charango

musical instrument

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Last updated

July 16, 2026

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The charango is a small, guitar-like instrument originating from Spanish America. It is frequently characterized by a body made from an animal shell, such as an armadillo. This instrument is part of the rich tradition of stringed instruments that spread throughout Latin America with the arrival of colonists. The charango is particularly prominent in the Andean region, where its sound can vary depending on whether it is strung with thin metal strings, as used by indigenous populations, or nylon strings, used by mestizos.12

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Latin American music
Characteristic instruments
…area, for example, the common charango is a lutelike or guitarlike instrument of five courses of multiple strings, frequently with a body made of an armadillo shell; it sounds quite differently among Indians, who use thin metal strings, and mestizos, who use nylon strings. The Spanish classical guitar and the…
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…area, for example, the common charango is a lutelike or guitarlike instrument of five courses of multiple strings, frequently with a body made of an armadillo shell; it sounds quite differently among Indians, who use thin metal strings, and mestizos, who use nylon strings. The Spanish classical guitar and the…
Read More