Re: whither the zither

[Joel Bresler <jbresler...>]

I agree, at least insofar as the kanun is considered a zither rather 
universally in Turkish music.

Interesting article at:

http://www.mfa.gov.tr/grupc/cj/cja/cjab/cinstrum.htm

(It does use "lettuce" for "lattice", but I assume the rest of it is more 
trustworthy!!!)

Best, Joel

At 06:08 PM 6/8/00 -0400, you wrote:
>According to whose definition must a "true" zither have frets? As I
>understand its definition, a zither is a musical instrument consisting
>of strings stretched over a sound box, which would include not only the
>fretted concert zither, but the psaltery, kanun, gusli, kankles,
>kantele, kuokle, the koto, and any number of other oddments including
>the autoharp (which, the good Mr. Oscar Scmidt notwithstanding, is
>actually a mechanized gusli and may have been a Russian invention).
>
>Since definitions and classifications have a way of broadening and
>overlapping, let me add that the kanun is also a membranophone, in that
>its bridges rest not on the soundboard, but on little squares of skin
>set into the soundboard.  Thus it bears a certain relation to the tar
>and the Persian kemençe, as well as to that well-established klezmer
>instrument par deluxe, the banjo.
>
>Owen
>
>Carol Freeman wrote:
> >
> > Paul M. Gifford wrote:
> >
> > > Joel Bresler <jbresler (at) ma(dot)ultranet(dot)com> wrote:
> > >
> > > > BTW,  a form of the zither, the kanun, was used fairly often in 
> Sephardi 78s...
> > > >
> > > Although "zither" is used as a vague term for any instrument which
> > > has a lot of open strings, to my mind it should be defined as a
> > > fretted instrument played horizontally, most versions of which have
> > > open strings used for accompanying the melody, which is played on
> > > the fretted strings. Thus a kanun (or gusli, kankles, etc.) would not
> > > qualify as a zither.
> >
> > Many people on the list may not know that a kanun is also substantially 
> different
> > from a Western zither type instrument because it is constructed so one 
> can play in
> > the various Turkish (or Arabic, on the larger, Arabic instruments) 
> maqams or
> > microtonal scales.This makes it quite suitable for accompanying 
> Sephardic songs from
> > Turkey and the South Balkans, many of which were traditionally sung in 
> maqam.  Carol
> >
>



Joel Bresler
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