies.

Alllutetype instruments traditionally have a bridge, which holds the string at the proper action height from the fret/finger board at one end of the strings. On acoustic instruments, the bridge performs an equally important function of transmitting string energy into the "sound box" of the instrument, thereby increasing the sound volume. The specific design, and materials used in the construction of the bridge of an instrument, have a dramatic impact upon both the sound and responsiveness of the instrument.

Achieving a tonal characteristic that is effective and pleasing to the player's and listener's ear is something of an art and craft, as well as a science, and the makers of string instruments often seek very high quality woods to this end, particularlyspruce(chosen for its lightness, strength and flexibility) andmaple(a very hard wood). Spruce is used for the sounding boards of instruments from the violin to the piano. Instruments such as the banjo use a drum, covered in natural or synthetic skin as their soundboard.

Acoustic instruments can also be made out of artificial materials, such ascarbon fiberandfiberglass(particularly the larger, lower-pitched instruments, such as cellos and basses).

In the early 20th century, theStroh violinused a diaphragm-typeresonatorand a metal horn to project the string sound, much like early mechanical gramophones. Its use declined beginning about 1920, as electronic amplification throughpower amplifiersandloudspeakerswas developed and came into use. String instrument players can electronically amplify their instruments by connecting them to aPA systemor aguitar amplifier.

Electronic amplification

Most string instruments can be fitted withpiezoelectricor magneticpickupsto convert the string's vibrations into an electrical signal that is amplified and then converted back into sound by loudspeakers. Some players attach a pickup to their traditional string instrument to "electrify" it. Another option is to use a solid-bodied instrument, which reduces unwantedfeedbackhowls or squeals.

Amplified string instruments can be much louder than their acoustic counterparts, so musicians can play them in relatively loud rock, blues, and jazz ensembles. Amplified instruments can also have their amplified tone modified by using electronic effects such as distortion, reverb, orwah-wah.

Bass-register string instruments such as the double bass and the electric bass are amplified withbass instrument amplifiersthat are designed to reproduce low-frequency sounds. To modify the tone of amplified bass instruments, a range of electronicbass effectsare available, such as distortion and chorus.

Symphonic strings

The string instruments usually used in theorchestra,and often called the "symphonic strings" orstring sectionare:

• Violins(divided into two sections—first violins and second violins; these sections play exactly the same instruments; the difference is that the first violins play higher-register lines and the second violins play lower-register parts,accompanimentparts orcounter-melodies)
• Violas
• Cellos
• Double basses

When orchestral instrumentation specifies "strings", it often means this combination of string parts. Orchestral works rarely omit any of these string parts, but often include additional string instruments, especially theconcert harpand piano. In theBaroque orchestrafrom the 1600s–1750 (or with modern groups playingearly music) harpsichord is almost always used to play thebasso continuopart (the written-outbass lineand improvised chords), and often atheorboorluteor apipe organ.In some classical music, such as thestring quartet,the double bass is not typically used; the cello plays the bass role in this literature.

See also

• "Essay on the fingering of the violoncello and on the conduct of the bow"
• List of string instruments
• Luthier(maker of stringed instruments)
• Musical acoustics
• Ravanahatha
• String instrument extended technique
• String instrument repertoire
• String orchestra
• Stringed instrument tunings

External links

• Savart JournalArchived2021-04-21 at theWayback Machine,an online resource published in collaboration with the Guild of American Luthiers.
• The physics of the bowed string
• Instruments in Depth: The Viola,an online feature presented by Bloomingdale School of Music (2010)
• Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911)."Stringed instruments".Encyclopædia Britannica(11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
• A Brief History of String InstrumentsArchived2016-03-03 at theWayback Machine