Catgut - Common Uses

Common Uses

For a long period, catgut was the most common material for the strings of harps, lutes, violins, and violas, as well as other stringed musical instruments, as well as older marching snare drums. Most musical instruments produced today use strings with cores made of other materials, generally steel or synthetic polymer. Gut strings are the natural choice for many classical and baroque string players, and catgut strings are still most commonly preferred in concert-tension pedal/grand and some lever harps because they give a richer, darker sound as well as withstanding high tension within low alto, tenor, and high-bass ranges.

Catgut suture was once a widely used material in surgical settings. There is debate about whether to continue using catgut in a medical setting, since cotton is usually cheaper and wounds closed with either cotton or synthetic threads are less prone to infection. Catgut sutures continue to be used in developing countries where they are locally less expensive and easier to obtain. In addition, catgut is still used as a high-performance string in tennis racquets, although it had more popularity in the past and is being displaced by synthetic strings.