Editing Balalaika (section)

=== The pre-Andreyev period ===
Early representations of the balalaika show it with anywhere from two to six strings. Similarly, [[fret]]s on earlier balalaikas were made of animal gut and tied to the neck so that they could be moved around by the player at will (as is the case with the modern [[baglama|saz]], which allows for the playing distinctive to Turkish and Central Asian music).

The first known document mentioning the instrument dates back to 1688. A guard's logbook from the [[Moscow Kremlin]] records that two [[commoners]] were stopped from playing the Balalaika whilst drunk.<ref>{{cite news|title=Balalaika orchestra offers glimpse of instruments, music|url=http://www.dailyprogress.com/entertainment/article_3bd28b46-7c32-5f5d-aa33-fd7d73a5a781.html|access-date=18 December 2012|newspaper=The Daily Progress|date=28 September 2012}}</ref> Further documents from 1700 and 1714 also mention the instrument. In the early 18th century the term appeared in Ukrainian documents, where it sounded like "Balabaika". Balalaika appeared in "Elysei", a 1771 poem by V. Maikov.<ref>Аверин, В. А. ''Балалаечное исполнительство в Сибири: Опыт монографического исследования.'' (''tr. "Balalaika Performance in Siberia: Experience monographic research."'') Енисейский летописец (2013). pp. 31-33.</ref> In the 19th century, the balalaika evolved into a triangular instrument with a neck that was substantially shorter than that of its Asian counterparts. It was popular as a village instrument for centuries, particularly with the ''[[skomorokh]]s'', sort of free-lance musical [[jester]]s whose tunes ridiculed the [[Tsar]], the [[Russian Orthodox Church]], and Russian society in general.<ref>Шанский Н. М., Иванов В. В., Шанская Т. В. ''Скоморох // Краткий этимологический словарь русского языка. Пособие для учителя (''tr." Brief etymological dictionary of the Russian language. A guide for teachers"'') / Под ред. чл.-кор''. АН СССР С. Г. Бархударова. — М.: Просвещение, 1971. p. 412</ref>
[[File:Balalaïka "Москва 80".jpg|left|thumb|250x250px|Balalaika model of 1980 made for the [[1980 Summer Olympics]] in [[Moscow]]]]