Bagana

Bagana lyre of Ethiopia, a survival of the ancient Gk. kithara, with a round wooden body and a yoke of 2 straight arms joined by a crossbar. The strings are held by tuning rings on the crossbar. Ethiopians believe it to be the harp of David. The 5 strings are tuned: d2 g1 a1 b1 e2; over a century ago Villoteau gave the following tuning for a 10-stringed instr.: d1 b1 e2 d2 g1 a1 e1 g1 a1 b1. The bagana serves chiefly for vocal accompaniments and is played with a plectrum. Total height ca. 75…