Description: In Farsi the name "du-tar" translates "du" = "two" and "tar" = "strings". The dutar is a two stringed chordophone classified as a long-necked lute. The dutar is thought to have originated from the "Tanbur-E-Khorosan". Its believed the origins of the dutar are with in Ancient Persia It is related to the Central Asian or Persian tanbur and Turkish Baglama saz. Although the dutar does have different roles in the regional music’s from folk to recently added into classical orchestras who perform the On-Iqqi Maqam (the 12-maqams) of the Uigurs or the other Maqams of Uzbekistan the "shashmaqam" and Tajikistan.
The dutar in Turkistan: In Turkistan the role of the dutar in every ones home who owns a dutar is to play often folk songs and similar repertoires. More recently since the early 20th century the dutar was incorporated as an instrument featured in "Uigur orchestras" which the instrumentation followed tanbur > dutar > gichek or sometimes western violin > chang > rewaf > daira and other incorporated instruments. The frets of this type of dutar are chromatic in arrangement. There is also are very small dutar in which the tuning is in unison or fourths and fifths like the standard dutar. The dutar is quite popular amongst the Uigurs (in which my specimen is from) and also is popular amongst the Uzbeks and the Tajik peoples as well.
In Afghanistan: The dutar is known as "Dutar-e-chahardah jelau" or more commonly as the Herati dutar. This dutar has 14 sympathetic strings as to the addition of the strings this form of dutar is influenced from two sources the Afghani-Tanbur of Northern Afghanistan and the Indian sitar. Its original source maybe the tanbur-E-Khorosan or the dutar found on the Iranian side of the border. This form of dutar is played in a wide range of urban Afghani music associated from orchestras, ensembles, film-music and now popular music.
The frets of this type of dutar are raised like the construction of the Indian Sitar. The bridge has a raised end in which the playing strings are over the rest of the strings being the sympathetic or chikari strings (using Indian Sitar terms). This form of dutar is played solo, or accompanies vocals, harmonium, and tablah in contemporary settings. Also notation is based off of Indian influence "sargam" is used to compose the scales.
In Turkmenistan: The dutar has a shorter neck often the frets are tied on or inlaid with wood. The Turkmen dutar uses metal strings prior to which this form of dutar may have used silk strings. This dutar has like the Tanbur-E-Khorosan has a fast playing technique. Often used in Turkmenistan to accompany bardic or "epic" singing, no other instruments are accompanied in this tradition. Though its been known in Soviet Era Turkmenistan orchestral forms of this instrument have been made. The playing technique for the dutar is similar to the rasquiedo commonly found in Flamenco music but with a stronger emphasis on scratching the sound-board again depends on regional differences.
Construction: The construction of the dutar is unique in regards to the whole instrument. The dutar is commonly made of mulberry wood. The body of the dutar nowadays is made with individual staves over a mould. This is modern bowl-backed lute construction though its widely applied in Central Asian lutes nowadays. The frets are tied on often with raw-silk (in the case of my dutar nylon strings are tied on) or with nylon dutar so the frets can be moved around for a desired scale. Often the scales are chormatic in nature. As for the body of the Khorosani dutar and its close associate-instruments. This type of dutar in respects to its body is carved from a single block of wood.
The fretting is interesting;Often the scales are chormatic in nature in which the first string is arranged so the first, 2nd, 3rd, 4rth, 5th, minor 7th9th and 10th which are flattened by 60 70 cents (see citations below) below. Of course this depends on where one is located sometimes the dutar’s do vary in construction and fretting technique. The tuning pegs are often hand carved this is still common today. Some dutars do exibhit machine-gear tuning pegs.