How the violino piccolo makes its sound
In the Hornbostel–Sachs system, which classifies instruments by how they produce sound, the violino piccolo 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 violino piccolo (also called the Diskantgeige, Terzgeige, Quartgeige or Violino alla francese and sometimes in English as the Piccolo Violin) is a stringed instrument of the baroque period. Most examples are similar to a child's size violin in size, and are tuned a minor third (B♭3–F4–C5–G5) or a fourth higher (C4–G4–D5–A5). The most famous work featuring violino piccolo is the first Brandenburg Concerto of Johann Sebastian Bach.
Other lutes
Frequently asked questions
What does a violino piccolo 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 violino piccolo?
It is classified as lutes (Hornbostel–Sachs 321.322-71).
Sources & credits
- Wikidata Q830863 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Violino piccolo – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Image by Frinck51 – CC BY-SA 3.0