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Sitar
The sitar is the most popular
stringed instrument in India. It is a long neck lute containing five playing strings, two drone
strings, and twelve to fifteen sympathetic strings.
The resonator is made of gourd (pumpkin), while the majority of the instrument
is made of wood. The sitar’s unique feature is that it has a bridge made of
bone that is carved to a special degree of curvature allowing the sitar to
produce the unique buzz. Altering the bridge will change the sound of the
sitar. The fingerboard is made of wood and contains twenty heavy metal frets
that are moveable for fine-tuning. The frets are also raised to allow one to
pull the strings laterally to produce the ornamentation used in North Indian
music.
✇AUDIO
CLIP: Sitar
EDUCATIONAL
MATERIALS:
KKSongs
Sitar Tutorial
UPDATED: December
19, 2010