The Phandar ( ce, Пхıандар; ;) is a traditional
Vainakhish three-string plucked instrument from
Chechnya and
Ingushetia in the Northern Caucasus.
The sound produced by the Phandar is similar to the
Panduri
The panduri ( ka, ფანდური) is a
traditional Georgian three-string plucked instrument common in all regions of Eastern Georgia: such as Pshav- Khevsureti, Tusheti, Kakheti and Kartli. The panduri is generally used to accompany s ...
, but it is easy to hear the difference between these two similar instruments.
Vainakhish Phandar
Phandar is the most popular and commonly used string folk instrument in
Chechnya and
Ingushetia.
Construction
![Vainakhish Phandars Construction](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Vainakhish_Phandars_Construction.jpg)
Phandars have a wooden elongated body, carved from one piece of wood, with a flat top and a curved lower deck. They are traditionally made of walnut wood.
Traditional phandar's frets were made of cord or gut string, but modern versions can be made using the same plastic or steel frets used for
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...
s and other modern fretted instruments.
Phandar are customarily 750–900 mm long, end-to-end, but can vary in size depending on the maker. Originally phanders had 3 separate strings, but some modern instruments have 6 strings in 3 double-
courses. Modern phandars are strung with
steel strings,
but other materials, such as
gut string
Catgut (also known as gut) is a type of cord that is prepared from the natural fiber found in the walls of animal intestines. Catgut makers usually use sheep or goat intestines, but occasionally use the intestines of cattle, hogs, horses, mule ...
s, may have been used in the past. Three string phandars are
tuned c–d–g′, and double-strung phanders are tuned cc–dd–gg′.
Tuning
*Three-stringed Phondar: c–d–g'
*Six-stringed Phondar: cc–dd–gg'
Related instruments
Related or similar instruments in other Caucasian countries:
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
-
Panduri
The panduri ( ka, ფანდური) is a
traditional Georgian three-string plucked instrument common in all regions of Eastern Georgia: such as Pshav- Khevsureti, Tusheti, Kakheti and Kartli. The panduri is generally used to accompany s ...
Ossetia
Ossetia ( , ; os, Ирыстон or , or ; russian: Осетия, Osetiya; ka, ოსეთი, translit. ''Oseti'') is an ethnolinguistic region located on both sides of the Greater Caucasus Mountains, largely inhabited by the Ossetians. ...
-
Dala-Fandyr
Dagestan -
Tamur-Pandur
Adygea -
Apa-Pshina
See also
*
Pandura
The pandura ( grc, πανδοῦρα, ''pandoura'') or pandore, an ancient string instrument, belonged in the broad class of the lute and guitar instruments. Akkadians played similar instruments from the 3rd millennium BC. Ancient Greek artwork d ...
*
Panduri
The panduri ( ka, ფანდური) is a
traditional Georgian three-string plucked instrument common in all regions of Eastern Georgia: such as Pshav- Khevsureti, Tusheti, Kakheti and Kartli. The panduri is generally used to accompany s ...
*
Baglamas
The baglamas ( el, μπαγλαμάς) (plural '' baglamades'') or baglamadaki (), a long necked bowl-lute, is a plucked string instrument used in Greek music; it is a smaller version of the bouzouki pitched an octave higher (nominally D-A-D ...
*
Bouzouki
The bouzouki (, also ; el, μπουζούκι ; alt. pl. ''bouzoukia'', from Greek ), also spelled buzuki or buzuci, is a musical instrument popular in Greece. It is a member of the long-necked lute family, with a round body with a flat top and ...
*
Dombra
The ''dombra'', also known as ''dombyra'' ( kz, домбыра, uz, dombira, ba, думбыра) is a long-necked Kazakh, Uzbek and Bashkir lute and a musical string instrument. The dombyra shares certain characteristics with the komuz ...
*
Dutar
References
{{Reflist
Chechen musical instruments
String instruments