The philomel (; or ''Stahlgeige'' ) is a

musical instrument A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person who pl ...

similar to the

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

, but having four steel wire strings. The fingerboard is fretless, like the violin. It was invented around Monaco di Baviera in the middle of the nineteenth century and has similarities with the Bowedmelodion also known as Streichmelodion. The philomel has a body with incurvations similar to those of the

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 stri ...

; therefore, without corner blocks, the outline of the upper lobe forms a wavy shoulder reminiscent of the viols but more ornate and fanciful. The peg-box sometimes terminates in a fancy head instead of a scroll. The philomel, never used in the

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

, is considered by some the instrument of the dilettanti, frequently played in Germany with the bowed

zither Zithers (; , from the Greek word ''cithara'') are a class of stringed instruments. Historically, the name has been applied to any instrument of the psaltery family, or to an instrument consisting of many strings stretched across a thin, flat bo ...

. The accordance of the philomel is the same as for the violin; the

timbre In music, timbre ( ), also known as tone color or tone quality (from psychoacoustics), is the perceived sound quality of a musical note, sound or musical tone, tone. Timbre distinguishes different types of sound production, such as choir voice ...

is shrill and crystal-like. There is also an alto philomel corresponding to the

viola The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...

. The is similar to the philomel, and has four steel strings of the same accordance as the violin, but arranged in inverse order; instead of being held like the violin and philomel, under the chin, it is placed on the knees of the performer, so that a hook under the fingerboard rests against the table. Philomel is also another name for the

nightingale The common nightingale, rufous nightingale or simply nightingale (''Luscinia megarhynchos''), is a small passerine bird best known for its powerful and beautiful song. It was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is no ...

, which perhaps is where the instrument gets its name.

References

;Attribution *{{1911, wstitle=Philomel, first=Kathleen , last=Schlesinger Bowed string instruments