What's the difference between a sitar and a guitar?

Question

Obviously I know what they both are, and how different they are, but comparing them as stringed instruments, how would you describe a sitar to someone who hasn't seen one before and relate it to a guitar? Like is a sitar acoustics, etc.?
Is this question as confusing as I think it is? :)

Answer 1

SITAR - The most popular instrument in North India today it has a long neck, twenty metal frets, and six to seven main strings with thirteen sympathetic strings running below the neck. The lower end of the neck has a gourd which acts as a resonator.

The guitar is a fretted and stringed musical instrument, used in a wide variety of musical styles, and is also widely known as a solo classical instrument. It is most recognized in popular culture as the primary instrument in blues, country, flamenco, pop, and rock music. The guitar usually has six strings, but guitars with four, seven, eight, ten, and twelve strings also exist. Guitars are made and repaired by luthiers.

Different instruments sound different, even when they play the same notes at the same volumes, primarily because they add different amounts of harmonic tones to their fundamental tones and because these various tones change in volume with time. When you play a note on a guitar, you don't hear just one pure frequency with a constant volume. Instead, you hear the fundamental frequency and all of the integer multiples of that frequency--the harmonics of that frequency. The relative volumes of those harmonics, and how those volumes change with time, are characteristic of the guitar. If you listen to the same note on a sitar, the relative volumes of the harmonics will be different and you will hear the difference. Because both instruments are plucked, the sounds they emit both start loud and gradually grow softer. If you were to bow their strings, the sound would start soft and gradually grow louder.

Answer 2

Sitar On Guitar

Answer 3

Unlike a guitar, a sitar utilises 'sympathetic strings' along with regular strings to produce a very distinctive sound.

'Sympathetic strings' are strings on musical instruments which begin resonating, not due to any external influence such as picking or bowing, but due to another note (or frequency). The effect is most often heard when the fundamental frequency of the string is in unison or an octave lower or higher than the catalyst note.

Musical instruments make use of sympathetic strings to enhance their sound. Some have resonating strings added which exist solely to provide the effect and are not played at all. Common examples of this would be the sitar and the harp,

Answer 4

all these are string instruments. the difference is cultural - while guitar and violin are american and european musical instruments, sitar and veena are of indian origin. also there is the difference of antiquity - guitar and violin are modern invensions while the other two are more old.

Answer 5

Hmmm. Rather than trying to describe it, I would print out a picture of Ravi Shankar. (http://web.axelero.hu/andkozma/ravi1.jpg)
Or, go to cduniverse.com and search for Ravi. (http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=7011360&BAB=M)
Click on the sound samples, so your friends can hear the difference.

Hope this helps!