plural trasteUn fret fret is the separation that exists in the range from the mast of many stringed instruments, in the most modern instruments the frets are thin strips of metal ( alpaca, nickel or steel ) embedded in the fingerboard. In some ancient instruments not from Europe used ropes tied to the mast as a fret.Clicking on a rope in a fret, produces a musical note. The acoustic distance between a fret is one semitone. The most common is the frets divide the fingerboard in semitones, as with the guitar.It is worth noting that in variations of some string instruments, metal divisions are omitted, as it is the case, for example, fretless electric bass, being sometimes the lines marking spaces simply printed. Carrying an instrument or not fretted, is a factor considered for the type of sound you want, as for example jazz, since it allows an easier slipped and therefore a smoother sound.