Gusli is an old multi-stringed plucked instrument widespread in Russia. Since the time of Kievan Rus, references to the psaltery are found in the annals, legends and notes of foreign travelers. Now the harp is part of the folk instrument orchestras.
Instruction manual
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Instruments like the Russian harp are found in different nations. According to one hypothesis, the name of the instrument comes from the word "psalter", as in ancient times they called a string stretched over a bow.
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There were various varieties of this folk instrument: lyre-shaped, helmet-shaped, winged gusli. Lyre-shaped gusli or gusli with a game window is probably the oldest version of the instrument. Archaeologists have found such a harp in the layers of the 11-13th century. On the lyre-shaped gusli from the back there is a window in which the guslar's left hand is placed. When playing, such a harp is held upright, and the strings are muffled with the fingers of the left hand.
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Slam-shaped gusli rarely found among archaeological finds. Currently, varieties of helmet-shaped gusli can be seen in some peoples of the Volga region. The body of such a tool resembles a helmet in shape. On such a harp could be from 11 to 30 strings. We played on helmet-shaped gusli sitting, while playing the strings were plucked with the fingers of both hands.
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Wing-shaped harps were popular in the northwestern regions. Until now, in some Novgorod and Pskov villages you can find real wing-shaped gusli. The strings on such an instrument are stretched fan-shaped, the body of the instrument resembles a wing in shape. On the pterygoid gusli, 5 to 17 strings can be pulled. There are various ways to tune such a gusli. As a rule, the lowermost strings are tuned as bourdon, these strings constantly sound during the game. On the pterygoid gusli they play sitting. The fingers of the left hand are placed between the strings and during the game they muffle unnecessary strings. The right hand strikes all the strings, while the strike can go from top to bottom and from bottom to top. The most common trick of playing the pterygoid harp is the rattle. Sometimes guslars can use the plucking technique. Traditional pianoforte tunes play the wing-shaped harp most often; such melodies are distinguished by a sharp and clear rhythmic pattern. On such a harp you can play songs, but such a game will differ smoothly and melodically.
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The manufacturing technology of traditional gusli is quite simple. Gusli is most often made from a solid pine or spruce board. Initially, instrument strings were made from animal veins. The sound of such an instrument was very soft. Gusli pegs were previously made from wood, now they most often use metal strings and pegs.
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