Tailpiece
As a tailpiece (English, also in the German language tailpiece to German "tail", "rear part") is a component at is stringed instruments referred to which the strings on which the screw or head plate opposite end of the instrument are anchored. The tailpiece must withstand the pulling force of all the strings and retain their position. On the other hand, it does not normally serve to transmit the string vibrations to the body - this is the task of the bridge .
The tailpiece can look very different depending on the instrument. It usually starts at the lower edge of the lower bow (where a block usually reinforces the frame so that the instrument can easily absorb the pull here). An exception to this are traditionally the instruments of the lute family , in which the tailpiece is integrated into the bridge and the tension of the strings is absorbed by the top. Most acoustic guitars also follow this model.
A tailpiece that attaches to the end of the body is particularly suitable for instruments that have steel strings, since the tensile forces of the strings are particularly high here, as well as for instruments with a curved top.
The tone of a string is only created in the freely oscillating area of the scale length , i.e. between the saddle and the bridge. The short part of the string between the bridge and tailpiece, like the part between the saddle and tuning machines , generally does not contribute to the generation of sound.
Violins
The tailpieces of violins are made of wood and are not permanently connected to the body, but rather attached to the end button with a so-called handle string (see picture) in a flexible manner (but without tension ). They belong to the set (which includes all wearing parts such as the fingerboard and pegs ) and are usually made of the same wood as the other parts of the set. Often used types of wood are ebony or rosewood . While ebony is black, the rosewood trimmings are light brown to red.
The handle string used to be made of gut, nowadays mostly nylon is used . Fine tuners (fine tuning wheels) can be integrated into the tailpiece , with which individual strings can be fine tuned.
With larger string instruments (for example the violoncello , sometimes also the viola ), the short piece of string between the bridge and tailpiece can resonate due to the vibration of the string and the body and thus generate an undesirable sound that is also transmitted to the body via the bridge. This tone is called the wolf tone . A wolf killer , which can be attached to this section, dampens this vibration due to its weight and prevents the like from rocking to the wolf sound. Theoretically, the violin could also produce this wolf tone, but the conditions such as the scale length and tension of the section are so unfavorable that there is usually no detectable wolf tone. Nevertheless, it cannot be ruled out that this effect can also occur in a violin.
Corresponding tailpieces are also available for the viola , cello and double bass, as well as the viola da gamba family.
Mandolins and other instruments
With mandolins and many other stringed instruments, such as banjos , bouzoukis , sitars or resonator guitars , the tailpiece is made of metal and is firmly connected to the end of the body. As a rule, the tailpiece protrudes as a larger component from the frame (where it is attached) around the edge to the ceiling and thus comes towards the bridge. It can either rest firmly on the ceiling or - so that the ceiling can swing unhindered - "float" freely a few millimeters above the ceiling. Often these tailpieces are equipped with a metal plate that covers the actual string ends and attachment points that would otherwise be an ugly sight.
With cistern , for example the Portuguese guitar , the balalaika , saz , dombra , or domra , the strings are led up to the edge of the instrument (sometimes also around this edge) and anchored directly to the frame with a smaller tailpiece.
With some mandolins and forest zithers , the lower end of the strings is also covered by a metal decorative plate, which looks like a floating tailpiece from the front, but has no function other than the optical cover.
Tailpiece of a mandolin with a removable cover plate
Tailpiece of a mandolin (design like the Waldzither)
Tailpiece of a forest zither
Lute and acoustic guitars
With ouds , lutes and acoustic guitars , the tailpiece is usually integrated into the bridge. Here there is either a wooden bar with holes for the strings to pass through and then knotted, or there are recesses (holes) in the bridge, into which the string ends are inserted and clamped with wooden pins (in English: sticks or sticks). Western guitars are usually built so reinforced that they can get by with a tailpiece integrated into the bridge despite steel strings.
With certain guitar designs, such as the archtop guitar , on the other hand, a tailpiece made of metal, similar to that of the mandolin, is used because the top could not withstand the strong pull of the steel strings.
Bridge with integrated tailpiece of a western guitar
Trapezoid tailpiece of an archtop guitar
Electric guitars
With electric guitars with solid body of this problem is not because they do not have suspended ceiling. Therefore, the tailpiece is usually integrated into the bridge, or the strings are anchored directly in the body close to the bridge. Models with an acoustically significant top use similar designs as the acoustic instruments mandolin or archtop guitar already mentioned. An example of this is the bigsby vibrato.
Electric guitars with a vibrato system ("tremolo") or Telecaster- like bridges also have the tailpiece within the construction. While in some modern vibrato systems the ball of the strings is removed and the string is clamped in the saddle (this component acts as a bridge and tailpiece for each string individually), in Telecaster-like models the strings are passed through the body from the back. A metal insert prevents the ball from being pulled into the wood and thus acts as a tailpiece.
Models with a Tune-O-Matic bridge usually have a stop tailpiece (also called a stopbar ). This is only fixed by the string tension at two anchor points. But guitar models can also be found here, mostly on more modern guitars, in which the strings are passed through the body (see picture). This method is called strings through body and, according to the manufacturer, promises a longer sustain .
There are also rare cases of vibrato systems used in semi-acoustic guitars, for example the bigsby vibrato in archtop jazz guitars. Here again a trapezoidal tailpiece (especially solidly built) is used, which is anchored at the end of the body.
Sectional drawing of the tremolo of the Fender Jazzmaster
Tune-O-Matic with stopbar
Tune-O-Matic without stopbar ( strings through body )
Epiphone Casino with Bigsby Vibrato
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ schleske.de ( Memento of the original from October 31, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
