Balalaika / Балалайка

The balalaika is a stringed instrument of the lute family with a triangular wooden body, fretted neck, and three strings. Two strings are the same note and the third is a perfect fourth higher. There are different tunings that can be used, though the most common balalaika (the prima balalaika) is most often tuned E E A. Balalaikas are played with rapid strumming and plucking because the strings do not ring out for very long. There are several sizes of balalaika, piccolo (rare), prima (most common), secunda, alto, bass, and contrabass. The balalaika can be played as a solo instrument or in an ensemble called the balalaika orchestra. A person who plays the balalaika is called a balalaechnik (балалаечник).

The earliest known documentation mentioning the instrument is from 1688 during the reign of Peter the Great. The standard balalaika was developed in the 1880s by professional violinist Vasily Vasilievich Andreev (1861-1918). The instrumented was further refined by a St. Petersburg craftsman, Paserbsky, who added frets and created balalaikas in orchestral sizes with the tunings seen today.