A bandola is a stringed instrument with a pear-shaped body that’s a close cousin of the mandolin and is a staple instrument in the South American countries of Colombia and Venezuela. A mandolin player can convert that instruments to one of the three kinds of bandola, a “bandola oriental,” by manipulating the bridge and adding four nylon strings to the mandolin’s customary four. See the other two kinds of bandola in action: the four-stringed bandola llanera, and the bandola andina colombiana, which can have a variety of configurations of strings.
COUNTRY Colombia, Venezuela
KEY GENRES: Joropo
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