Democratic Sentinel, Volume 16, Number 52, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 13 January 1893 — The Zither. [ARTICLE]

The Zither.

The zither originated in the AlpiDe provinces of southern Germany and Austria about fifty yeurs ago. There were about that time in the Tyrolese and Styrian mountains, among other varieties of musical instruments, two kinds of cymbals, specimens of which are to be seen in the Germanic Museum at Nuremberg. One of them, the zitha, consisted of a tone-body with a finger-board, provided with frets, on which the player took the melody tones with the lelt hand, whilst the right hand, by means of a plectrum (small stick of ivory, metal or horn) sounded the strings. It was strung with five groups of metal strings, each of three strings (three-chordea), tuned to one pitch, like the treble notes of a piano. As an accompaniment to the zitha, another instrument, more appropriately called cymbal, was in use. It was strung with twenty-five steel strings, which were played with hammers, and used as an accompaniment not only to the abovementioned zitha, but also to the voice, violins and other instruments. These two instruments, although in a rude, primitive form, are the parts which we find greatly modified and refined, united in the modern zither.—[Boston Transcript. Trimmings for costumes for the street and the country are used sparingly, yet the latter have a very dressy appearance, aa all the details »»? most carefully studied.