This is deifnitely the most exotic instrument I have worked on. The owner had been promised the sitar by an older gentleman who wanted to pass it on to someone with an interest. Unfortunately the sitar was dropped before the new owner received it, so he brought it to me in a bit of a sorry state.

The gourd was cracked, two large splits and was ready to fall apart.

The setup was certainly in need of work!

The gourd was re-joined and painted.

A setup with 18 strings can take a while! Sitar strings come as reels, so the correct length must be cut and tied at each end.

There are 7 strings on the playing surface and 11 which vibrate in sympathy underneath.

I did try playing it when the restoration was finished, and was not surprised to find it very difficult indeed.