Crossword-Solution: ZAMPOGNA 8 letters, 1 clue 🏆 scrabble score: 22

These fellows come in pairs, one only, properly speaking, being the _zampognaro_, for it is he who carries the _zampogna_ or classical bag-pipe of Southern Italy, whilst his companion is the _cennamellaro_, so called from his ear-splitting instrument, the _cennamella_, a species of primitive flute.

The _zampognari_ are in fact as much of a national institution with the Neapolitans at Christmastide as are the waits or carol-singers in our own country, so that to the majority of these people _Natale senza zampogna e cennamella_ would seem no true Christmas at all.

After touching our glasses and tasting the wine, we stood up to observe the dancers, who were performing one of their spirited national measures, to the music of the tabor, the flute, and zampogna.

These dogs watched alternately the browsing herds, the twittering birds, and the dark eyes of their indolent masters; who spent their solitary hours in smoking home-made cigars, sucking liquorice root, carving cudgels, scraping reeds for the zampogna, or improvising their mistresses on the three-stringed guitar.

Possibly this instrument attributed to Ravenan was but the “rushy Zampogna” alluded to by Sir Roger North[3] as employed “to stir up the vulgar to dance.” Call it by what name you will, specify the fingers that made it to be dusky or white, there is no doubt that our grave and learned historians of the subject give evidence of the existence of a stringed instrument played with a bow in India at a very early date.