How the crwth makes its sound
In the Hornbostel–Sachs system, which classifies instruments by how they produce sound, the crwth 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.
Its timbre – the colour that lets you tell it apart from other instruments playing the same note – comes from the mix of overtones its body and resonator emphasise.
From Wikipedia
See Rotte for the psaltery, or Rotte for the plucked lyre.
The crwth, also called a crowd or rote or crotta, is a bowed lyre, a type of stringed instrument, associated particularly with Welsh music, now archaic but once widely played in Europe. Four historical examples have survived and are to be found in St Fagans National Museum of History (Cardiff); National Library of Wales (Aberystwyth); Warrington Museum & Art Gallery; and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (US).
Other lutes
Frequently asked questions
What does a crwth 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 crwth?
It is classified as lutes (Hornbostel–Sachs 321.22).
Sources & credits
- Wikidata Q766461 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Crwth – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Image by Harry Campbell – CC BY-SA 3.0