Cello inexpensive wood that has been blackened or "ebonized" to look like ebony, which is much harder and more expensive. Ebonised parts such as tuning pegs may crack or split, and the black surface of the fingerboard will eventually wear down to reveal the lighter wood underneath. Historically, cello strings had cores made out of catgut, which, despite its name is made from sheep or goat intestines which are dried out. Most modern strings used in the 2010s are wound with metallic materials like aluminum, titanium and chromium. Cellists may mix different types of strings on their instruments. The pitches of
Tailpiece give certain desired effects. Tailpiece A tailpiece is a component on many stringed musical instruments that anchors one end of the strings, usually opposite the end with the tuning mechanism (the scroll, headstock, peghead, etc.). The tailpiece anchors the strings, so it must be strong enough to withstand their combined tension. Tailpieces of the violin family or viol families of instruments, including double basses, are attached by a "tailgut" looped around the tailpin or end button, which is let into the bottom bock of the instrument. Originally made of animal gut and adjusted with difficulty by means of a knot,