Autoharp

Autoharp
Modern autoharp
Classification Board zither
Inventor(s)Karl August Gütter, Charles F. Zimmermann
Related instruments
Zither, marxophone, dolceola

An autoharp or chord zither is a string instrument belonging to the zither family. It uses a series of bars individually configured to mute all strings other than those needed for the intended chord. The term autoharp was once a trademark of the Oscar Schmidt company, but has become a generic designation for all such instruments, regardless of manufacturer.