Cittern Info~
CitternsStandard scale length 16"/40cm to 27"/69cm
Standard tuning. Anything goes.
The thing that distinguishes a cittern from the rest of the mandolin family is that it has five courses (pairs) of strings. Many people dispute that cittern is the correct name saying that is a development of the contemporary folk scene and not related to the citterns of the renaissance. Having said this these folk do not suggest an alternative name, we have to call it something. There are two main advantages of the extra course, a fuller chord sound and flexibility. The better chord sound gives greater possibilities for accompanying the solo performer and playing rhythm in a band.
Cittern scale length is commonly between 20" and 24" but The Acoustic Music Co has developed longer and shorter versions so that you can have tunings of CGDAE (an octave apart). The advantage of this at the high end (small instrument) you have a mandolin and mandola at the same time and probably the best travel instrument you could hope for (and its low enough to sing with), at the low end you get a mandocello and bouzouki together. With a 20" scale cittern tuned GDAEB (don't let anyone tell you can't get the B because the string will break, I have several that work fine) you have an octave mandolin with an extra B and with a capo at the 5th fret you then get mandola and mandolin CGDAE. Therefore you have an octave mandolin (GDAE(B)) and a mandola/mandolin (CGDAE) all in the same instrument!
The cittern is easier to play than the guitar, and it has a greater tonal range. When tuned in fifths (see below), it is two octaves and a 3rd, a guitar is two octaves. The cittern is easier to play because all strings are a fifth apart (don't worry if you don't know what a fifth is, the theory is still easy to follow) this means that if you move a chord shape across the strings to the higher strings you move up a fifth, e.g., G=1st, A=2nd, B=3rd, C=4th, D=5th, therefore G chord becomes a D chord. You can't do this on a standard tuned guitar. Also if you move the shape to the lower (thicker) strings it gives the fourth, therefore the so called three chord trick, 1st 4th and 5th are very easy to work out. This can be done with three note chords, where if you know the position of the root in the chord wherever it is on the fretboard that is the chord, ie if the root note is on a C you are playing a C chord, sometimes the remaining strings can be played a drones, other times not, it is easy to hear when the result is discordant. These chords can also be moved up and down the fretboard. See
10 String/Cittern chords and tips for three note chords and other tips.
I set out looking for a larger member of the mandolin family that I could sing with and would be reasonably portable. Not having any experience of mandolas, octave mandolins etc., I didn't know the ten string I ended up with was a Cittern until I'd had it for a while. It was all very confusing as different people call different members of the mandolin family different things, hence the mandolin family page on this site. Because I wasn't sure what I wanted I decided to try to get more than one member of the family out of one instrument. At first, being pretty ignorant, I thought I could have one instrument that I could tune and de-tune from mandola to mandolin, not possible, then having spoken to a few builders one suggested that if I used five courses I could move across by one set of strings to get the desired effect, but doubted that it was possible to get the string gauges for fifths all the way across. After much head scratching I figured that with an approx. 20" scale length I could tune GDAEB giving CGDAE capoed at the 5th, octave mandolin, mandola and mandolin all in one! Bliss! The result was my Old Wave cittern by Bill Bussman in the gallery. Bill also made the very fine mandola cittern and christened it the Moyola.
Citterns16" Scale Moyola, Cittern. A 16" scale (standard mandola length) cittern tuned CGDAE gives you a combined mandolin and mandola on the same instrument. You can play anything you would normally on either instrument plus you have five notes in a chord giving a much fuller sound and enough tonal range for the solo singer, as well as making a fine travel instrument. Working out the chords with the extra course is very simple, take a standard mandolin chord and work out where is the easiest 1st, 3rd of 5th to add on the c string. See
10 string/cittern chords & tips for more information.
If you have any questions please 'phone or email.
23 - 26" Scale length Moyola, Cittern A 26" scale cittern tuned CGDAE an octave below above (therefore the same playing tips apply), gives a combined mandocello (CGDA) and bouzouki (GDAE). We keep these in stock made by Jimmy Moon in two scale lengths, 25 ¼” and 23.5”. The longer scale is preferable if you are playing predominately chords and rhythm, the shorter scale is easier for playing melody lines.
20" Scale length Moyola, Cittern The only other scale length that makes sense for tuning in fifths is around 20". Tuned GDAEB you have an octave mandolin with an extra B, and when capoed at the fifth fret CGDAE mandola/mandolin, three instruments in one! This is a very versatile instrument and great for travelling.
Other tunings and scale lengths.There are many other tunings possible, particularly open tunings, on any scale length. I have never used these partly because I get on so well with tunings in fifths but also out of musical ignorance. If anyone reading this would like to contribute a section on other tunings I would be most grateful.
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