1. Plural of gamba; a family of bowed stringed instruments popular in Renaissance and Baroque music, held between the legs.
Usage: musical instrument; historical

Examples

• The ensemble featured a consort of gambes performing a Renaissance madrigal.
• Gambes were essential instruments in the royal courts of 16th-century Europe.
• The museum's collection includes several beautifully carved gambes from the Baroque period.
• Musicians trained on gambes often found the transition to modern cellos relatively straightforward.
• The warm, mellow tone of gambes made them ideal for chamber music.