“This instrument [Bordon or Barydon] ... is, however, one of the most charming of instruments”

Leopold Mozart, Violinschule, 1756.

The baryton or viola di bordone could be more accurately named a "viola da gamba d´amore". This is because in addition to the 6 or 7 gut strings played with the bow it has between 9 and 22 metal sympathetic strings that run behind the open neck. These not only help to make the sound stronger, brighter and more vivid by vibrating in sympathy, but can also be plucked by the thumb of the left hand. 

In this way the baryton can be seen as a combination of two instruments; a viola da gamba and a harp. To bow and to pluck at the same time is, however, a difficult technique that few have mastered and is perhaps the reason that the baryton has not been more widely played and composed for over the centuries.

Although its origins are in the seventeenth century, the golden age of the baryton was at the court of Joseph Haydn’s patron Prince Nikolaus Esterházy (1714 - 1790). The Prince loved the baryton tremendously, and as well as being a player himself, several of his musicians were renowned for their ability (Joseph Weigl, Andreas Lidl, Carl Franz and Haydn himself). As director of music at Eisenstadt Haydn was required to compose a considerable amount of music for the baryton in varying chamber music combinations. There are around 175 works, of which 126 are for baryton, viola and violoncello. Music for baryton was also composed by others at the Esterházy Court including Luigi Tomasini, Joseph Pucksteiner, Anton Kraft and Anton Neumann.

Besides three-part texture, Haydn often achieves the clarity of two-part writing, usually in the menuets, by having the baryton and viola play in unison. On the other hand, the richness of sound is often the result of broken chords and double stops in the viola part. It is curious that Haydn never included the violin in this string combination, perhaps searching for a fresh sound. The timbre he does achieve however is not only the result of the ‘harp’ strings but also his imagination for varying textures displaying his keen ear for instrumental colour and variety.