DOI: 10.36871/hon.202104021
Authors
V. V. Makhan
A. A. Bakhrushin State Central Theater Museum, Moscow, Russian Federation
Abstract
The article examines written, linguistic and pictorial sources about the Old Russian domra of
the XVIth — XVIIth centuries, on the basis of which the author confirms, questions and puts
forward new hypotheses about its existence, construction and performance character. A large
number of sources — explanations in alphabet books, mentions in scribal books of professions,
surnames and geographical names derived from domra testifies to the widespread use
of domra in Russia during this period.
Miniatures showing the domra in different shapes of the body, length of the neck, and
number of strings are analyzed. Agreeing with the conclusion about the existence of the Old
Russian domra in two main varieties, the author notes that the domra could be an independent
type of lute instrument, which absorbed the features of both tanbure-like and lute-like instruments (in A. S. Famintsyn's classification). There is a new hypothesis that in Old Russian
literature domras could be called "pregudnitsy" as a general name for stringed instruments,
and domra players could be called "pregudniks".
New data are introduced into scientific circulation: based on a document of 1719, discovered
by the author, the chronological framework for the Old Russian domra is expanded to
the first quarter of the XVIIIth century, and the fact of the simultaneous existence of domra and
balalaika is established.
Assumptions are made about the nature of playing and techniques of performing on domra.
The version of the existence of the domra's tessitura varieties is questioned, due to insufficient
documentary evidence. It is concluded that all the considered evidence was a sufficient
ground for the reconstruction of domra in 1896.
Keywords
domra, lute, balalaika, history, domrachei, buffoons, folklore, instrumentology, domra reconstruction
