Musical Instruments of India
Saraswati Vina
Allyn Miner* indicates the presence of long lutes in Indian temple bas-reliefs that appeared in tenth-century southern India, in the Chalukyan period at Pattadakol, and in the twelfth-century Chidambaram, but the Saraswatī Vīṇā, with its twenty-four keys, and the double resonator, it assumed its current form thanks to Govind Dikshitar**(XVI-XVII), and having taken shape in Tanjavur or Tanjaur, it is often called Tanjauri Vīṇā.
The Tanjauri Vīṇā, or Saraswatī Vīṇā, is very different from the Vīṇā of northern India, at least in appearance. Indeed, the arrangement of the main strings and cikārī, the number of keys, the posture and even a number of sound production techniques remain the same. Before it acquired its current form, the Saraswatī Vīṇā underwent several phases of modification from the fourteenth century onwards. In fact it could be said that Kinnarī Vīṇā was changed to Rudra Vīṇā in the north and Tanjauri Vīṇā in the south. According to Dr. BC. Deva however the current Saraswatī Vīṇā is a highly evolved and modified version of a regional folk instrument from Kerala, called nanduruni. Contrary to what happens in northern Hindustani music, in the southern tradition the Vīṇā still maintains the position of queen of all musical instruments and is considered the perfect instrument for reproducing the various embellishment techniques of vocal music. Over the generations, three main styles of Vīṇā have emerged:
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Tanjavur
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Mysore
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Andhra
To build the Saraswatī Vīṇā, jack fruit wood (Artocarpus heterophyllus) is used. When all three portions of the instrument are pulled from the same wooden block, it is called ekanthā vīṇā. The hollow handle ends on the headstock which houses the keys and which is shaped into the face of a dragon called vyali. The main bridge, called khundiraj, over which four strings pass, is the most important part of the Vīṇā. It is located in the center of the soundboard, is made of wood and is covered in the upper part by a thin brass plate. Furthermore, an additional bridge is connected laterally to the stands of the main bridge, over which three strings pass with a rhythmic and drone function, called thalams. The four main strings pass through the neck mounted on the upper bridge, called the meru, before finally entering the keyholes fixed on the headstock. Just before the point where the neck ends, an extra resonator called surakkai is inserted.
Twenty-four frets are fixed on the neck with the help of beeswax and charcoal powder. The keys are made of bronze and brass, although stainless steel keys are also in use today. The strings are plucked either by fingernails or by metal plectrums worn on the index and middle fingers of the right hand.
The main builders of Saraswatī Vīṇā are located in Tanjaur, Mysore, Thiruvananthapuram and Vijayanagaram. The southern Vīṇā, available in three sizes (small, medium and large), were decorated with floral motifs and divine icons enhanced by ivory, gold and silver inserts. In the Vīṇās made in Tanjaur and Thiruvananthapuram, the resonator that is fixed below the headstock is made of cellulose pulp and is decorated with bright colors.
Today, however, hybrid bodies are becoming widespread, partly in fiberglass and partly in wood, lowering the costs and construction times of the instrument.
The performance style called Tanjavur is mainly represented by the masters:
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Vīṇā Dhanmmal
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Karaikudi Brothers
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Subbarama Iyer
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Sambasiva lyer
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Rajeshwari Padmanabhan
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Ranganayaki Rajagopalan
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S. Balachander
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M.K. Kalyankrishna
In the Mysore tradition the great Vīṇā players are:
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Seshanna Subhanna
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Venkatagiriappa
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Doreswamy Iyengar
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M.K. S. Iyengar
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R. Vishveshwaran
Andhra Pradesh has also produced many outstanding representatives, including:
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Vīṇā Venkataramana Das of Vijayanagaram
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Sangameshwara Shastri
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Vasa Krishnamurthy
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Manchala Jagannath Rao
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Emani Shankar Shastri
* Allyn Miner, Sitar and Sarod in the 18th and 19th Centuries, Motilal Banarsidass, New Delhi, 1997.
** Govinda Dikshita was a scholar, philosopher, statesman and musicologist, who held administrative posts for the royal family of Tanjavur, Tamil Nadu. These reigning princes, called Nayakas, went as far as giving away entire villages and plots of land to more than 500 families of musicians, thus supporting the development of this art. Govinda Dikshita is considered one of the main theorists of the modern period of Carnatic music and was the father of another pillar of Indian musicology, Veṅkaṭamakhin, known for his Caturdaṇḍīprakāśikā, a treatise which formed the basis of the Rāga classification system called Mēḷakarta used today in Carnatic music.
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The main instruments of Indian Classical Music
The Sitar is the icon of Indian Classical music. The structure and tonal quality of this instrument is the result of several years of hard work and dedication of both the musicians and the master luthiers.
Goṭu Vādyama is a modified and developed form of Ektantri Veena, appeared on the scene of the Carnatic music system about hundred fifty years ago, it can be considered the Vichitra Veena of South India.
The name Rudra Vina, often written Rudra Veena, first appears in Nārada's Saṃgīta Makaranda between the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries and is supposed to be a derivation of the Kinnarī Vīṇā.
The Taus, the Dilruba and the Esraj are North Indian bowed instruments, all three with hybrid characteristics of the Sitar, such as long necks, fingerboard and metal strings, and of the Sāraṅgī such as the crafted soundboard Leather.
The Saraswati Veena, is very different from the Vīṇā of northern India. In fact, the arrangement of the main strings and cikari, the posture and the sound production techniques remain the same.
The Vichitra Vina, often written Vichitra Veena, saw its splendor towards the beginning of the twentieth century but many indications lead us to think that it is a developed and modified version of a very ancient instrument.
The Surabahar, often written Surbahar, was created, according to tradition, by Gholām Mohammad Khān, disciple of Piyār Khān and Omrāo Khān. Much larger than the Sitār, it is used, both in the Dhrupad and in the Khayal.
The Tampura is a fundamental instrument of Indian classical music, present in both the northern and southern systems. The function of this chordophone is to provide a sound in the background, that acts as a drone for improvisation.
In Arabic the term rebab indicates a bowed instrument; in fact the two half-moon inlets that characterize the shape of the Rabab's sound box suggest that it was only later converted into a direct pluck instrument.
The Svaramandala is a chordophone used by singers for accompaniment. Kallinatha in his commentary on Śārṅgadeva's Saṅgīta Ratnākara coincides the matakokilavīṇā of Bharata Muni's time with the Svaramaṇḍala,
The Sanṭoor is a dulcimer that has only recently entered Indian classical music scene. It is considered one of the most important developments of the twentieth century in Indian Classical music.
The transverse flute used in Indian classical music, is capable of reproducing all the delicate movements, ornamentations and nuances of the human voice. This instrument finds references in many sacred texts.
Among the main contributions of Indian instrumental technology, both in terms of production quantity and timbre quality, bifacial convex diaphragms occupy a place of primary importance in Indian Classical Music.
In the folk and tribal music of different regions of India, various types of stringed instruments are found with a very varied tradition. In the Rajasthani tradition there are more than ten types of Sāraṅgī.
This name derives from two sanskrit terms "pakshe vadya", or from the Persian "pakh awaz" which means soft sounding. The pakahwaj became the main percussion in the north, while the mridangam assumed centrality in the south.
The term Sarod, of Persian origin, means "song" or "melody". All hypotheses regarding the origin of the Sarod, are based on many assumptions and inferences. The general opinion is that it is a developed version of the Rabab,
One of the oldest and most widespread percussion instruments are the timpani, with a conical-shaped body, the skin of which is often struck with beaters modeled in an arched shape or simply straight, with a knobbed head.
The terms Shahana, Shahanay or Shennay identify the zurna, a wooden aerophone typical of Persian musical culture. In Iran we can still find various styles of this instrument which vary both in size and in the quality of wood used.
Tabla are the percussion instruments that best represent Indian musical culture. This instrument, used mainly in the Hindustani style, accompanies singing, instrumental music and dance.
The khol is the most used percussion in the north-eastern region of India, often linked to the Vaishnava cult of Bengal and Assam, it is also often called mridang since the body is made of terracotta (mrit means clay).
Probably in the past the pakhavaj and the mridangam presented much fewer differences and are in fact to be associated with a single archetype, but they developed over the centuries within two different styles,
Frame drums are very popular in India and the simplicity of manufacturing these instruments has facilitated their diffusion. They are in fact a thin strip of iron or wood bent into a circular shape with the two ends joined on which a membrane is applied.
The sound production techniques and the structure are identical to the shennay, the differences are mostly related to the dimensions and some small details. The double reed is fixed on a metal support which fits onto the wooden body.
The violin, which in India is also called Behalā, as we know, is one of the first Western instruments to have been introduced, more than a century and a half ago, into Indian music by Baluswamy Dikshitar (1786-1858), a great music scholar caranatica.
The Suraśṛṁgāra, often written Sursingar in many respects similar to the Surabahar, is a reinterpretation of the Rabab created in Benares under the supervision of Zafar Khān.
The moorchang, is a typical example of a universal instrument. In Italy it is a popular instrument called the wind chime or marranzano and although it takes on different forms, it is used all over the world.
The tavil belongs to the folk music tradition of South India, and is often played with a wind ensemble called periya melam. This percussion has a barrel shape with a single-layered stem, obtained from a single cylindrical block of wood.
Frame drums are very popular in India and the simplicity of manufacturing these instruments has facilitated their diffusion. They are in fact a thin strip of iron or wood bent into a circular shape.
The term bhanda vadya is used to indicate all terracotta percussion instruments with a spherical body, practically real vases of various shapes and sizes.
The term "Mohan veena" can denote one of two distinct plucked string instruments utilized in Indian classical music, particularly in Hindustani classical music, which is traditionally associated with the northern regions of the Indian subcontinent.
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