Gusli is an ancient Russian folk instrument. Mention about them can be found in ancient manuscripts about Russia. In many legends and epics there are guslars who entertained the people and saw off the soldiers on the battlefield.
Instrument history
The first records of the harp date back to 591. According to the story of the historian Theophylact Simokatta, the Greeks captured the Baltic Slavs and it was from them that they saw a musical instrument that was described as a gusli.
The gusli have similarities with the ancient Greek cithara, the Armenian canon and the Iranian santur.
Since the time of Kievan Rus, they write about the harp quite often. Chroniclers talked about famous guslars-storytellers, about the significance of this plucked instrument in the life of the people. Many legends and ballads have survived, in which the ancient Slavic harp players appear.
The term “buzzing vessel” is often found in ancient records. Earlier in Russia, this was the name of stringed instruments, including gusli-poguds.
According to historians, "gusli" is originally a Russian word. In the Old Church Slavonic language, to hum meant to extract sounds from the strings. "Gusl" is the name of one string, and "gusli" is a collection of strings.
In the old days, gusli often sounded in Russia. Guslars entertained common people, played and sang at rich feasts, participated in folk rituals and escorted men to war.
They played the harp with both hands, placing the instrument vertically on the knees or laying it horizontally. Correctly tuned gusli sounded soft, but loud enough.
It is known from folk tales that the heroes of Russian epics played the harp: Sadko, Bayan, Dobrynya Nikitich, Solovey Budimirovich and others.
Archaeological finds
The most valuable archaeological find is considered to be real gusli of the first half of the 12th century, which were found during excavations near Novgorod.
Their body is made of a block of wood. On the left side there is a sculpture in the shape of a dragon, and on the back there are drawings of birds and a lion. Such ornaments speak of the pagan cults of ancient Novgorod.
Also in Novgorod, small guseries were found, decorated with carvings and drawings.
On the psaltery found in Novgorod, the inscription "Slovisha" is clearly visible. This word comes from "Slavia" and means "nightingale".
According to another version, "Slovisha" is the proper name of the instrument. But in any case, it is obvious that the harp belonged to a Slav. Now this name is given to various groups and schools where they teach to play the harp.
Varieties of gusli
The first accurate description of ghusli appeared in the 18th century. There are the following types of gusli: helmet-shaped, wing-shaped, lyre-shaped, stationary, plucked, keyboard.
The helmet-shaped gusli have a deeper body made of thin boards of coniferous wood (pine, spruce). Their body is shaped like a helmet.
The lower side of the instrument is straight or concave with its back inward, and the upper side is made in the form of a regular oval.
Helmet-shaped gusli reach a length of 800 - 1000 mm, a width of about 500 mm, and a height of 100 mm.
The strings of the instrument are arranged in parallel rows, at the top are treble strings, and at the bottom are bass strings. The total number of strings ranges from 11 to 30.
However, the helmet-shaped gusli quickly fell out of use among the Slavs. In the old days, they were used mainly by the peoples of the Volga region.
The winged gusli were more common in the northwestern regions, located on the border with the Baltic States, Karelia and Finland.
They were made in the shape of a wing from maple, birch or spruce wood. The dimensions of the winged gusli vary within the following limits: length 550 - 650 mm, width at the narrow end 70 - 100 mm, in the opening 200 - 300 mm, and the height of the sides 30 - 40 mm.
The strings of the ancient gusli that have survived to this day are metal. The smallest number of strings historically recorded on a harp is five, and the maximum is 66. However, the five-stringed harp is best suited to the five-tone scale of a primordially Russian song.
During the performance, the guslar sits, pressing the instrument to the stomach: the narrow side of the gusli is facing to the right, and the wide side is to the left.
With the fingers of one hand, or most often with a special device (a sliver, feather or bone), the musician rattles all the strings at the same time, and with the fingers of the other hand, touching the strings, muffles unnecessary sounds.
In epics, winged gusli are called voiced. Historians believe that they got this name because of the clear and loud sound.
Lyre-like gusli are also called gusli with a play window. They were widespread in the territory of Ancient Rus and in Poland in the XI-XIII centuries. The earliest archaeological finds were made in Novgorod and in the Polish town of Opole, which date back to the 11th century.
A gusli with a play window has an opening in the upper part of the instrument. This feature makes them related to other lyre-like instruments. Most likely, the musician's left hand was placed in the playing window, and he made special manipulations with the strings with his fingers.
With his right hand, the guslar struck the strings that were closer to the tailpiece. When playing, the psaltery was held vertically, with the lower edge resting on the knee or on the belt. When playing while standing or on the move, the instrument could rest against the thigh for convenience.
Stationary gusli, like table-like, clavier-like and rectangular ones, have a similar chromatic scale. The instrument was created in the 16th-17th centuries on the basis of bell-shaped and helmet-shaped gusli. It was used as a portable tool, which was laid horizontally on the lap of a guslar. But most often stationary gusli were a stationary instrument with about 55-66 strings. These gusli were used in the homes of wealthy citizens, including among the Orthodox clergy, therefore they were often called priests.
Plucked and keyboard harp are also called academic or concert. The sound of plucked gusli is the same as that of keyboards, but their playing technique is more complex. The guslar plucks the strings with both hands: while the left one creates an original accompaniment for the melody played by the right hand. The strings on the plucked harp are stretched in two planes: in the upper plane there is the A major scale, and in the lower plane - the rest of the sounds.
The keyboard gusli were made by N. P. Fomin in 1905 on the basis of rectangular gusli. They are used in orchestras of Russian folk instruments most often as an accompanying instrument for playing chords. With his left hand, the musician presses the keys, and with his right hand he plucks the strings using a special pick.
Interesting about the harp
There is an interesting moment in the history of Orthodoxy - the attitude of the churchmen to the harp. It would seem like a harmless musical instrument could arouse the wrath of the clergy, but this is true.
In the 12th century, endless death throes awaited any person who was seen in witchcraft, telling stories or humming on a harp.
What is remarkable, at confession, the priest, among others, asked one question: "Did you not sing demonic songs, did you play the harp?"
During the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich, the harp was massively confiscated and burned from the population. Historians believe that the hatred of the instrument was based on the connection of the gusli with pagan beliefs and rituals.
There was a belief that guslars-storytellers possessed special magical powers. Therefore, before any important business or long trip, the head of the family invited the guslar to listen to his songs and thereby lure good luck.
Remarkably, there is still no mass factory production of gusli. There are small workshops in which craftsmen create this wonderful folk Slavic instrument practically by hand.
Therefore, each copy of such gusli is a unique creative sample.
The most famous epic singer - storyteller, whose name has come down to our time, was Bayan.
The famous "Lay of Igor's Campaign" says that the strings on Bayan's harp were as if they were alive and it seemed to people that the instrument in the hands of the harp was broadcasting itself.
Gusli in the modern world
Nowadays there is a gusli in almost every orchestra of folk instruments. Most often these are plucked gusli - table-shaped or later, improved model - keyboard.
This ancient instrument is able to fill any melody with the original flavor of ancient goose ringing.
To the accompaniment of gusli, legends and epics are still performed, in particular such an epic thing as, for example, "The Lay of Igor's Campaign."
On the Internet, you can find a large number of videos demonstrating the professional playing of the harp. Modern gusl-storytellers are engaged in recreating the tradition of playing the harp. If you wish, you can contact a master who will make personal harp for you, and take training courses on playing this interesting instrument of the ancient Slavs.
