Rosette (music)

From the medieval to the baroque periods, it was common to have ornately carved soundhole designs, called roses. These were either carved directly into the wood of the soundboard or inserted from behind and made of carved wood or parchment. The designs used for lutes and other early instruments were often inspired by the geometric patterns in Islamic art, probably from those used on the oud. During the medieval period, most such designs were 4-sided, whereas during the renaissance and baroque periods, 6-sided designs were used. Image:Stradivarius Guitar - 1700, rosette 1, National Music Museum, Vermillion.jpg|Baroque guitar soundhole with inserted wooden rose and inlaid rosette (1700). Image:Mandora MET DP168840.jpg|A carved rose on a mandora from 1726. Image:Guitar MET DP232761.jpg|Baroque guitar soundhole with multi-layered parchment rose from behind, surrounded by inlaid rosette (1630). Image:Mandoline MET MIDP89.4.1066 rose.jpg|Baroque mandolin with inserted rose made from ivory. ==Modern usage==

During the romantic and classical periods in western music, the carved ornate soundhole roses went out of fashion and were replaced by open soundholes surrounded by inlaid decoration, commonly called rosettes. This style is still used today on classical and acoustic guitars. Modern rosettes can be made of wood or plastic. Roses inserted from behind are still used on Ouds, Lavtas, Laoutos and other modern lutes. Decorative inserted roses are also sometimes used in modern times on electro-acoustic instruments, to prevent feedback. Image:Parlor guitar (1890s) soundhole rosette.jpg|Rosette on Romantic guitar (1890s). Image:Yamaha C-40 soundhole & label - Land Locked Blues. (2009-03-15 00.28.33 by mt 23).jpg|close-up view of rosette on modern classical guitar. Image:Viohl Ukulele sound hole.jpg|Ukulele soundhole rosette Image:Oud (plucked lute), Cairo, Egypt, 2009 - MIM PHX.jpg|Egyptian oud with common triple soundhole shams (rose) design. Image:Rosette 01.png|Close-up of oud shams Image:Electric Bouzouki, MIM PHX.jpg|Modern bouzouki with inlaid rosette and scratch plate. ==References==