The String Family Trivia Quiz

Answer: Ukulele

The ukulele traces its origins back to the Portuguese instrument called a machete. Machetes were brought to the Hawaiian Islands in the 19th century by Portuguese immigrants, and the ukulele was born from the local attempt to copy the instrument.

Ukuleles have become very popular, as they are small and generally easy to learn to play. They have become staples in many elementary music programs in North America.

Answer: Sitar

While the sitar has been around for many centuries, it developed to its present-day form by the 18th century. The name 'sitar' is derived from a Persian word that means 'three strings'. When you consider that the modern sitar has between 18 and 20 strings, it just goes to show how much something can change over time.

Sitars have six or seven strings over raised frets that are played with a plectrum, with the rest of the strings beneath the frets that resonate when the instrument is played. These 'sympathetic' strings are what gives the sitar its characteristic sound.

Answer: Harp

Harps (and similar stringed instruments such as lyres and zithers) have been found in one form or another in most cultures on the planet. The harp shown in the picture is representative of a standard concert harp used in classical Western music.

Answer: Cello

The violin family of instruments is the foundation of the orchestra of Western musical tradition. Developed in 16th century Italy, the violin, viola, violoncello (or just 'cello'), and double bass have remained virtually unchanged in that time, at least as acoustic instruments. They are played primarily with a bow, but can also be plucked when the music calls for it (pizzicato).

A fifth member of the family, called the octobass, was developed in the 19th century, but it is rarely played, due to its size (nearly twice as large as a double bass).

The advent of electricity and electrically amplified music in 'recent' years has meant that even these centuries-old standbys can receive a modern makeover.

Answer: Bass guitar

The bass guitar (or electric bass, or just 'bass') was developed in the 1930s as a mesh between a guitar (specifically the new electric versions) and an upright bass (or double bass). This new instrument could be played horizontally and could be more easily carried.

It had a fretted fingerboard, and was electrically amplified. The bass guitar uses the same tuning as the bass violin (or double bass), so written.... (E-A-D-G)"

Answer: Bouzouki

The two varieties of bouzouki (trichorda and tetrachorda) are three- and four-course. A 'course' is a pair of strings, which means that the trichorda bouzouki has three pairs of strings, and the tetrachorda has four pairs.

The modern bouzouki has traveled beyond Greece's borders, with a variant having developed in Ireland. The Irish bouzouki has four courses and is tuned differently than its Greek tetrachorda counterpart.

Answer: Banjo

Banjos first appeared in the Americas in the Caribbean in the late 1700s and made its way to the United States soon after. For the next two hundred years, the banjo characterized African-American music and dance. The rhythms played were an instrumental (if you'll pardon the pun) influence on the development of ragtime music, which itself is the foundation of jazz.

Modern banjos come in four, five, and six-string varieties, and is typically played with fingerpicks (picks designed to be worn on the fingers and thumb).

Answer: Lute

As poyphonic music was developed in Europe, the lute also developed more complexity. Lutes ranged from four- or five-course instruments to as many as 14, commonly, although lutes with more courses exist. What kind of skill must it have taken as a solo performer to play an instrument with up to 36 strings?

The term 'lute' maintains a place in instrumental construction, as any builder of stringed instruments is a 'luthier'.

Answer: Koto

Of the options presented, the Koto is the only stringed instrument. The mokugyo is a type of woodblock, the Hichiriki is a double-reed, and the hocchiku is a bamboo flute.

Introduced from China during the 7th and 8th centuries, the koto soon developed from a five-stringed instrument to its most common present-day 13-stringed version. It should be noted that, 17-, 21- and 25-string modern kotos also exist.

It is played with three fingerpicks (plectrums) on the thumb and first two fingers of the right hand. The strings can be tuned differently, depending on the placement of the bridges, which can slide up and down along their respective strings.

Answer: Harpsichord

When a key is pressed on a harpsichord, it doesn't make a hammer hit a string like the piano. Rather, it causes a string to be mechanically plucked. Essentially, this meant that there was no real ability to alter the dynamic level of the harpsichord.

Developed during the Renaissance, the harpsichord came into its own during the Baroque era, as part of the basso continuo that was prevalent in much of the music of the time as an accompaniment to solo instruments. The basso continuo consisted of an instrument capable of playing chords (like the harpsichord, organ or lute), along with a bass instrument (like the violoncello, double bass or bassoon).