Pandura

Infobox Instrument
name= Pandura
names=


classification=
*Necked bowl lutes
*String instruments
range=
related=
*Angélique (instrument)
*Archlute
*Barbat (lute)
*Bağlama
*Bouzouki
*Charango
*Chitarra Italiana
*Dombra
*Domra
*Dutar
*Lute
*Mandolin
*Oud
*Pandura
*Tanbur
*Tanbur (Turkish)
*Tembûr
*Theorbo
*Tiorbino

The pandura is an ancient string instrument from the Mediterranian basin.

The ancient Greek "pandoura" (or "pandora") was a medium or long-necked lute with a small resonating chamber. It commonly had three strings: such an instrument was also known as the "trichordon" (McKinnon 1984:10). Its descendants still survive as North African Kuitras and Balkan tamburitsas. Renato Meucci (1996) suggests that the some Italian Renaissance descendants of Pandura type were called "chitarra italiana", "mandore" or "mandola". In the eighteenth century the pandurina (mandore) was often referred to as "mandolino milanese".

Regional variations

Panduri

Panduri is a traditional Georgian three-string instrument widely spread in all regions of Eastern Georgia: such as Pshavkhevsureti, Tusheti, Kakheti and Kartli. In general, Panduri is generally used as an accompaniment instrument (it accompanies one-part heroic, comic and love songs, but sometimes it is used in dances too). There are two kinds of this instrument in Georgia: one of them is “Panduri” itself and another is called “Chonguri”. But “Chonguri” as we will see below though looks like Panduri represents a completely different instrument.A three-stringed lute (played by strumming) from the highland and lowland regions of Eastern Georgia, and rarely found in Western Georgia ( Upper Imereti and Racha). The two-stringed panduri survives in Khevsureti.The panduri is another popular plucked instrument from Georgia, and looks very similar to the chonguri (see above).The main differences are : The panduri is smaller, it lacks the string halfway (so the panduri has just 3 nylon strings), and the panduri has frets.

The frets are usually made of wood inlayed in the front of the neck. On some there are 7 frets to an octave, but nowadays also chromatic fretting can be found.

The body of the panduri is usually more in the shape of a spade, so less with a parallel sided endblock. It is almost always made carved from one block of wood.

Tuning would be : e b a', or g a c', and playing is often strumming to accompany singing.

Tuning of the three-stringed panduri: g - a – c1

Tuning of the two-stringed panduri: d - c1

Chonguri

Four stringed unfretted lute type. Used almost exclusively for the accompaniment of singing.

Pandore

Tambura was introduced to India from Iran. Tambura is a simplified version of sitar which is made of wood and has a potbelly with a long unfretted neck. Tambura is positioned upright and its body rests on the player's right thigh. The strings are stroked instead of plucked.

Pondar

In Chechnya (a Russian republic West of Dagestan, just North-East of Georgia in the Caucasus) exists a similar traditional instrument.It has names like pondar, ponder, pandir, or pandur, or dechig pondur, adkhoku pondur or dakhch pandr, or merz ponder.

Afghanistan

In Afghanistan the pandura is called a "dambura" or "dunbura", and is a popular folk instrument particularly among the Hazara people. Among the famous Afghan danbura players is Safdar Tawakoli.

References

* J.W. McKinnon "Pandoura" in "New Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments" Vol 3 p 10 ed S. Sadie (Macmillan Press, London 1984).
*Gill, Donald 1984. ["title missing"]

ee also

*Tambura
*Tanbur
*Bandura
*Mandora

External links

* [http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/westasia/art/pictures/hittitemusic.jpgHittite Old Tanbur Picture]
* [http://www.shlomomusic.com/pandoura.htm Pandoura: the greco-Roman lyre of antiquity]