The Bandura
The bandura is a fretless, plucked, multi-stringed instrument, regarded as the National Instrument of Ukraine. The bandura has a deep history that dates back to the middle ages and the instrument has greatly evolved over the centuries. Modern banduras have more than 60 strings over a range of four and a half octaves.
Although the bandura is traditionally a Ukrainian folk instrument, modern bandura music includes many different genres, ranging from classical music, to rag-time, to jazz, to pop music. The bandura is versatile and effective as both a solo and ensemble instrument.