Listen to the dojo
Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.
How the dojo makes its sound
In the Hornbostel–Sachs system, which classifies instruments by how they produce sound, the dojo 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.
Press play above and watch the spectrum: the evenly spaced peaks are harmonics, and their relative strength is what gives the instrument its character.
From Wikipedia
The dojo is a hybrid instrument designed as a cross between the Dobro-style guitar and the bluegrass banjo. The body and resonator are like the Dobro, while it is strung like a five-string banjo. The tunings and fingerings are also just like a banjo. The intention in creating the dojo was to give banjoists the opportunity to get a completely different sound without having to learn fingerings for an entirely new instrument. Dojos have a much more mellow sound than a banjo, and plucked notes are sustained longer due to the resonator.
Other lutes
Frequently asked questions
What does a dojo sound like?
Listen to 1 recording on this page. 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 dojo?
It is classified as lutes (Hornbostel–Sachs 321.322).
Sources & credits
- Dojo (Antti Luode) by Antti Luode – CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Wikidata Q5288710 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Dojo (instrument) – CC BY-SA 4.0