What is the balalaika?
Q: What is the balalaika?
A: The balalaika is a musical instrument from Russia.
Q: What are the different types of balalaika?
A: The Balalaika family includes the piccolo balalaika, prima balalaika, sekunda balalaika, alto balalaika, bass balalaika and contrabass balalaika.
Q: How many strings do balalaikas have?
A: They all have three strings.
Q: What is the most common tuning for balalaikas?
A: The most common tuning is E-E-A.
Q: How are the different types of balalaikas played?
A: The prima balalaika is played with the fingers, the sekunda and alto either with the fingers or a pick depending on the music being played. The basses and contrabasses, which have legs that rest on the floor, are played with leather picks.
Q: How many strings did earlier balalaikas have?
A: Early pictures of the balalaika show it had between two and six strings, like some Central Asian instruments.
Q: What were the earlier balalaika frets made of?
A: Frets on earlier balalaikas were made of animal gut and tied to the neck so that they could be moved around by the player.
