The Tres Hondureño instrument for pedagogical purposes, synthesis of a constructive exploration

Abstract

The “Honduran Tres” is a plucked three-string instrument invented in early 2021 by Emilio Lanza, architect and multidisciplinary artist. Professor Lanza is both an instructor and member of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Honduras Luthierlab in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. The “Tres” is a didactic, simple instrument in its tuning and construction. Lanza utilizes the dried fruit shells of trees of the “Crescentia” genus to make up its soundboxes. The design of the “Tres” aims to facilitate music education in two ways: teaching the “Tres” as an instrument itself and introducing the fundamentals of music theory. The “Tres” represents the culmination of a process of exploration and construction of various instruments, incorporating their main characteristics. The topic of national identity relating to this instrument is the object of study of another essay written by Miguel Romero in this same issue of this magazine.