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The tambura (or tanpura) is a four-stringed plucked lute, which is used as a drone instrument in North Indian, or Hindustani, classical music (especially in the dhrupad and ghayal genres). A decorated gourd functions as the body of the instrument, which is attached to a broad, hollow wooden neck. The bridge is made out of ivory, and is usually moveable. It supports four wire strings, which are tuned to the tonic, 4th, 5th, and sometimes the 7th degree of the raga, or melodic mode. These pitches are played over and over to create a tonic drone over which other instruments, such as the sitar and sarangi, improvise.