Tuvan musical instruments

musical instrument

The byzaanchy (Tuvan: бызаанчы; Russian: Бизанчи; also transliterated byzanchi or byzanchie) is a four-stringed vertical spike fiddle used in the traditional music of Tuva. It is similar to the Chinese sihu. However, the byzaanchy's soundbox is generally made of wood whereas the sihu usually has a metal soundbox. The byzaanchy's soundbox may be cylindrical, cubical, hexagonical or octagonical.

thumb|upright|Tsuur player The tsuur (цуур, Mongolian), choor (Kyrgyz), chuur (шоор, Tuvan), sybyzgy (Kazakh), or kurai (Bashkir) is an end-blown flute of varying lengths that is common among Inner Asian pastoralists.

left|thumb|100px|Igil made by Oktober Saya The igil, also known as ikhel (Mongolian: ихэл, (Tuvan: игил) is a two-stringed Tuvan musical instrument, played by bowing the strings. (It is called "ikili" in Western Mongolia.) The neck and lute-shaped sound box are usually made of a solid piece of pine or larch. The top of the sound box may be covered with skin or a thin wooden plate. The strings, and those of the bow, are traditionally made of hair from a horse's tail (strung parallel), but may also be made of nylon. Like the morin khuur of Mongolia, the igil typically features a carved horse's h

The tovshuur, also known as topshur or topshuur (Mongolian Cyrillic: ; ; Mandarin Chinese: 托布秀尔 Tuō bù xiù ěr) is a two- or three-stringed lute played by the Western Mongolian (Oirats) tribes called the Altai Urianghais, the Altais, Tuvans, and Khalkha peoples. The topshur is closely tied to the folklore of Western Mongolian people and accompanied the performances of storytellers, singing, and dancing. According to descriptions given by Marco Polo, the Mongols also played the instruments before a battle.

three-stringed lute instrument from the Tuvan Republic

The doshpuluur (Tuvan: дошпулуур, , ) is a long-necked Tuvan lute made from wood, usually pine or larch. The doshpuluur is played by plucking and strumming.