How the timple makes its sound
In the Hornbostel–Sachs system, which classifies instruments by how they produce sound, the timple 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
The timple is a traditional five-string plucked string instrument of the Canary Islands. It started being manufactured in the 19th century.
In La Palma island and in the north of the island of Tenerife, many timple players omit the first (D) string, in order to play the timple as a four-string ukulele, though this is considered less traditional by players and advocates of the five-string version. The players of the four-string style, in return, say that they are simply playing the timple in the old-fashioned way from before the time when a fifth string was introduced in the late nineteenth or early twentieth century. The common tuning is GCEAD.
Other lutes
Frequently asked questions
What does a timple 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 timple?
It is classified as lutes (Hornbostel–Sachs 321.321-5).