Instruments
The lute Rabab

The  "Rabab" or "Rabec" is a small lute or fiddle which can be struck, plucked or bowed. The name shows its relevance to the "Rebab" fiddle, but this little lute is not performing in the Gamelan ensemble but normally playing during dance ceremonies. The dancers hold several of these equally tuned lutes and struck the chords while singing and dancing. All two to four strings are tuned in the same pitch, so that moving the index finger over the board easily changes all notes at once. The "Rabab" lutes also remind me of several boat lutes like in Borneo, Malaysia rain forest and the Philippines. My two "Rabab" seem to be tourist souvenirs, the tuning is hardly possible as the pegs are not in shape.

Pictures (click to enlarge):

 

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