Like that of neighbouring countries, the instrumentarium of traditional Afghan music is rich in stringed instruments. Found in all urban areas, the plucked lute plays a crucial role in both solo and ensemble music. The short-necked six-stringed lute known as the rebab is widely regarded as a national instrument; this so-called ‘lion of instruments’ can be played either solo or as part of an ensemble. Other types of lute include the long-necked tambour and dutar, a hammered dulcimer of Persian origin known as the santur and a bowed fiddle from Baluchistan known as the sarinda.

Wind instruments used widely in Afghan music include a variation on the hand-pumped Indian harmonium known as the harmonium and a double-reed oboe known as the zurna which is played with a technique of continuous breathing that requires the musician to blow steadily into the instrument while inhaling through the nose, preventing any break in the delivery of sound. Numerous end-blown and side-blown flutes may also be found throughout the country.

Percussion is provided by various types of drum, ranging from the single-headed daireh (a frame drum like a tambourine with bells and rings fixed inside the rim, played mainly by women) to the single-headed zirbaghali, the double-headed dul and a local version of the North Indian tabla. Ideophones include a jaw’s harp known as the chang, finger cymbals and dancers’ ankle-bells known as zang, stone castanets known as qairaq and rattles known as duzanga.