Katana VentraIP

Bridge (instrument)

A bridge is a device that supports the strings on a stringed musical instrument and transmits the vibration of those strings to another structural component of the instrument—typically a soundboard, such as the top of a guitar or violin—which transfers the sound to the surrounding air. Depending on the instrument, the bridge may be made of carved wood (violin family instruments, acoustic guitars and some jazz guitars), metal (electric guitars such as the Fender Telecaster) or other materials. The bridge supports the strings and holds them over the body of the instrument under tension.

This article is about the component of a musical instrument. For bridges in musical composition, see Bridge (music). For the benefit concerts organized by Neil Young and wife, see Bridge School Benefit.

Wood, as the top "plate" piece of wood of a or violin

guitar

Calfskin or plastic under tension, as with a , as on the head of a banjo

drum

Metal, as on certain types of resophonic fretted instruments

Virtually any material that can vibrate sympathetically with the strings. Some are made of aluminium. Some violin family instruments are made of carbon fibre.

upright basses

Typically, the bridge is perpendicular to the strings and larger surface (which are roughly parallel to one another) with the tension of the strings pressing down on the bridge and thus on the larger surface beneath it. That larger, more acoustically responsive surface may be coupled to a sound chamber—an enclosure such as the body of a guitar or violin—that provides resonance that helps amplify the sound. Depending on the type of stringed instrument, the resonant surface the bridge rests on may be made of:

Tie block[edit]

The bridge of the classical guitar does not use bridge pins. In this instrument the strings are tied to the part of the bridge called the tie block. Strings run over the bridge saddle, through drilled holes in the base of the tie block, loop over the top of the tie block, loop under the strings and are tied on. A variation called the 18 hole bridge[1] uses three holes per string and eliminates the need to tie the string down.

Fingerboard

Some tuners attach to the bridge of an instrument.

Electronic tuner

Nut (string instrument)

A.B.Wood (Admiralty Research Laboratory), A Textbook of Sound, Publ Bell, 3rd ed. 1955. No ISBN found.

violinbridges.co.uk Online bridge archive

Bridge pins of harpsichords

Movement in Tune-O-Matic bridges