Description: The balalaika is a 3-stringed chordophone of Russia, Byelorussia and Ukraine. However origins are debated. Many scholars and ethnomusicologists believe that the Balalaika may have Central Asian origins similar to the Kazakh dombra this is very much disputed still. However nowadays the balalaika is a short-necked three-stringed fretted lute having a triangular body now often staved with separate staves and glued together peace by peace. Traditionally the balalaika has been found in the slavic regions of Russia.

However over time the balalaika had spread east to the Urals then to Siberia and so on. In Western Europe and North America many ensembles to full fledged balalaika orchestras have sprung up both performing traditional repertoires, their own repertpires to contemporary pieaces. Traditional rural reportoir does consist of stradanya a repertoire in focuses on love, to heart-aches, to other darker matters in contexts, many of the stradanya are composed in minor keys

Luthery: Many are factory made in particular since the former Soviet Era though many reputable makers existed back then as well as today. The name Andreyev is an important one for those studying, researching of the balalaika. This name is of a luthier who reformed the balalaika from its "folk roots" to the classical balalaika's we see today. Most balalaikas are hand made in music orientated workshops, in which the choice woods are maple (for body), ebony for fingerboard on high quality balalaikas the rural balalaikas often don't posess the ebony fingerboard, mahogany, rosewood, metal frets (now the standard practice for fretting the instrument) and so on.

Orchestration of balalaika and instruments: In balalaika music as in Croatian Tamburitza music one notices a similar phenomenon in which in which orchestration occurs. This was a very common practice in particularly during the 1930s and onward through out the former Soviet Union. One would even find a series of bayan accordion made from bass to prima (very little information is on this) though instrument encyclopedias do mention such concepts emerging.

As for the arrangement of the balalaika orchestra its contrabass (the largest bass balalaika) bass > alto > tenor > prima > piccolo > descant balalaika. The picolo balalaika is quite rare more so nowadays. In the 1930s it was more common. Many believe the orchestration was based on the early European mandolin orchestras. Symphonic compositions, and other classical instrumentations chopin, bartok, tchaikovski have also been widely adapted for performance on the balalaika. Some balalaikas are plain in design others are quite ornamental along with paintings, inlay and other beautiful and fancy workmanship.

Tunings: There are of course standard tuning being E-E-A two strings are tuned the same these are nowadays nylon-strings guitar strings of E or A strings are used and a banjo or thin steel-string is also used for the "A" string being tuned in standard tuning a fourth apart. There are many alternate tuning especially so in the rural regions and in particular the smaller villages.

Often many of the balalaika strings are of poor quality so many balalaika players tend to switch to a guitar string (a nylon A-string) and thinnest gauge banjo-string for the E string. Some balalaikas have 6-strings strung in two courses like a mandolin this is a different form of balalaika though I am told by Bibs Eckle when I studied with him briefly he did inform me of this. The alternate tunings refer to regional taste and are often limited to strumming chords for simple melodies.

Balalaika Tunings (Standards)

Standard	A-E-E
Descant
Picolo
Prima
Tenor
Alto
Bass
Contrabass
Alternate Tunings

Citations: The Balalaika and how to play it, by bibs eckle ~ A comprehensive Guide & Tutor, covering Elementary to advanced level. Recommended further study ~ V. K. Galakhov (of Orel Conservatoire): "Various Tunings of the Folk Balalaika" printed as part the collection "Studies in Musical Folklore" ("Izuchenie muzykalnogo folklora") Rostov-on-Don, 1986. Pan Records CD2002, Sigrai Vanya (Play Vanya) is a good audio-illustration of rural Russian instrumental and vocal music, that is only one to which I had mentioned however there are many, many more.