sitar
Long-necked lute
A sitar is a large stringed instrument from India with a long neck, a gourd-shaped resonating chamber, and movable frets.
It typically has six or seven main strings plus a dozen or more sympathetic strings that resonate when the main strings are plucked, giving the sitar its characteristic shimmering sound.
The instrument became familiar to Western audiences through 1960s rock music.
Hard-shelled decorative fruit
- fretsWorries or string dividers
- stringsThin flexible lines
- bridgeStructure spanning an obstacle
- sympathetic stringsUnplayed strings that vibrate
tuning · drone · resonance · plectrum · fingerboard · neck · pegs · craftsmanship
Indian melodic framework
- Ravi ShankarLegendary Indian sitar player
- panditHindu learned man
- dhrupadAncient Indian vocal style
- shrutiIndian microtonal pitch interval
swara · recital · concert · improvisation · virtuoso · maestro
Indian melodic framework
- tablaIndian paired hand drums
- fusionJoining into unity
- HindustaniNorth Indian language family
- instrumentalServing as means
soundtrack · Bollywood · world music · psychedelic · Beatles · George Harrison · Monterey Pop · crossover
Aromatic heartwood or plucked instrument
Spirit or yank
- glissandoRapid pitch sweep
- vibratoOscillating pitch effect
- fingeringNote-playing hand technique
- techniqueSkilled way of performing
articulation · improvisation · ornamentation · slides · bends · harmonics · dexterity · practice
gourd
Hard-shelled decorative fruit
sympathetic strings · tuning · drone · resonance · plectrum · fingerboard · neck · pegs · craftsmanship · luthier
raga
Indian melodic framework
- Ravi ShankarLegendary Indian sitar player
- panditHindu learned man
- dhrupadAncient Indian vocal style
shruti · swara · recital · concert · improvisation · virtuoso · maestro
raga
Indian melodic framework
- tablaIndian paired hand drums
- fusionJoining into unity
- HindustaniNorth Indian language family
instrumental · soundtrack · Bollywood · world music · psychedelic · Beatles · George Harrison · Monterey Pop · crossover
oud
Aromatic heartwood or plucked instrument
pluck
Spirit or yank
technique · articulation · improvisation · ornamentation · slides · bends · harmonics · dexterity · practice · sitting posture
- PakistanIslamabad, Karachi, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan
- Hindustani musicraga, dhrupad, tabla, lay, tan
- Indian Instrumentstabla, veena, sarod, harmonium, tambura
- Indian Performancekathak, mudras, classical drama, folk theater, court dance
- South Asian Musicbhangra, tabla, harmonium, raga, Punjabi music
- IndiaDelhi, Ganges, Mumbai, Taj Mahal, Punjab
sitarguitar
Fretted stringed instrument
classical guitar · banjo · mandolin · lute · violin
sitarukulele
Small Hawaiian stringed instrument
kazoo · triangle · recorder · tambourine · harmonica
sitarsynthesizer
Electronic sound-generating instrument
electric guitar · electronic keyboard · drum machine · theremin · electric bass