Mandolin

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A small lutelike instrument that evolved in the 18th century in Italy from the earlier *mandola. It usually has four pairs of wire strings, each string of a pair tuned to the same pitch. The four pairs are tuned in the same way as the violin. The strings are plucked with a plectrum and the instrument is particularly suitable for tremolo playing. Characteristic mandolin music is provided by Neapolitan folk songs, but Beethoven, Mozart, and Mahler all wrote for the instrument.