Amz'ad

Amz'ad *spike fiddle of the N. African Tuareg, with a large gourd body covered with goatskin, which is laced around the bottom, and a slim handle that pierces the body to emerge as a projecting stub. A single horsehair string passes over a bridge to a notch in the end of the handle; farther down it is looped to the handle to form a nut. The belly is often painted. Two soundholes are cut in it. The amz'ad can be either bowed or plucked. In at least one area of the Sahara it is played by women…