Uyghur Tembur
The Uyghur tembur is a five-stringed lute played among Uyghurs in today’s Xinjiang in China and Central Asia. It is often used in performing the classical muqam and folk music in the style of today’s northern Xinjiang, and also has a solo repertoire.
The name tembur is an alternative spelling of “tanbur”, that first appeared in a treatise by the scholar Al-Farabi in the 10th century. Today, it is identifiable by having a single course of melodic strings plucked by a wire thimble plectrum, whilst other strings are sympathetic strings that provide a background resonance. In this respect, it is very similar to the Indian sitar, which some consider to be a descendant of the tanbur. Similar instruments are also found among the Afghans, the Kashmiris, the Pamiris, the Turkish people, the Uzbeks and among different nations in northern Pakistan, with the Uyghur one being the loudest and brightest in sounding .
The tembur is made out of mulberry, with bone or plastic inlays as decorations. Steel wire is used for its strings. At around 150 cm, it is the longest of all Central Asian lutes.
