The chitarra battente is a folk music instrument spread over vast areas of southern Italy and whose origins can be traced back to the fifteenth century, probably stabilized in its final characteristics during the sixteenth century and seventeenth century, simultaneously with the rise of the baroque guitar. It essentially differs from baroque guitar by its stringing: a chitarra battente is fitted with five pairs of brass strings with the re-entrant tuning of A3, D4, G3, B3, and E4.

Metal strings obviously have a shriller voice and more volume, which makes them suitable for outdoor performance or use during festivals, but require a more durable material for frets, thereby leading to the transition from gut frets to fixed metal frets. Strings are attached to the bottom of the soundbox to eliminate the possibility of loosening of the bridge and the soundboard is bent to have the needed stiffness to withstand the pressure thus exerted by the bridge. The chitarra battente will emerge primarily in the popular music of southern Italy, where it has maintained a privileged place to this day.