How the dombra makes its sound
In the Hornbostel–Sachs system, which classifies instruments by how they produce sound, the dombra belongs to the lutes: strings run parallel to a soundboard and along a neck – the family of the guitar, violin, sitar and oud.
More broadly it is one of the chordophones (string instruments), where sound comes from vibrating strings, amplified by a resonating body.
Its timbre – the colour that lets you tell it apart from other instruments playing the same note – comes from the mix of overtones its body and resonator emphasise.
From Wikipedia
The dombra, also known as the dombyra (Kazakh: домбыра, dombyra; Persian: دمبوره, dambūra), is a long-necked, plucked lute used in the traditional music of the Kazakhs, Hazaras, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Nogais, Bashkirs and Tatars, and the principal national instrument of Kazakhstan. Together with the bowed fiddle qyl-qobyz, it is one of the two most widely recognised symbols of Kazakh musical culture.
Other lutes
Frequently asked questions
What does a dombra sound like?
As one of the lutes, its sound comes from the way strings run parallel to a soundboard and along a neck.
What type of instrument is the dombra?
It is classified as lutes (Hornbostel–Sachs 321.321-6).
Sources & credits
- Wikidata Q1236973 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Dombra – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Image by User:Mizu basyo – CC BY-SA 3.0