The zither - citore
Legrad, the 1st half of the 20th century
wood, wire, colour
craftwork, decorated by colour (pattern)
lenght = 49 cm
width = 35 cm
height = 3,5 cm
Et 48411
The Collection of Musical Instruments
The accord zither is crafted from hardwood. The strings are drawn taught over the body. The instrument’s edges are ornamented with golden tendrils and flowers with red petals. Two peacocks with long blue and green tails are imprinted symmetrically on each side of the resonant box. The tails are set amongst tendrils, flowers, and leaves. The same leitmotifs - the peacock and the tendril - are used again on the upper part of the board.
There were zithers which came with a sheet, i.e. a graphic template with instructions on how to play the instrument and in which order to pluck the strings. Even those players who could not read music notes could play the zither in this way: the player placed the template underneath the strings and he plucked the string under which there was a dot. This instrument was not demanding and it was easy to play. This type of “accord zither” was once manufactured in Europe.
“In Czech Republic such zithers were manufactured cheaply and in large quantities. Since they were affordable, village dwellers could buy them and play them thanks to templates: Having the templates meant that no specific knowledge or skills were required to play the instrument. Patriotic songs were imprinted on these templates. The templates were printed in Slovenia, therefore there are a lot of Slovenian songs, but there are some Croatian songs as well. In this way, people could play traditional folk songs as well as popular songs, such as operetta arias” (acc. to Dražin-Trbuljak, “Zvuk je dio života..." Interview with Mr.Sc. Krešimir Galin.... 2003:51).
