Krar

Krar

A musician playing the krar.
String instrument
Classification	lyre
Related instruments
masenqo

The krar or kraar is a five- or six-stringed bowl-shaped lyre from Eritrea and Ethiopia. The instrument is tuned to a pentatonic scale. A modern krar may be amplified, much in the same way as an electric guitar or violin.

Instrument

The krar, a chordophone, is usually decorated with wood, cloth and beads. Its five or six strings determine the available pitches. The instrument's tone depends on the musician's playing technique: bowing, strumming or plucking. If plucked, the instrument will produce a soft tone. Strumming, on the other hand, will yield a harmonious pulsation. The krar is often played by musician-singers called azmari. It usually accompanies love songs and secular songs.

Resources

• Asnakech Worku, Ethiopiques 16: The Lady with the Krar (compact disc). Buda Musique 822652, 2003.
• Ethiopie, chants d'amour (Ethiopia, Love Songs). Fantahun Shewankochew, vocals and krar (compact disc). INEDIT/Maison des Cultures du Monde W260080, 1998.

Bibliography

• Kebede, Ashenafi

Films

• HELP! – Musikalische Geschichten aus Äthiopien. Directed by Daniel Schulz.

See also

• Begena
• Tanbura