| Name | Image | Description | Video |
|---|---|---|---|
| Balalaika |  | The balalaika (Russian: балала́йка) (also Balabaika, балаба́йка) is a folk lute instrument of Russian origin, with a characteristic triangular body and 3 strings (or sometimes 6, in 3 pairs). In the 19th century the balalaika evolved into a triangular instrument with a neck substantially shorter than its Asian counterparts. It was popular as a village instrument for centuries, particularly with the skomorokhs, sort of free-lance musical jesters whose tunes ridiculed the Tsar, the Russian Orthodox Church, and Russian society in general. | |
| Bayan |  | The bayan (Russian: баян) is a type of chromatic button accordion developed in Russia in the early 20th century and named after the bard, Boyan. The differences in internal construction give the bayan a different tone color from western instruments, especially the bass has a much fuller sound. Because of their range and purity of tone, bayans are often the instrument of choice for accordion virtuosi who perform classical and contemporary classical music. | |
| Buben |  | Buben (Бубен in Russian, Бубон in Ukrainian, buben in Czech, bęben in Polish) is a musical instrument of the percussion family similar to a tambourine. A buben consists of a wooden or metal hoop with a tight membrane stretched over one of its sides (some bubens have no membrane at all). Certain kinds of bubens are equipped with clanking metal rings, plates, cymbals, or little bells. It is held in the hand and can be played in numerous ways, from stroking or shaking the jingles to striking it sharply with hand. It is used for rhythmical accompaniment during dances, soloist or choral singing. Buben is often used by some folk and professional bands, as well as orchestras. | |
| Byzaanchy |  | The byzaanchy (Tuvan: бызаанчы; Russian: Бизанчи; also transliterated byzanchi or byzanchie) is a four-stringed vertical spike fiddle used in the traditional music of Tuva. It is similar to the Chinese sihu. However, the byzaanchy's soundbox is generally made of wood whereas the sihu usually has a metal soundbox. The byzaanchy's soundbox may be cylindrical or, more rarely, cubical. The instrument's four strings are in courses of two, one of each pair tuned together, to the interval of a fifth. The horsehair bow is divided into two portions of hair. A carved horse's head generally features at the top of the instrument's wooden neck. | |
| Chanzy |  | A chanzy is a three-stringed lute instrument from the Tuvan Republic. It is most commonly used to accompany throat singing. | |
| Domra |  | Domra (Russian language:домра) is a long-necked Russian string instrument of the lute family with three or four metal strings. It has a round body. There are two types of domra: three strings (EAD tunning) and four strings (GDAE tuning). | |
| Doshpuluur |  | The doshpuluur (Tuvan: Дошпулуур) is a long-necked Tuvan lute made from wood, usually pine or larch. There are two different versions of the doshpuluur. One version has a trapezoidal soundbox, which is covered on both sides by goat skin and is fretless. The other has a kidney-shaped soundbox mostly of wood with a small goat or snake skin roundel on the front and has frets. The doshpuluur is played by plucking and strumming. Like the other stringed instruments of Tuva, it is traditionally used as an accompaniment for a solo performance. | |
| Garmon |  | The garmon (Russian: гармонь) is a Russian button accordion. It is a free-reed wind instrument. A garmon has two rows of buttons on the right side, which play the notes of a diatonic scale, and at least two rows of buttons on the left side, which play the primary chords in the key of the instrument as well as its relative harmonic minor key. Many instruments have additional right-hand buttons with useful accidental notes, additional left-hand chords for playing in related keys, and a row of free-bass buttons, to facilitate playing of bass melodies. | |
| Gudok |  | A gudok (also hudok)(Russian and Ukrainian - гудок) is an ancient Eastern Slavic string musical instrument, which was played with a bow. A gudok usually had three strings, with two of them were tuned in unison, and the third tuned a fifth higher. All three strings were in the same plane at the bridge, so that a bow could make them all sound simultaneously (unlike a violin, where only 2 strings can be played at once). Sometimes the gudok also had several sympathetic strings (up to eight) under the soundboard. These made the gudok's sound warm and rich. The player held the gudok on his lap, like a cello or viola da gamba. It was also possible to play the gudok while standing and even while dancing, which made it popular among skomorokhs. | |
| Gusli |  | The Gusli (Russian: гусли, Ukrainian: гуслі, husli) is an ancient generic Slavic term for a stringed musical instrument. The term and its derivatives is used for either a plucked psaltery or zither-like instrument or for the violin or bowed equivalents. Originally the instrument had gut strings made from pig entrails. In recent times concert versions of the instrument have steel strings. | |
| Igil |  | An igil (Tuvan- игил) is a two-stringed Tuvan musical instrument, played by bowing the strings. (It is called "ikil" in Western Mongolia.) The neck and lute-shaped sound box are usually made of a solid piece of pine or larch. The top of the sound box may be covered with skin or a thin wooden plate. The strings, and those of the bow, are traditionally made of hair from a horse's tail (strung parallel), but may also be made of nylon. Like the morin khuur of Mongolia, the igil typically features a carved horse's head at the top of the neck above the tuning pegs, and both instruments are known as the horsehead fiddle. | |
| Khomuz |  | Khomuz is a Jew's harp from Tuva. The Jew's harp is an integral element in the music of Tuva. It is used to play the same overtone melodies used in the khoomei, sygyt, and kargyraa styles of overtone singing. The instrument is also a traditional part of Alpine musical styles, from Hungary to France. The earliest trouve in Europe is a bronze-harp dating 5th to 7th century. | |
| Krylovidnye Gusli |  | The krylovidnye gusli is one of the traditional musical instruments from Russia. It is a wing-shaped gusli. It is much smaller than a shlemovidnye gusli, and had more resemblance to Scandinavian folk psalteries such as the kantele. They were held much more like modern guitars, although strings were still muted by the left hand through a special opening in the instrument's body. This modification was more prevalent in northern parts of Russia, especially Novgorod and Pskov. | |
| Russian Guitar |  | The Russian guitar, a seven-string acoustic guitar tuned to the Open G tuning, arrived in the end of the 18th century-beginning of the 19th century in Russia, most probably as a development of the cittern, kobza and torban. It is known in Russia as the semistrunnaya gitara (семиструнная гитара), which translates to seven string guitar or affectionately as the semistrunka (семиструнка). Its invention is attributed to Andrei Sychra, who also wrote a method for the guitar, as well as over one thousand compositions. The Russian guitar is traditionally played without a pick, using fingers for either strumming or picking. | |
| Shlemovidnye Gusli |  | Shlemovidnye gusli is one of the traditional folk instruments from Russia. It is a helmet-shaped gusli. It is a variety of gusli held by the musician on his knees, so that strings were horizontal, resonator body under them. The musician uses his left hand to mute unnecessary strings and thus forming chords, while passing all the strings with his right hand. The instrument was spread in southern and western regions of Kievan Rus’. | |
| Theremin |  | The theremin (theramin, or thereminvox, also known as an aetherphone) is one of the earliest fully electronic musical instruments. It was invented by Russian inventor Léon Theremin in 1919, and it is unique in that it was the first musical instrument designed to be played without being touched. The controlling section generally consists of two metal antennas to sense the relative position of the player's hands. These sensors control audio oscillator(s) for frequency from one hand, and volume from the other. The electric signals from the theremin are amplified and sent to a loudspeaker. To play the theremin, the player moves his hands around the two metal antennas. | |
| Whip |  | A whip is an instrument played by a percussionist that is used in modern orchestras, bands, and percussion ensembles. There are two types of whips. The first has two planks of wood connected together by a hinge, with a handle on each. The percussionist holds the instrument by the handles and hits the two pieces of wood together, creating a loud whip noise. The other type also has two planks of woods, one longer than the other, with one handle, connected with a spring hinge so it can be played with just one hand, though it cannot produce sounds as loud as a whip requiring both hands. The whip was used by the orchestraions of Maurice Ravel, Vladimir Jurowski and Henk de Vlieger's version for percussion essemble. |
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