Description:
The bandurria is a short-necked lute who originates from Spain. The
term bandurria comes from the text "Libro De Buen Amor" by Juan Ruiz
published in 1555. The current form of bandurria's may have 12 to 14
strings. In the 1800s the bandurria often accompanied a dance called
the "zapateo" in which made its way from Spain to Cuba to Latin
America. Around the same time the bandurria occupied a predominant role
in the Afro-Peruvian communities in Lima, and near by Coastal Peru.
Today the bandurria in Peru has a strong presence in Cuzco and
neighboring Andean regions of Peru. The bandurria was globally
distributed as far from Latin America, South America and the
Philippines. The closest South American relatives of the bandurria are
the Colombian bandolla and the Ecuadorian bandolin.
The origins of the Bandurria: The origins of the bandurria are routed in the medieval period during
this time the bandurria had a total of four strings. The fourth string
was added to the banduria in the renaissance period. In the baroque
period the bandurria was given five courses or a total of 10 strings
the tuning was G#, c#, f#, b', e,” a”. This tuning is a third semitone
above the standard guitar tuning eadgbe.
The Bandurria in Spain:
In Spain the bandurria has its origins during the medieval period. The
bandurria has been mentioned since the Baroque period. In Spain the
bandurria is much shorter in length from body to neck. The body of the
Spanish bandurria is much wider. In the renaissance period the
bandurria was played by picking with the fingers. In the baroque period
there bandurria was a much smaller instrument. The bandurria today is
constructed from walnut, maple, ebony for the finger board, cedar or
sycamore.
The Bandurria in Peru:
In Peru one would find the bandurria to have the strings arranged in
12, 14, 16 or 20 courses. During the 1800s the bandurria was played in
the coast of Peru, not that far off the bandurria started migrating
inwards to the Andean mountains particularly in Cuzco. A much larger
type of bandurria called a marimacho bandurria which is found only in
the city and departmentos. In Spanish the word “marimacho” translates
into “hermaphrodite”. The marimacho bandurria is tuned a fifth below
from the prima or lead bandurrias. The marimacho bandurria is
considered a soloists instruments. Many of the tunings for bandurria in
Peru are found in the Cuzco, Araquipa and the neighboring departments
where the bandurria is currently played.
The Tunings: In
Peru the bandurria employs many alternate tunings that are commonly
associated with the areas of where the bandurria is played.
| Spain, Standard | A-E-B-F#-G-C |
| Spain, Boroque | G#-C#-F#-B-E |
| Spain, Renaissance | C-F-B-A-E |
| Peru, Apurimac | A-E-C-G |
| Peru, Ayacucho | E-A-E-C |
| Peru, Carnival | E-C-G-E |
| Peru, Cusqueño | E-B-G-D |
About My Specimen:
The bandurria in this case maybe played with a pick a guitar pick, the
specimen I have is a 14-stringed lead bandurria in which is made in the
1954. This paricular bandurria sounds quite resonant when played. If
you own a similar specimen be very careful in the way you tune since
the string guages are quite thin in diameter they can be prone to
snapping and the tention can be too much on the neck. One should also
have a sensitive guitar tuner since the strings sometimes do go out of
tune on these instruments.
Citations: pacoweb.net; Henry Du Brin @ Atlasofpluckedinstruments >Trio Assai (Spanish bandurria ensembles) > Paul Ancheta (Philippine Rondala) > http://www.pasacat.org/frames/rondalla.html ~ The New Grove Dictionary of Music Page .148.