Kobza

(also cobza), a plucked stringed musical instrument, with a lute-shaped body. It usually has eight strings and measures 520–530 mm long (sometimes longer). The instrument is played with a plectrum; virtuoso players use their fingers at the same time. The kobza is found in Moldavia, Rumania, the western Ukraine, and some regions of Hungary. It appears in a somewhat reconstructed form in contemporary orchestras of folk instruments.