The waldzither (German: "forest zither") is a plucked string instrument from Germany that came up around 1900 in Thuringia. It is a type of cittern that has nine steel strings in five courses. Different types of waldzither come in different tunings, which are generally open tunings as usual in citterns. The most common type has the tuning C3*G3 G3*C4 C4*E4 E4*G4 G4.

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Waldzither

Hamburg waldzither
String instrument
Classification	String instrument
Hornbostel–Sachs classification	321.322 (necked box lute)
Developed	Germany

Producers of the waldzither attempted to establish it as a national instrument of Germany in the first half of the 20th century, when more complicated instruments were hard to get and to afford. Martin Luther was popularly said to have played a similar cittern at the Wartburg.[1][2]

Waldoline

When the lowest single course is omitted, it is sometimes called a waldoline, a portmanteau of waldzither and mandoline (German: "Mandoline").[3]

See also

• Cittern
• Halszither
• Portuguese guitar
• English guitar

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Waldzither.

• The Waldzither Page
• Die Waldzither (in German)
• Waldzither article at musicaviva.com
• ATLAS of Plucked Instruments