String Instruments

Any of various devices or contrivances that can be used to produce sounds or musical tones are named instruments. Most important categories are percussions, wind and strings instruments.

The string instruments family is as numerous as the sounds they produce. Between well-known string instruments are: the guitar, the violin, the piano, the harp, the mandolin and the cello. In addition, instruments like the double bass, the lute, the fiddle, the harpsichord and many others, that you might never heard of, are included in the same category. String instruments appeared in mankind’s history before other types of instruments, and they suffered many changes through the years.

The lute is a pear form instrument that has a fretted fingerboard, a short neck, a sound hole in the middle, and six strings (number that changed until the 16th century). It seems that lutes appeared during the 14th century, but their "glory" reached its peak between the 16th and 17th century. Its name was "‘ud" or "oud", and originated from Middle East. After the Moors brought it to Spain, the interest on the instrument increased throughout Europe. The lute was used by well-known musicians like John Downland and Johann Sebastian Bach who beautified their operas by using this instrument in their compositions.

Another greatly appreciated instrument, the banjo, was discovered in Africa and the slaves brought it in America in the 19th century. There are two primary types: the five-stringed banjo and the tenor banjo. The first one was used in Irish and American music, and as the name implies, it has 5 strings. Meanwhile, the tenor banjo is smaller; it has four strings and is used mainly in the jazz music. Among noteworthy banjo players are Perry Bechtel, Harry Reser, Eddie Peabody, Ralph Stanley and Earl Scruggs.

The cello, also known as the violoncello, is made in a variety of sizes in order to suit the age of the player. Cellos were first made by Andrea Amati of Cremona in the 15th century. Some of the memorable cellists are Yo-Yo Ma, Mstislav Rostropovich and Pablo Casals.

The guitar was first known in Babylonia, in 1900-1800 B.C. In order to support this idea, there were found clay plaques that represented people singing with instruments that seemed to be guitars. Nowadays guitars are fabricated in all kinds of shapes and sizes, in order to fit players of all ages. Beside the shape differences, there is the sound distinction. There are electric, acoustic and bass guitars. In the category of important guitarist, we can include Zani de Ferranti, Trille Labarre, John Williams, and Mauro Giuliani.

The harp seems to be one of the oldest instruments because archaeologists brought to light paintings in Ancient Egyptian tombs where figures were holding harps in their hands. This discoveries date back to 3000 BC.

We have today several types of harps: the pedal harp, named like that because it is the classical harp and it has seven pedals; the lever harp which is known like the folk harp because it hasn't got any pedals; the Irish or Celtic harp and the wire-strung harp. Famous figures in the history like King Henry the VII or King Alfred the Great used to play the harp.

The ukulele is like a small guitar, but the number of strings can differ, from eight (than we call it ataro patch) to ten (when we call it a tiple). The Ukulele has its origin among the machete, which was taken by the Portuguese in Hawaii during the 1860’s. It used to have four strings, 24 inches long. Among the notable ukulele players are: Arthur Godfrey, Roy Smeck, Ernest Kaai and Eddie Karnae.

Among the violin family there are instruments like: the viola, the double bass and the cello. In Europe, the first violin appeared in the beginning of the century. Famous violinists are represented by: Nicolo Paganini, Gioacchino Rossini, Antonio Vivaldi and Giovanni Baptiste Viotti.

The main difference between the violin and the viola is that the second one is tuned a fifth lower than the violin. Batrok and Schoenberg are composers that played and wrote parts for the viola.

The various world of stringed instruments enchants us with its emotion rising harmonies and with the soothing effect it has on our nerves, calming our spirit and inducing a sweet state of mind because music was, is, and it is going to be part of our souls. It is the reflection of human's heart and feelings.