The structure of the belarussian cimbalom. Its history, evolution and future prospects

Aleksandr Porakh

Abstract

From the beginning of the 20th century, an academic school of cimbalom performance started to take shape in the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. A folk instrument was thoroughly modernized to meet the requirements of the universally used European system based on the chromatic scale. As a result, a unique variety of the instrument was created: the academic cimbalom.

            The subject of the Byelarussian cimbalom is not sufficiently known to Polish readers. Some information regarding the history and structure of the instrument can be found in monographs by Paweł Dahlig Cymbaliści w kulturze polskiej [Cimbalomists in Polish culture] and Edward Mojsak Szkoła gry na cymbałach [The school of cimbalom performance]. The current article is an attempt to present with more detail the evolution of the structure of the cimbalom in Belarus.

            The article was based on Belarussian and Russian sources. The author defines such terms and concepts as the national instrument and its academization. These concepts can be found in existing literature.

            The history of academizing national instruments goes back to the nineteenth century and the persona of Vasily Andreyev, who also deserves credit for the modernisation of the balalaika and introducing the instrument to audiences worldwide.

            Based on Andreyev's and his followers' experience, the Belarussian cimbalom – a folk instrument – was modernized in 1927. The participants in the project were cimbalomist Josif Zhynovich, lutenist Konstantin Shushkevych and instrumentalist, composer and conductor Dmitry Sakhar. The internal structure of the instrument was modified in accordance with the findings of scientific research into acoustics. The builders broadened the scale of the instrument to three octaves and introduced the chromatic scale. The shape of the beaters was also changed. The orchestral variants of the cimbalom were designed: the first, the alto, the tenor, the bass and the doublebass. The details of those modifications are explained and provided with illustrations in the next section of the article.

            As cimbalomists were becoming increasingly professional, recently the structure of the instrument had to be revised and improved again. Since the closing of the factory in Barysaw in 2006, the manufacturing of the cimbalom has been continued by lutenists, each of whom relies on their individual experience and preferences. The successes of Belarussian instrumentalists have stimulated interest in the Belarussian cimbalom abroad. In the article, the author discusses instruments designed by such lutenists as Aleksandr Prochko (Belarus), Taras Baran (Ukraine), or Marc Ramser (Switzerland).

            By comparing the cimbaloms designed by various craftsmen, it is possible to conclude that the development of the Belarussian cimbalom can take the following directions: broadening the upper register, broadening the lower register, and adding the mechanism for muting the strings. It must be said, however, that the verification of those innovations is ultimately the task of the instrumentalist-performer.