Dear guests, we are glad to introduce you the stringed percussion instruments kept at the Saint Petersburg State Museum of Theatre and Music.

The collection is based on keyboard instruments (lute-like and cither-like instruments), 92 instruments in all. There are 25 cither-like instruments and 5 devices and modifications.

For the convenience, the instruments are divided into the groups: English guitars, dulcimers, clavichords, pianos, grand pianos, vertical pianofortes, table pianofortes, table-like (rectangular) pianofortes, the devices — transposers (removable pianoforte keyboards) and modifications of piano keys.

The keyboard instruments share a common feature — the keyboard. It is an essential constructional part for pianofortes and harpsichords, and for the guitar it’s an exception.

The keyless group combines instruments of different countries and nationalities, with their names varying. According to the organology tradition, we call them by their generic name, viz. dulcimers. As to the method of plucking, they are arranged according to another attribute that is a pair of hammers the musician holds in hands.

Electronic exposition is represented by instruments from the stocks and expositions of all the branches of the Museum: Sheremetev Palace, Theatre Museum, F. Chaliapin House Museum, Rimskiy-Korsakov Museum, Samoilov Family Museum. The exposition presents 122 descriptions of percussion chordophones — instruments, devices and modifications.

You can listen to some of the instruments choosing the introduced audio or video file.