Editing String instrument (section)

==Types of instruments==
[[File:Dinastia tang, coppia di musici a cavallo, VIII-IX secolo ca. 02.jpg|thumb|A woman playing some kind of string instrument while riding a horse, [[Tang dynasty]]]]
===Construction===
<!--[[Bout (musical instrument)]] redirects to this section.-->
String instruments can be divided into three groups:
;[[Lute]]s : Instruments that support the strings via a [[Neck (music)|neck]] and a bout (gourd), for instance a guitar, violin, or [[baglama|saz]]
;[[Harp]]s : Instruments that contain the strings within a frame
;[[Zither]]s : Instruments that have the strings mounted on a body, [[frame zither|frame]] or [[tube zither|tube]], such as a [[guqin]], [[cimbalom]], [[autoharp]], [[harpsichord]], [[piano]], or [[valiha]]

It is also possible to divide the instruments into categories focused on how the instrument is played.

===Playing techniques===
{{further|List of string instruments}}All string instruments produce sound from one or more [[vibrating string]]s, transferred to the air by the body of the instrument (or by a pickup in electronically amplified instruments). They are usually categorised by the technique used to make the strings vibrate (or by the primary technique, in the case of instruments where more than one may apply). The three most common techniques are plucking, bowing, and striking. An important difference between bowing and plucking is that in the former the phenomenon is periodic so that the overtones are kept in a strictly harmonic relationship to the fundamental.<ref name=":0" />

==== Plucking ====
{{main|Plucked string instrument}}

Plucking is a method of playing on instruments such as the [[veena]], [[banjo]], [[ukulele]], guitar, harp, [[lute]], [[mandolin]], [[oud]], and [[sitar]], using either a finger, thumb, or quills (now plastic plectra) to pluck the strings.

Instruments normally played by bowing (see below) may also be plucked, a technique referred to by the Italian term ''[[pizzicato]]''.

==== Bowing ====
{{main|Bowed string instrument}}

[[Bowing (music)|Bowing]] (Italian: ''arco'') is a method used in some string instruments, including the [[violin]], [[viola]], [[cello]], and the [[double bass]] (of the [[violin family]]), and the old [[viol]] family. The [[bow (music)|bow]] consists of a stick with a "ribbon" of parallel horse tail hairs stretched between its ends. The hair is coated with [[rosin]] so it can grip the string; moving the hair across a string causes a [[stick-slip phenomenon]], making the string [[vibration|vibrate]], and prompting the instrument to emit sound. Darker grades of rosin grip well in cool, dry climates, but may be too sticky in warmer, more humid weather. Violin and viola players generally use harder, lighter-colored rosin than players of lower-pitched instruments, who tend to favor darker, softer rosin.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Heather K. |last=Scott |title=The Differences Between Dark and Amber Rosin |url=http://stringsmagazine.com/the-differences-between-dark-and-amber-rosin/ |magazine=Strings Magazine |date=January 5, 2004 |access-date=February 1, 2020}}</ref>

The [[ravanahatha]] is one of the oldest string instruments. Ancestors of the modern bowed string instruments are the [[rebab]] of the Islamic Empires, the Persian [[kamanche]] and the [[Byzantine lira]]. Other bowed instruments are the [[rebec]], [[hardingfele]], [[nyckelharpa]], [[kokyū]], [[erhu]], [[igil]], [[sarangi]], [[morin khuur]], and [[K'ni]]. The [[hurdy-gurdy]] is bowed by a wheel. Rarely, the [[bowed guitar|guitar has been played with a bow]] (rather than plucked) for unique effects.

==== Striking ====
The third common method of sound production in stringed instruments is to strike the string. The piano and [[hammered dulcimer]] use this method of sound production. Even though the piano strikes the strings, the use of felt hammers means that the sound that is produced can nevertheless be mellow and rounded, in contrast to the sharp attack produced when a very hard hammer strikes the strings.

Violin family string instrument players are occasionally instructed to strike the string with the stick of the bow, a technique called ''[[col legno]]''. This yields a percussive sound along with the pitch of the note. A well-known use of ''col legno'' for orchestral strings is [[Gustav Holst]]'s "Mars" movement from ''[[The Planets]]'' suite.

==== Other methods ====
The [[aeolian harp]] employs a very unusual method of sound production: the strings are excited by the movement of the air.

Some instruments that have strings have an attached [[musical keyboard|keyboard]] that the player presses keys on to trigger a mechanism that sounds the strings, instead of directly manipulating the strings. These include the [[piano]], the [[clavichord]], and the harpsichord. With these [[keyboard instrument]]s, strings are occasionally plucked or bowed by hand. Modern [[composer]]s such as [[Henry Cowell]] wrote music that requires that the player reach inside the piano and pluck the strings directly, "bow" them with bow hair wrapped around the strings, or play them by rolling the bell of a [[brass instrument]] such as a [[trombone]] on the array of strings. However, these are relatively rarely used special techniques.

Other keyed string instruments, small enough for a strolling musician to play, include the plucked [[autoharp]], the bowed [[nyckelharpa]], and the hurdy-gurdy, which is played by cranking a rosined wheel.

Steel-stringed instruments (such as the guitar, bass, violin, etc.) can be played using a magnetic field. An [[E-Bow]] is a small hand-held battery-powered device that magnetically excites the strings of an electric string instrument to provide a sustained, singing tone reminiscent of a held bowed violin note.

[[3rd bridge|Third bridge]] is a plucking method where the player ''frets'' a string and strikes the side opposite the bridge. The technique is mainly used on electric instruments because these have a pickup that amplifies only the local string vibration. It is possible on acoustic instruments as well, but less effective. For instance, a player might press on the seventh [[fret]] on a guitar and pluck it at the head side to make a tone resonate at the opposing side. On electric instruments, this technique generates multitone sounds reminiscent of a clock or bell.

Electric string instruments, such as the [[electric guitar]], can also be played without touching the strings by using [[audio feedback]]. When an electric guitar is plugged into a loud, powerful guitar amplifier with a [[loudspeaker]] and a high level of [[distortion (music)|distortion]] is intentionally used, the guitar produces sustained high-pitched sounds. By changing the proximity of the guitar to the speaker, the guitarist can produce sounds that cannot be produced with standard plucking and picking techniques. This technique was popularized by [[Jimi Hendrix]] and others in the 1960s. It was widely used in [[psychedelic rock]] and [[heavy metal music]].