Cittern

The cittern is a stringed instrument of the lute family dating from the Renaissance. It is similar to several other instruments, notably the bouzouki, with which it is often confused.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Renaissance cittern was one of the few metal-strung plectrum-plucked instruments from the period. Generally four courses (pairs) of strings, the cittern uses a range of only a major 6th between its lowest and highest strings, and employs a "re-entrant" tuning. The tuning and narrow range allow the player a number of simple chord shapes useful for both simple song accompaniment and dances, and its bright and cheerful timbre make it a valuable counterpoint to gut-strung instruments. Other variations on the cittern are the bandore (or bandora), a bass instrument. Likewise the Spanish bandurria, is similar, but also having some characteristics of the more standard lute.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The cittern from the 16th through the 18th century was a common British barber shop instrument, kept in waiting areas for customers to entertain themselves and others with while waiting, and popular sheet music for the instrument was published to that end. In more recent times, it was popular in Irish music, being replaced somewhat by the banjo in the 20th century.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In Germany the cittern survives under the name Lutherzither. The name comes from the belief that Martin Luther played this instrument, and a tendency in modern German to interchange the words for cittern and zither. The term waldzither came into use around 1900, in order to distinguish citterns from zithers.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Modern citterns, bouzoukis (zouks), octave mandolins, mandolas, mandocellos, and mandolins are members of a range of instruments distinguished by being strung in 2 string courses with metal strings, usually in unison but sometimes in octaves, made of wood, usually with a floating bridge/ tailpiece arrangement, and usually tuned in 5ths or open tunings. The body shape is usually teardrop based, rather than the waisted design of a guitar or violin.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The name cittern has recently been used to describe a 10-string instrument of this family with a short scale length, below 22". This modern use of the name of the instrment is attributed to British luthier Stefan Sobell who devised a pear-shaped, 8-string instrument influenced by designs of English and Portuguese guitars with their flat backs, ovoid bodies, and double-course strings. After seeing pictures of Rennaisance citterns and noting the resemblance to his new design, he chose the name "cittern" to describe his instruments. A bouzouki is usually a 8-string long scale instrument, ie above 22", although 10-string zouks are increasingly common. An octave mandolin is any 8-string zouk/cittern tuned GDAE an octave below the mandolin, a mandola is an alto mandolin traditionally tuned CGDA the same as a viola. A mandocello is a zouk tuned CGDA, like a cello.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Notable modern cittern players include Terry Woods, formerly of Steeleye Span and The Pogues, and Mark Cudek of The Baltimore Consort.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Lute: The lute is a plucked string instrument with a fretted neck and a deep round back. It evolved from an instrument originally developed in the Middle East, which was also the ancestor of the superficially similar oud. The words 'lute' and 'oud' are both derived from Arabic al‘ud, "the wood". The...

Renaissance: The Renaissance, also known as "Il Rinascimento" (in Italian), was an influential cultural movement which brought about a period of scientific revolution and artistic transformation, at the dawn of modern European history. It marks the transitional period between the end of the Middle Ages and the s...

Bouzouki: The bouzouki (gr. το μπουζούκι; pl. ?? ??????????) (plural sometimes transliterated as bouzoukia) is the mainstay of modern Greek music, and is also found in Irish music. It is a stringed instrument with a pear-shaped body and a very long neck. ...

Cittern related Images and Photos (experimental)

Interior Scene with a Lady Standing Playing the Cittern