Kazakhstan is an amazing and wonderful country, the culture of which will never cease to amaze. Even if you look at just a number of unique musical instruments, you begin to understand that these are extraordinary people. Kobyz, Zhetygen, sybyzgy, sherterb, asyayayak - where else can you find such instruments? The uniqueness and uniqueness of each nation is something that no one can ever take from humanity. Such cultural treasures of the Republic of Kazakhstan will be discussed further.
Kazakh music
For the Kazakh people, music has always been something supernatural and everyday at the same time. Legends of this people speak of its unearthly origin. At the same time, for any Kazakh to be a musician is like being able to walk or talk. It is worth noting that the Kazakh culture is characterized by solo performances, where the musician manifests himself as an artist who creates directly in public. Before, it was very rare to meet any ensembles or even duets. And if people sang together, then most often in unison.
One of the main musical instruments of Kazakhstan
Here we will focus on a unique masterpiece. Dombra is a musical instrument that is rightfully considered a national treasure of the Republic of Kazakhstan. It is mainly distinguished by the fact that it has only two strings, but this in no way limits it. Anyone who knows how to play dombra will be able to create beautiful and absolutely full music using all these two strings. It is important to mention here that dombra can easily be both a solo instrument and play in a large orchestra, creating a unique musical background.
Dombra is a musical instrument that belongs to the plucked ones. This means that sound is extracted from it in one of the following ways:
- A pinch.
- Blow of the brush.
- Using a pick.
As a result, we get a quiet, gentle and soft sound, which is suitable for loud orchestral music, as well as for a quiet and lyrical solo theme.
Part of Kalmyk culture
An interesting fact is that dombra is a Kalmyk musical instrument just as much as a Kazakh one. The Kalmyks did not have full and professional singing in ensembles and even theater. It was common for them to hear all kinds of solo performances, which were organized by storytellers accompanied by music. It was for this accompaniment that the dombra was used. Often along with this action they begin to dance and sing along in unison. Dombra (a musical instrument whose photo you will see below) has firmly entered the culture of Kalmykia, which you should never forget.
What does it consist of?
A dombra musical instrument, like any other, has its own components. In many ways they are typical of a plucked product, but it will be very interesting to consider them better. So, the design of the dombra includes:
- Case (in Kazakh culture - a shanak). It acts as an amplifier for sound waves, as in other similar instruments.
- Deca (in Kazakh culture - kakpak). Not only enhances the sound waves, but also gives them a characteristic sound coloring, thereby forming the timbre of the instrument. Depending on the shape or roughness of the deck for seemingly identical instruments, this timbre can vary quite a lot.
- Stand. Almost the entire sound of the instrument depends on the qualities, weight, shape and settings of this part. It directly affects the strength, evenness and timbre of the dombra sound.
- The strings. They are a source of sound, which means that without them, certainly nothing will work.
Vein strings that were made from the insides of a goat or a ram have always been traditional for dombra. At one time, the strings from the intestines of a sheep, which was already two years old, were considered the highest quality. They gave the sound a lower tone, and this was what was characteristic of traditional Kazakh music. Now, strings are most often made from fishing line. For all other elements of the dombra any quality tree is suitable.
Variety of species
Kazakh musical instrument dombra has several varieties. It is important to say here that although the three-stringed instrument is present in the classification of its species, the two-stringed dombra is a classic representative of its family. So, there are the following types of this string instrument:
- Two-stringed.
- Three-stringed.
- Wide body.
- Double sided.
- Subtype.
- With a hollow neck.
What is performed on dombra?
We continue to consider what a dombra is (photos are presented in the article). This section describes perhaps the most important thing about this tool. You still do not know why it can be used?
No matter how surprising it may sound, but on the dombra you can play any music - from classical works and folk motifs to modern pop music. To do this, you just need to learn how to deal with these two strings and, of course, train a lot. Although before the ensembles with dombra were something incredible, but today it can play with any other instrument in a pair or even in an orchestra. Together with other folk stringed and plucked instruments, it sounds very harmonious and pleasant.
Although it is quite possible to play music of any genre on a dombra, it is considered to be the main asset of kui. Steppe peoples have been playing this music for hundreds of years for their pleasure, and ignorance of musical literacy does not stop them.
Kui can be performed in two styles: combat and shertpe. The first option is familiar and familiar to us, but the second involves performance with the help of a light sipping string. Shertpe began with the Kazakh hero Tatimbet around the 19th century.
A lot of musicians tried to master the game of dombra and this turned out to be difficult or even impossible for them. The whole secret was that it was very difficult to understand how two strings are able to create full and absolutely beautiful music.
Is dombra and domra the same thing?
Very often people use these two words as synonyms, putting the same meaning in them. If you allowed yourself to do so, then this was a huge mistake. Even people with a musical education do not always know the difference between these instruments, so we will talk more about this later.
The dombra musical instrument, as already mentioned, is a two-stringed instrument, while the domra is a three- or four-stringed masterpiece that Russian culture is proud of.
Common to these two instruments is that they are plucked, and picks are used to extract sound from them. In history and culture, they were used for approximately the same purpose.
What is domra in music?
So you can imagine domra, you do not need to fantasize much. It is very similar to a balalaika, but its main body is not triangular, but oval. Domra consists of three main parts, and by this it is quite similar to dombra. The most common form is a small dombra, the body of which is a hemisphere. In addition to the body, the instrument consists of a neck, which is often called the neck, and the head.
About the case, I must also say that it includes such elements as the body, deck, buttons for securing the strings and the lower nut.
Instead of a conclusion
It's no secret that folk musical instruments have always had not only great cultural value in their homeland, but also have had a significant impact on contemporary music. Quite often, it may seem that folk motifs are dying out along with a huge number of other cultural traditions. But in fact, the younger generation will never forget their story if we tell them. And this directly applies to music. The musical instrument of dombra in Kazakhstan and Kalmykia or domra in Russia is our heritage. Growing up, our children begin not only to respect such things, but also to revive them.