The kabosy is a box-shaped wooden

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

commonly played in

music of Madagascar The highly diverse and distinctive music of Madagascar has been shaped by the musical traditions of Southeast Asia, Africa, Oceania, Arabia, England, France and the United States over time as indigenous people, immigrants, and colonists have ma ...

. It has four to six strings and is commonly thought to be a direct descendant of the Arabic

oud , image=File:oud2.jpg , image_capt=Syrian oud made by Abdo Nahat in 1921 , background= , classification= * String instruments *Necked bowl lutes , hornbostel_sachs=321.321-6 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded with a plectrum , ...

. The kabosy has staggered frets, many of which do not even cross the entire fretboard, and is generally tuned to an

open chord In music for stringed instruments, especially guitar, an open chord (open-position chord) is a chord that includes one or more strings that are not fingered. An open string vibrates freely, whereas a fingered string will be partially dampened u ...

. A kabosy-like instrument with standard frets is known as a ''mandalina'' or ''mandoliny''. Kabosys are frequently handmade from scavenged materials, and their form varies greatly depending on the builder and materials available. Kabosys may be strung with nylon (often used fishing line) or steel (often from scrap wire or cable).

References

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External links

Danny Carnahan. '' Guitar Masters of Madagascar''Online kabosy lessons
Malagasy musical instruments Guitar family instruments