Questions tagged [string-instruments]
A musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. Use this for questions about the category, rather than for a specific instrument.
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I know these are sixteenth sextuplets, but I was wondering what these are called when they share the same staff? And how they're played?
I am trying to figure out what they are, I've searched on YouTube but I don't think I have the correct keywords to find out what I'm looking for... Are they played like double stops or played ...
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Is there an ideal size for viola?
I know that there isn't a standard "full size" for viola, but most people stop at 16 inches. However, I've also been told that for violas, the bigger the better. Is this true? If so, would ...
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Why is the cavaquinho minhoto so different from other cavaquinhos?
For context: cavaquinho
The Brazilian cavaquinho, the cavaquinho de Lisboa, the Cabo Verde cavaquinho, the Madeiran braguinha and its descendant, the ukulele, all seem to have a fretboard that is ...
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What is the earliest we know wire-strung instruments to have existed?
What is the earliest we know wire-strung instruments to have existed? I was reading about gut strings, nylon strings, wire strings used on guitar, and wanted to know, but couldn't find the answer ...
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Can a reed be mounted to directly vibrate strings? [closed]
Can a reed be mounted in such a way as to directly vibrate a string?
Granted that for the sake of playability, the string instrument would have a length similar to a 1/8 violin. Also, how much would ...
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What's this w-shaped ebony item from my grandma's violin case?
What's this w-shaped ebony item from my grandma's violin case?
Possible it's not violin-related.
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What is the strum pattern in this song? [closed]
What is the strumming pattern in We Are Sick(Acoustic) by From Indian lakes
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What is at the tip of large string concert instruments, and does it damage the floor?
I sat very close to the stage Friday night for the Pops.
I could see a cellist in the front row and noticed the bottom tip of a metal rod where the cello stands, making contact with the wooden floor.
...
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Finish cracks between sides and back?
I recently bought a seven year old used mandolin online. It has edge binding where the sides meet the top but not the back. Where the sides meet the back, the finish has little cracks along that seam, ...
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Using friction pegs with standard classical guitar headstock
Would it be reasonable to use guitar friction pegs with a regular classical headstock? I've never seen that, all friction peg versions of flamenco guitars have a different headstock design.
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Mysterious plastic tube arriving with double bass strings
New double bass strings may include a short and thin (about 1 centimeter long) section of a plastic tube. It's the D string which goes through the tube. What is it, the tube? What is one supposed ...
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Learning cello fingerings without owning one
Okay this is going to be a weird question but bear with me, I promise I'm not crazy.
Let's say I really wanted to learn cello. Now due to the fact I am not currently able to rent/buy a cello, this ...
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How do you specify no vibrato in notation?
I am composing a piece for string quartet, and I explicitly don't want vibrato. Is there a term for it, or should I just write "no vibrato"?
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Sextuplet vs pair of triplets
A single sextuplet and a pair of triplets are similar in the fact that their rhythmic note values are equal, but are different (as affirmed in this post) in that usually a sextuplet should only have ...
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Identifying the string instrument used [closed]
I’m going to start learning to play a string instrument but I couldn’t choose between a violin or a viola.
Recently I’ve been listening to an anime instrumental music and I have fell in love with it ...
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Would mixing 80/20 Bronze with Phosphor Bronze guitar strings be a good way to alter the tonal balance of a particular acoustic guitar?
It’s generally agreed that different woods used in the body of an acoustic guitar will accentuate different tones and emphasize different parts of the tonal spectrum. Some woods will emphasize the ...
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I broke my G string and my other 3 strings are out of tune too
It’s Thanksgiving break right now and I have a Christmas concert next Saturday December 4th, so I brought it over to my Abuela’s house to practice.
However, my grandparents keep the house hot, so my ...
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Help understanding frequency ratios and string length
This music book I'm reading taught me about frequency ratios as the basis for scales, but it doesn't explain it well enough for me, so I'm trying to learn more about it on my own. I want to know how ...
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How does Sitar produce sound while it doesn't have any sound holes?
I always thought that stringed instruments have hole(s) called soundholes so that the produced sounds can be heard.
But the sitar as a stringed instrument doesn't have any soundholes.
So how is the ...
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When did Stradivarius become "Stradivarius!"
Instruments built by the Stradivarius family are popularly thought of amongst the pantheon of "greatest ever".1 But have they always been considered this way? Were they held in similarly ...
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Is it Ok to leave a guitar with a broken string?
Just broke the high E on my guitar and won't be able to get new strings for about 2 weeks. will leaving it as it is damage the guitar at all?
the guitar is an Ibanez rga42fm with a fixed bridge
All ...
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Understanding terminology relating to the formula for the relationship between length of a string and its pitch
I am teaching mathematics, and I don't have any background in music. There is a cool example in the textbook that is related to the violin. There are a couple of technical words in that problem that I ...
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Best way to practice difficult runs
Runs are very common in music; a typical run is a sequence of quick, short, slurred (not always) notes that either ascend or descend and often involve multiple shifts.
The approaches
I've learned a ...
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How to approach the collé bowstroke?
This section is from the bottom of the second page of the First Movement of the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto. A specific bowstroke called collé is to be utilized in this section.
I am not a ...
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Four-note arpeggio on string instrument
Consider following excerpt of the first movement of Mendelssohn's Violin concerto:
It contains a series of arpeggios.
What are the rules to write such arpeggios?
Are the four notes always played on ...
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Why do classical guitars necks meet the body at fret 12th and steel strings at fret 14th?
Is there a reason for this? What exactly is the reasoning behind it?
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What gives a Chinese Pipa its unique timbre in comparison with a guitar?
Similar to this broader question How do East Asian instruments (Shamisen, pipa, etc.) get their unique sound?
Though they a similar in many ways a guitar and a pipa sound very different.
Could you ...
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What is "Young's modulus", and how does it relate to guitar?
I've come across some posts that mention "Young's modulus" in relation to guitar.
Young's modulus is discussed on physics.SE (Young's Modulus and Vibrating String Harmonics), but I'm looking ...
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Bridge intonation patterns on stringed instruments
On stringed instruments, the scale length needs to be slightly adjusted (at the bridge) for each string so that the first octave happens at the 12th fret/position, the 2nd at the 24th, etc. My ...
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I want to make my Rabab sound louder
I have an Afghani stringed instrument. It has 3 main strings (nylon) along with drone and sympathetic strings. 20 in total.
I feel that my rabab is not creating enough sound, especially the echo a ...
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Violin tuning, equal temperament or just intonation?
I'm tuning my violin now, by making the fifths on open strings sounds most harmonious. So they are just fifths, a little wider than the equal fifth. But then would the gap between the G and E string ...
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I have a Skywin oud, 11 strings. Do the pegs need to be in a certain order, like in length?
So I'm not sure if my oud came strung correctly,they look a bit worn but it came with 6 pairs of replacement strings and one 11th string.
What if while restringing, I took all the pegs out without ...
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Western musical instruments that can be played with one hand
https://www.google.com/search?q=western+musical+instruments
Will it be very few western musical instruments that can be played by human beings with one hand only?
Example : Mouth organ.
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What is the name of this bowing technique for strings?
https://www.vsl.co.at/en/Playing_Techniques-Right_Hand/Violin-Ricochet
It is basically playing all 4 strings consecutively creating an "undulation". HOWEVER, not in the staccato slurred ...
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Notation for a unison double stop
What's the standard notation for the occurrence of the same pitch played on two different strings of the same instrument simultaneously, to be used within the same staff?
The typical context would be ...
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Trying to lower string gauge - how to measure what I have now?
I've been playing shows at a local theatre for the past several years and when our April show was cancelled, they paid everyone anyway. So I'm planning to invest it in my kit. For the past few shows, ...
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Do planetary geared tuners obviate the need for tailpiece tuners?
I've read somewhere the claim that geared tuners (e.g Pegheds, Wittners) obviate the need for fine-tuners. Does this refer to the fine tuners that clamp onto the string, or does it also mean I can ...
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String instrument fingerboard tapes: position for just intonation vs equal temperament?
For those string players who are OK with/advocate using fingerboard tapes, where would you put them given that ET and JI demands slightly different positions? Would you put them at ET first, since ...
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Fretting out on fretboard?
Whenever I change the strings on my electric guitar, in no more than 2 weeks, this happens:
From about the 11th/12th fret onwards, the E and B (and sometimes G) strings sound noticeably lower, in ...
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I need help to identify the instruments of a composition (in a movie)
Probably this is very easy to answer for people who know the composition of an orchestra and which sound comes from which instrument. My question is, what is the instrument (or the composition of ...
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Which string instruments/playing techniques were used for Nashville Sound country music?
I've been delving into the history of a particular style of country music called "Nashville Sound" recently, which involved a lot of string sections in songs. Some websites describe them as being "...
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Why is a violin so loud compared to a guitar?
The violin is comparatively louder than a guitar.
This is a surprising fact, given that:
the violin instrument is generally smaller than, say, a typical classical or folk guitar,
both use strings.
...
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Bow markings in advanced solo string music
I understand that bow markings are important in orchestral music, one reason being to keep players in sync visually.
Back when I played viola, my (very basic — grade 4 or 5) music was littered ...
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Technical name of the slope on electric guitar body
Most common electric guitars have a slope on the edge of the largest part of their body, where the forearm lays. Has this slope a specific name?
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Two Stringed Instruments in Unison?
I have been receiving conflicting information from orchestration bigwigs. Some say that composers should never orchestrate two stringed instruments together because they will be ever so slightly out ...
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Violin wheezing sound
So recently I've started playing the violin, but so far I'm not successful at all. Every time I try to get a sound out of it, all I hear is a high wheezing sound, like someone is trying to catch its ...
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On instruments that use frets, where's the best spot to press a string on, in order to minimize hand fatigue and potential for injuries?
I know this question sounds completely subjective at first sight, it even triggered the automatic "The question you're asking appears subjective and is likely to be closed" alarm, but please read ...
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Why are some strings wound instead of solid?
Why are lower-frequency strings usually made by winding wire around a core?
On a violin, for instance, we usually find that the highest string (E) is solid but the lower strings (G and D) are wound. ...
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Open E String is in Tune but fingered pitches are sharp
My last e string broke so I got a new one. My e string is in tune when I play it together with the open A (i.e. the violin is in tune), but the higher fingered pitches are all sharp. I know this is ...
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Is my eletric guitar in danger due low/no humidity applied?
I bought a very expensive (for me) Dean from Hell signature which is limited to 150 pieced worldwide (in fact its the #121 of 150 of these: https://reverb.com/au/item/1390256-dean-usa-dime-from-hell-...
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