Russian Domra ID

[hardpanman]

This Russian 3-string domra has an orange and white label inside with lots of hand written numbers and some crossouts. I can only translate the Домра Прима which is domra prima. The label seems too elaborate to be a cheapie. Any ideas?

[Mark Gunter]

Nope (sorry) but chiming in just to say that the folk art against black gives it a really cool vibe IMHO.

[lovemandoline]

This is an inexpensive factory tool ... just some kind of artist miniature painter painted it ...

[MikeEdgerton]

If you can photograph the text on the label or somehow get it readable I have a co-worker that is Russian and I can get it translated.

Hang on, I didn't realize the label was there.

As soon she is back at her desk I'll see how much she can read.

[MikeEdgerton]

The top lines indicate the manufacturer and selling organization but she can't make out more than MMB or MM5. There's more information on the name below that, this might be a government identification number or code. The next line says it's a Musicians Instrument. It is indeed a Domra Prima. The price was 22 Rubles. She says that would have been an expensive instrument as the monthly pay was around 80 rubles. There is an Article Number 1-C-8 294 900. That might be a government number assigned to this type of instrument. There is also a Description number 25958-83. There is a Book of Registration number of 077-1-1968/247. I'm assuming that includes the manufacture date and is similar to a serial number.It says something about Fabrication Folk Musician. The company appears to be named after a prominent socialist Lynacharskiy. The address with their version of the zip code is there but she doesn't recognize the town.

Anyone that plays and knows Russian might get more out of this as this young lady knows nothing about musical instruments.

[lovemandoline]

This is really a domra prima made at the Lunacharsky factory ... it is Leningrad. Now St. Petersburg ... but it is an inexpensive tool because I had a domra from this factory for 60 rubles and it is also not very expensive

[MikeEdgerton]

This is really a domra prima made at the Lunacharsky factory ... it is Leningrad. Now St. Petersburg ... but it is an inexpensive tool because I had a domra from this factory for 60 rubles and it is also not very expensive

This is a 1968 price, not a today price.

[lovemandoline]

Thanks for your reply...I know ... mine was bought in 1977...I just settled in this forum today, so far I know little here ... but I know a lot about the history of Russian instruments. I graduated from the conservatory as a conductor of a folk orchestra in 1990 ... and I have been playing domra for 45 years

[hardpanman]

The top lines indicate the manufacturer and selling organization but she can't make out more than MMB or MM5. There's more information on the name below that, this might be a government identification number or code. The next line says it's a Musicians Instrument. It is indeed a Domra Prima. The price was 22 Rubles. She says that would have been an expensive instrument as the monthly pay was around 80 rubles. There is an Article Number 1-C-8 294 900. That might be a government number assigned to this type of instrument. There is also a Description number 25958-83. There is a Book of Registration number of 077-1-1968/247. I'm assuming that includes the manufacture date and is similar to a serial number.It says something about Fabrication Folk Musician. The company appears to be named after a prominent socialist Lynacharskiy. The address with their version of the zip code is there but she doesn't recognize the town.

Anyone that plays and knows Russian might get more out of this as this young lady knows nothing about musical instruments.

Thanks everyone for the research and replies. I went ahead and used a Cyrillic keyboard and then translated what words I could decipher into English. On the bottom orange section the third line reads ИМ ЛУНАЧАРСКОГО which translated to IM LUNACHARSKY, I discovered that word was the key.
The Leningrad Lunacharsky Factory of Musical Instruments. As far as the 22-ruble price is concerned, a 1969 “Soviet Life” magazine stated that a ruble equaled $1.10 American. Adjusted for inflation, that’s $178.60 today. Pretty steep for Boris and Natasha.

[allenhopkins]

...Pretty steep for Boris and Natasha.

Yeah, but does it "kill moose?"

[MikeEdgerton]

...Pretty steep for Boris and Natasha.

That's what Natasha said here. That may not seem like a whole lot of money to somebody today. She thought it was a lot of money for that time and the priorities were different then as well. Food was high on the list.

[lovemandoline]

That's what Natasha said here. That may not seem like a whole lot of money to somebody today. She thought it was a lot of money for that time and the priorities were different then as well. Food was high on the list.

Strange ... then the food was not so expensive ... and training on this instrument was almost free ... a month of training on the piano or accordion cost 17 rubles. and on domra and violin 1rub 50 kopecks a month and that was in 1974 when I was in the first grade of a music school

[hardpanman]

Yeah, but does it "kill moose?"

Лось? Да. Белка? Нет!

[MikeEdgerton]

Strange ... then the food was not so expensive ... and training on this instrument was almost free ... a month of training on the piano or accordion cost 17 rubles. and on domra and violin 1rub 50 kopecks a month and that was in 1974 when I was in the first grade of a music school

According to her their biggest problem was getting food. She must have lived where you did not.

[lovemandoline]

According to her their biggest problem was getting food. She must have lived where you did not.

Maybe you are right. There were problems with food in Ukraine in the 90s, but we never went hungry ... or I was never hungry ... When I come back at home I miss American food and when I have visit to US I miss Ukrainian food...
But I’m happy that I have two mandolins now (one in US, the other at home) and I have handmade domra ... my mother was the cultural supervisor in the 70s in our city and then bought a whole folk orchestra( I mean instruments) from this Lunacharsky factory instruments. And I remember this story that she then sent a truck with Ukrainian garlic to the Leningrad factory.