Bar zither: History and Key Facts

Bar zither is class of musical instruments (subset of zither) within the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system for a type of chordophone (stringed instrument), in which the body of the instrument is shaped like a bar.

In the system, bar zithers are made up of musical bows and stick zithers. Musical bows have flexible ends, stick zithers are rigid or have only one flexed end. Bar zithers, whether musical bow or stick zithers, often have some form of resonator. Examples of resonators include the player's mouth, an attached gourd or an inflated balloon or bladder.

According to Sachs,

A stick-zither has a stick in place of a resonating body and always needs an additional resonator, generally a gourd, sometimes the mouth of the player.

Source and attribution

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