A lute (/ ljuːt / [1] or / luːt /) is any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted.

The lute saw a resurgence in popularity with the early music movement of the late twentieth century. Today, lute players and makers approach the lute and its music from an academic standpoint, and lute making is a cottage industry throughout the world.

The Extant Lutes Database is an online resource for lute makers, scholars, players and others interested in the history of the lute. It contains over 800 entries of lutes that have survived into our modern times, mostly held in museums and institutions around the world.

Lute can refer generally to any plucked string instrument with a neck (either fretted or unfretted) and a deep round back, or more specifically to an instrument from the family of European lutes. The European lute and the modern Near-Eastern oud both descend from a common ancestor via

Mar 7, 2025 · Lute, in music, any plucked or bowed chordophone whose strings are parallel to its belly, or soundboard, and run along a distinct neck or pole. In this sense, instruments such as the Indian sitar are classified as lutes.

One of the defining characteristics of the lute is its egg shaped body. Lutes commonly have eight or more sets of strings which are referred to as courses, as opposed the the guitar which as only six strings. Consequently the neck of the lute is wider than that of the guitar.

The lute is perhaps most notable for its deeply rounded, ovoid body fabricated out of thin strips of wood glued together edgewise. The body is closed by a wooden soundboard or table to which the bridge is glued.

If you've ever wondered what a lute is and why it has maintained its charm through centuries, you're in for a treat. This stringed marvel, known for its intricate design and rich sound, is more than just an instrument; it's a gateway to the past, a symbol of musical refinement.

lute, Plucked stringed instrument popular in 16th–17th-century Europe. It originated from the Arab ʿūd, which reached Europe in the 13th century. Like the ʿūd, the lute has a deep pear-shaped body with an ornamental soundhole, a fretted neck with a bent-back pegbox, and strings hitched to a bridge glued to the instrument’s belly.

Nov 10, 2024 · The lute is a string instrument with a distinctive pear-shaped body and a fretted neck, usually featuring a backward-angled pegbox. Lutes typically have a hollow body, or resonating chamber, that helps amplify the sound, and strings that are plucked or strummed.