The Italians, members of such a refined culture, sound their instruments (Suonare uno strumento). While, further North, their French, German and English counter-parts have a very curious notion playing with an instrument (ein Instrument spielen; jouer d’un instrument).

However, the Spaniards, Portuguese and Catalans are more pragmatic. They touch their guitars, violins and pianos with the verb “tocar”; the delicacy of performance perhaps slightly lost on the Iberian peninsula, especially in the Basque Country where they strike (“instrumento OJ”) their musical instruments.