Lyre

The lyre is a member of the lutes (Hornbostel–Sachs 321.21-5). It dates back to 32nd century BCE. Listen to 1 recording and learn how it makes its sound.

Listen to the lyre

Lyre-Liar-us-eng

0:02CC0 1.0by SalomeCzapiewskiWikimedia Commons

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Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.

How the lyre makes its sound

In the Hornbostel–Sachs system, which classifies instruments by how they produce sound, the lyre 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 lyre (from Greek λύρα and Latin lyra) is a stringed musical instrument that is classified by Hornbostel–Sachs as a member of the lute family of instruments. In organology, a lyre is considered a yoke lute, since it is a lute in which the strings are attached to a yoke that lies in the same plane as the sound table, and consists of two arms and a crossbar.

The lyre has its origins in ancient history. Lyres were used in several ancient cultures surrounding the Mediterranean Sea. The earliest known examples of the lyre have been recovered at archeological sites that date to c. 2700 BC in Mesopotamia.