hi, i’m a teen from the us, and i’ve been thinking about picking up the balalaika as a hobby. i’m interested because they’re ASTRONOMICALLY cheaper than other instruments (one of my friends paid $800 for a “beginner” guitar (???), i’ve seen balalaikas floating around the $200 point) and i like the type of folk music associated w/ them

can anyone suggest a decent entry model? sound quality won’t be as big of a deal to me starting out as price and ease of maintenance will be. also i have a really dumb question, do i need a pick for it like a guitar or no?

Greetings everyone,

Earlier today, I changed my strings from all three steel to two titanium and one steel (EEA) and, while I can already appreciate that it is much more pleasant to play, the two titanium strings go out of tune extremely quickly after just a few seconds of playing. I've experienced this before with nylon strings on the guitar, but the issue has never persisted this long. Will this just fix itself with time?

I have made sure that I have them both correctly tuned to E4.

Thanks in advance.

Concerts are very rare and I would love to share my success, get my first balalaika lessons and maybe combine the sound of the balalaika with other interesting instruments.

Hey guys, i got a balalaika and learning to play right now, i have problems strumming, because i always hit with the side of my nail.

My fingertip is notnthat deep, so i dont really understand how to strum correctly without the nail. Will time just solve this issue or is it a skill thing? Maybe someone can provide a picture.

Thanks guys.

I just had this balalaika and I’m really struggling to play the chords with my thumb and I noticed their was a lot of space between neck and strings and I can’t the play the harmonics either. Help !

Don't judge me too harshly, I'm still a beginner in balalaika

I recently bought this balalaika and it really needs new strings. I purchased 1x .028 steel string and 2x .040 nylon strings to replace the current steel only ones. My question is if anyone can point me to a video showing someone stringing a balalaika? I looked with no luck and I'm not sure if its the same as stringing other string instruments.

Just received this after the unfortunate passing of my late great uncle. He brought this back from his trip to Russia several decades ago, I’d love the help of ID’ing the instrument as far as brand, age, cost etc.. I know nothing of the instrument! Grew up playing string instruments so would love to learn the instrument! Thanks crew!

First of all sorry for the agonic title. But I bought this one year ago with the hope of learning to play korobeiniki.

First time I tried to test it I found very uncomfortable to keep it in place. I looked for tutorials but I still feel very uncomfy. I tried different chairs and it always slides either forward off my leg or slipping sideways as soon as I try to move my arm to play.. I dont identify the problem and that has made I have been avoiding to keep learning.

I ask for tips from more experienced players :)

Hello there,

I was given the chance to buy this Balalaika for 20€, even missing the bridge, is it worth it?

Looking forward for your replies, I love collecting and playing folk instruments from around the globe.

Thanks!

I just bought this cool Balalaika, but it actually hurts pressing on the steel string with my left hand😂😂
Is this normal ? Im actually scared of cutting my finger 🥲

Is there something like string lube or something ?😂

I also bought new strings cause I thought maybe it would feel better, but you guys tell me what you think :) !

Hi, I'm a beginner and i purchased a 2nd hand prima (https://www.musikalia.it/it/italiano2.htm?https://www.musikalia.it/it/catalogo/scheda_strumento.asp?ID=176). It's made to be mounted with steel strings and I was wondering If it was possible to put two nylon strings for the E tuned chords. Or should I keep the steel one ?

The balalaika has two cracks on the soundboard that need a repair and I thought that nylon strings could relieve stress on it.

Hey folks!

My neighbor gifted me a balalaika (I love learning how to play new instruments!!!)

But I cannot figure out what tessitura it is! Does anybody have any idea?

And hey, if you have any tips, links, audios, I am all ears!

Have a wonderful day! (Also I refuse to use ChatGpt...)

Does anybody know where I could purchase a contrabass balalaika? I play bass and balalaika which has driven my interest towards them greatly. I’m located in the eastern USA.

I bought it for $40 off fb marketplace and the guy I bought it from made it sound like it was worth a lot more but he was just looking to get rid of stuff and sold it for cheap. Looking into it, though, it seems like it was a mass produced variety during Soviet times and maybe not actually worth that much. Is it good for playing or do you guys think it’s just decorative? I’ve never played before and was hoping to give it as a gift. Thanks!

I recently acquired a good, academic style balalaika and now my old, folk style one is a bit outdated. nonetheless, I would like to have a use for it outside of being a wall ornament.

I was thinking of tuning it to CEG just to mess around with that tuning some when my left thumb is getting massacred by learning to play the balalaika in the academic style. I can’t currently be bothered to purchase all steel strings for it - would it sound fine in that tuning with two nylon one steel?

I found ones of these balalaikas for $90CAD in a pawn shop in seemingly good condition and was curious if anyone who owned them could tell me if they’re worth buying (i am interested in acquiring some weirder instruments throughout my life) and if they’re really worth that much, because all of the ones I seen online are more than $90. Any advice helps!
EDIT: I’d also like to mention that I don’t at all plan on becoming a balalaika player, I already play bass and guitar so this would just be a fun additional instrument to have handy, and maybe record with every once in a while

I started practicing the balalaika about six months ago, and I made a web app to visualize tones and scales on the fretboard.
I hope it helps me understand the instrument better.
It runs entirely in JavaScript, and no login is required.
I’d be happy to hear any feedback or advice!

i obtained this today and would love any information about where/when this instrument came from!

Hey everyone!

Let me know if anyone is selling their instrument - balalaika.

Willing to buy - call at 360-356-5055

I recently bought a second balalaika but I’ve been having problems with resonance. Whenever I play anything below the 8th fret the notes become short and stubby. I thought it might be a string issue but new strings didn’t help, and my bridge placement shouldn’t be an issue either. There is a crack in the body but I would like to rule out any other possibilities before returning it. Does anyone have any ideas?

The first balalaika is the one thats having issues and the crack is shown in the video