Baglamas Baglamas The baglamas () (plural "baglamades") or baglamadaki (), a long necked bowl-lute, is a plucked string instrument used in Greek music; it is a version of the bouzouki pitched an octave higher (nominally D-A-D), with unison pairs on the four highest strings and an octave pair on the lower D. Musically, the baglamas is most often found supporting the bouzouki in the Piraeus city style of rebetiko. The body is often hollowed out from a piece of wood ("skaftos", construction) or else made from a gourd, but there are also baglamas with staved backs. Its small size made it
Irish bouzouki and a flat back with straight sides replaced the round, stave-built back of the Greek bouzouki. English builder Peter Abnett, who was the first instrument-maker to build a uniquely "Irish" bouzouki – for Dónal Lunny in 1970 – developed a hybrid design with a 3-piece partially staved back and straight sides. All of the initial Irish bouzoukis had flat tops, but within a few years a few luthiers such as Stefan Sobell began experimenting with carved, arched tops, taking their cue from American archtop guitars and mandolins. Even so, today the overwhelming majority of builders continue to opt for flat