Zither strings are not defined by one material, one count, or one setup method. A concert zither, a koto, a guzheng, a qanun, a santur, a kantele, and a tube zither can all belong to the wider zither family, yet their strings may be metal, silk, nylon, gut, plant fiber, or even lifted from the…
Zither tuning is not one single system. The word “zither” can describe a broad zither family[1] of instruments, from simple board zithers to concert zithers, autoharps, psalteries, kanteles, guzhengs, kotos, qanuns, santurs, and dulcimers. Each type places its strings across or along a resonating body, but the way those strings are tuned depends on structure,…
Learning how to play a zither starts with one clear idea: a zither[1] is not one single instrument with one universal method. A concert zither, a chord zither, a psaltery, a kantele, a guzheng, a koto, and a dulcimer-related instrument may all sit within or near the zither family, but the hands, strings, tuning, and…