Barbiton
An ancient Greek stringed instrument for accompanying song, similar to the kithara and lyre but with more strings.
What it means
The barbiton was a stringed instrument of ancient Greece belonging to the kithara and lyre family, but built with more strings and longer arms than either. Historical sources disagree on its exact construction; what is documented is chiefly its use as an accompanying instrument for singing.
Musical use
The barbiton was the preferred instrument of the lyric poets Alcaeus, Sappho, and Anacreon for accompanying their songs in the 6th century BC. It was thus closely tied to Greek melic poetry, the genre of sung verse.
The barbiton should be distinguished from the kithara and the lyre: all three are yoke lutes with a resonating body and strings running over a crossbar, but sources describe the barbiton as lower in pitch and having more strings, suggesting a warmer tone especially suited to accompanying the voice.