The ''cobza'' (also ''cobsa'', ''cobuz'', ''koboz'') is a multi-

stringed instrument String instruments, stringed instruments, or chordophones are musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings when a performer plays or sounds the strings in some manner. Musicians play some string instruments by plucking the st ...

of the

lute A lute ( or ) 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. More specifically, the term "lute" can ref ...

family of folk origin popular in the

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

n folklore from both

and

Republic of Moldova A republic () is a " state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...

(it is considered the oldest

accompaniment Accompaniment is the musical part which provides the rhythmic and/or harmonic support for the melody or main themes of a song or instrumental piece. There are many different styles and types of accompaniment in different genres and styles o ...

instrument in the region). It is also used in the Hungarian

Táncház Táncház (, literally "dance house") is a "casual" Hungarian folk dance event (as opposed to stage performances). It is an aspect of the Hungarian roots revival of traditional culture which began in the early 1970s, and remains an active part of ...

movement (end of the 20th Century). It is distinct from the Ukrainian Kobza, an instrument of different construction and origin.

Overview

The Romanian Cobza is metal-strung (although modern nylon-strung models exist, mostly in Hungary), and has a very short neck without

fret A fret is any of the thin strips of material, usually metal wire, inserted laterally at specific positions along the neck or fretboard of a stringed instrument. Frets usually extend across the full width of the neck. On some historical instru ...

s (although a newer fretted cobza can be found in the Republic of Moldova), with a bent-back

pegbox A variety of methods are used to tune different stringed instruments. Most change the pitch produced when the string is played by adjusting the tension of the strings. A tuning peg in a pegbox is perhaps the most common system. A peg has ...

. The back is ribbed. It is usually double or triple strung, and often has a characteristic flat end clasp. Dusepocobza

The Cobza is played with a

plectrum A plectrum is a small flat tool used for plucking or strumming of a stringed instrument. For hand-held instruments such as guitars and mandolins, the plectrum is often called a pick and is held as a separate tool in the player's hand. In har ...

(traditionally, a goose feather) in elaborate and florid melodic passagework, and has a pick-guard similar to that of an oud. Its strings are widely spaced at the bridge to facilitate this technique. It has a soft tone, most often tuned to D-A-D-G (although tuning depends on style, region and player). The origins of the Romanian Cobza are thought to be a local adaptation of the Persian barbat or Turkish oud, probably brought to the area by itinerant

Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...

musicians in the 15th century (a Rom/Romani musician is called lăutar, literally lute-player). A Cobza player specifically is called a "cobzar". Notable Cobza players were Ion Păturică, Ion Zlotea, Marin Cotoanță, Grigore Kiazim (from

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ro, Țara Românească, lit=The Romanian Land' or 'The Romanian Country, ; archaic: ', Romanian Cyrillic alphabet: ) is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and s ...

), Nicolae Păsnicuțu and Constantin Negel (from

Moldavia Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and former principality in Centr ...

). It is said that the Cobza was also played in the 19th Century by Jewish musicians from

region. It seems that Cobza was also used in various music ensembles in the

Bukovina Bukovinagerman: Bukowina or ; hu, Bukovina; pl, Bukowina; ro, Bucovina; uk, Буковина, ; see also other languages. is a historical region, variously described as part of either Central or Eastern Europe (or both).Klaus Peter Berge ...

region in the mid-war periods, being replaced totally by the

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of ...

and 4 stringed

domra The ''domra'' (Cyrillic: до́мра, ) is a long-necked Belarusian, Russian, and Ukrainian folk string instrument of the lute family with a round body and three or four metal strings. History The first known mention of domra is in ''Admonit ...

when the north of this area became incorporated into the Ukrainian SSR. The name of the instrument may come from the Turkic " kopuz".

References

External links

Cobza solo - Marin CotoanțăCountryside built Cobza recording"Datina" folk ensemble from Botoșani
* ttp://carmentis.kmkg-mrah.be/eMuseumPlus?service=ExternalInterface&module=collection&lang=nl&objectId=117867 A Romanian Cobza in Museum Collectionsbr>Romanian Cobza in Museum CollectionsRomanian Cobza from Horniman Museum - on the left
* http://www.koboziskola.hu/ {{Lute Necked bowl lutes Romanian musical instruments Moldovan musical instruments Hungarian musical instruments