abstract:The cimbalom is a concert hammered dulcimer: a type of chordophone composed of a large, trapezoidal box with metal strings stretched across its top. It is a musical instrument popularized in Hungary and commonly found throughout the group of Central-Eastern European nations and cultures which composed Austria-Hungary (1867–1918), namely contemporary Belarus, Hungary, Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
The larger zither familyincludes such instruments as the Aeolian harp, autoharp, cimbalom, dulcimer, koto, andeven the clavichord, harpsichord, andpiano.
The recordings he made 45 years ago for Romanian Electrecord, with fiddle, accordion, bass and cimbalom (hammered dulcimer), have just been issued in the U.S. for the first time.