I bought this while training as an actor to use as a stage instrument for Shakespeare productions and the like. For this function it worked extremely well, although it took some time to figure out the tuning as compared to a guitar.
The sound is truly lovely, very warm and ancient, with a huge natural sustain. It can be played melodically, or as a rhythm instrument. When strummed quickly it is very jangly and happy, whereas when plucked slowly it can become a very reflective, mysterious, even medieval instrument.
My only issue was the very high action out of the box, which makes playing above the octave pretty much impossible, as the tuning goes and holding the strings down is a real effort. I'm still getting round to lowering it, which (hopefully) won't be too much of a challenge.
The instrument looks great, with a gorgeous rossette over the soundhole, which looks handmade. The gold machine heads match the coverplate at the bottom of the bridge, which really works looks-wise.
To conclude, a great investment for anybody interested in dabbling in alternative and folk instruments, I know I have a lot more to discover with this lovely bouzouki.
