How the cittern makes its sound
In the Hornbostel–Sachs system, which classifies instruments by how they produce sound, the cittern belongs to the lutes: strings run parallel to a soundboard and along a neck – the family of the guitar, violin, sitar and oud.
More broadly it is one of the chordophones (string instruments), where sound comes from vibrating strings, amplified by a resonating body.
Players shape its sound through technique and materials; the resonating body filters the raw vibration, boosting some harmonics and damping others.
From Wikipedia
The cittern or cithren (Fr. cistre, It. cetra, Ger. Cister, Sp. cistro, cedra, cítola) is a stringed instrument dating from the Renaissance. Modern scholars debate its exact history, but it is generally accepted that it is descended from the medieval citole (or cytole). Its flat-back design was simpler and cheaper to construct than the lute. It was also easier to play, smaller, less delicate and more portable. Played by people of all social classes, the cittern was a popular instrument of casual music-making much like the guitar is today.
Other lutes
Frequently asked questions
What does a cittern sound like?
As one of the lutes, its sound comes from the way strings run parallel to a soundboard and along a neck.
What type of instrument is the cittern?
It is classified as lutes (Hornbostel–Sachs 321.322-5).
Sources & credits
- Wikidata Q1093290 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Cittern – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Image by S. Guastevi – CC BY-SA 4.0