Kankles


Kankles

 

a Lithuanian plucked stringed instrument. It is akin to the Latvian kokle, Estonian kannel, Karelo-Finnish kantele, and Russian wing-shaped (“ringing”) gusli. It is 800–900 mm long. The old kankles had four to five strings; subsequently the number of strings increased to 25. The instrument is tuned diatonically. In the Soviet era a complete family of kankles (soprano, bass, and contrabass) has been created.