Karma Recordings

Listed below are some of the Indian instruments which we incorporate into our music. We hope that you will find some valuable facts and details about these traditional instruments and will be able to relate to our music better upon hearing them.

SITAR

Sitar is perhaps the most well known of the Indian instruments. Artists such as Ravi Shankar have popularized this instrument around the world. Sitar is a long necked instrument with an interesting construction. It has a varying number of strings but 17 is usual. It has three to four playing strings and three to four drone strings. The approach to tuning is somewhat similar to other Indian stringed instruments. These strings are plucked with a wire finger plectrum called mizrab. There are also a series of sympathetic strings lying under the frets. These strings are almost never played but they vibrate whenever the corresponding note is sounded. The frets are metal rods which have been bent into crescents. The main resonator is usually made of a gourd and there is sometimes an additional resonator attached to the neck.

Sitar is used in a variety of genre. It is played in north Indian classical music (Hindustani Sangeet), film music, and western fusion music. It is not commonly found in south Indian classical performances or folk music. The sitar developed during the collapse of the Moghul empire (circa 1700). It reflected the culture of the times in that it showed both Indian and Persian characteristics.

SAROD

Sarod is an instrument which is derived from the rabab. It is not an ancient instrument, probably no more than 150 to 200 years. It is essentially a bass rabab. It has a metal fingerboard with no frets. The bridge rests on a taut membrane which covers the resonator. The sarod has numerous strings, some of which are drone, some are played, and some are sympathetic. The approach to tuning is somewhat similar to other stringed instruments. It is played with a pick made of coconut shell.

There are a number of artists who have excelled at this instrument. Today the most notable are Amjad Ali Khan and Ali Akbar Khan.

TAMBURA

Tanpura is a drone instrument. It resembles a sitar except it has no frets. It has four strings tuned to the tonic. The word "tanpura" (tanpoora) is common in the north, but in south India it is called "tambura", "thamboora", "thambura", or "tamboora". The tanpura is known for its very rich sound. There are three main styles; the Miraj style, the Tanjore style and the small instrumental version sometimes called tamburi.

The Miraj style is the typical north Indian tanpura (tambura). This is the favourite of Hindustani musicians. It typically is between 3 to 5 feet in length. It is characterized by a pear shapped, well rounded tabali (resonator face) and non-tapering neck. It usually has a resonator made of a gourd, but rarely one may find resonators made of wood.

SARANGI

Sarangi is a common representative of vitat. It has three to four main playing strings and about a number of sympathetic strings. The instrument has no frets or fingerboard; the strings float in the air. The pitch is determined by sliding the fingernail against the string rather than pressing it against a fingerboard (like violin). This instrument is extremely difficult to play, as a consequence its popularity is on the decline. This instrument has traditionally been associated with the kathak dance and the vocal styles of thumri, dadra and kheyal.

TABLA

Tabla is a pair of drums. It consists of of a small right hand drum called dayan and a larger metal one called bayan.

The tabla has an interesting construction. The dayan (right hand drum) is almost always made of wood. The diameter at the membrane may run from just under five inches to over six inches. The bayan (left hand drum) may be made of iron, aluminium, copper, steel, or clay; yet brass with a nickel or chrome plate is the most common material. Undoubtedly the most striking characteristic of the tabla is the large black spot on each of the playing surfaces. These black spots are a mixture of gum, soot, and iron filings. Their function is to create the bell-like timbre that is characteristic of the instrument.

Although the origin of tabla is somewhat obscure, it is generally belived that it evolved from the barrel shaped drum called pakhawaj. This was about three hundred years ago.

DHOLAK

Dholak is a very popular folk drum of northern India. It is barrel shaped with a simple membrane on the right hand side. The left hand is also a single membrane with a special application on the inner surface. This application is a mixture of tar, clay and sand (dholak masala) which lowers the pitch and provides a well defined tone. There are two ways of tightening the dholak. Sometimes they are laced with rope, in which case, a series of metal rings are pulled to tighten the instrument. Sometimes metal turnbuckles are employed. It is said that this instrument used to occupy a position of considerable prestige. Today it is merely relegated to filmi and folk music.

DHOLKI

Dholki, also called nal, is an drum with a barrel shaped shell. The left side resembles the bayan (large metal drum of the tabla) except that it uses dholak masala (oil based application) on the inner surface instead of a syahi (permanent black spot). The right head is unique in its construction. Goat-skin is stitched onto an iron ring. In the centre of this skin is a syahi, similar to tabla except much thinner. The traditional nals were laced with rope and had sticks to function as turnbuckles. Today, metal turnbuckles have replaced the rope lacing in most models. The nal is very popular in the tamasha (street performance) of Maharashtra. It has been absorbed into the Hindi film industry and today the nal is very popular for filmi music.

DAFFALI

Daf is a tambourine. It is quite large, about two feet across, with a conspicuous absence of jingles. It is commonly used in folk music but is rarely heard in other styles. It is also called dapphu, daffali, or a number of other names. It is related to the kanjira of South Indian music. Manjira is known by many names. It is also called jhanj, tala or a host of other names. It is basically a set of small cymbals. It is a ubiquitous component of dance music and bhajans. It is a very ancient instrument; examples may be seen on temple walls going back to the earliest of times.

MANJIRA

Manjira is known by many names. It is also called jhanj, tala or a host of other names. It is basically a set of small cymbals. It is a ubiquitous component of dance music and bhajans. It is a very ancient instrument; examples may be seen on temple walls going back to the earliest of times.


KARMA INFORMATION > Profile > Contact KARMA NAVIGATION > Home KARMA RECORDINGS > Artists > Music > Latest News > Downloads KARMA RELATED > Karma Charts > Indian Instruments > Club Nights > Karma Studio KARMA LINKS > Club Asia > Nation Records > Beat Conscious > Six Degrees > Rebel Uprising > Ethno Techno > Click Walla	Listed below are some of the Indian instruments which we incorporate into our music. We hope that you will find some valuable facts and details about these traditional instruments and will be able to relate to our music better upon hearing them. SITAR Sitar is perhaps the most well known of the Indian instruments. Artists such as Ravi Shankar have popularized this instrument around the world. Sitar is a long necked instrument with an interesting construction. It has a varying number of strings but 17 is usual. It has three to four playing strings and three to four drone strings. The approach to tuning is somewhat similar to other Indian stringed instruments. These strings are plucked with a wire finger plectrum called mizrab. There are also a series of sympathetic strings lying under the frets. These strings are almost never played but they vibrate whenever the corresponding note is sounded. The frets are metal rods which have been bent into crescents. The main resonator is usually made of a gourd and there is sometimes an additional resonator attached to the neck. Sitar is used in a variety of genre. It is played in north Indian classical music (Hindustani Sangeet), film music, and western fusion music. It is not commonly found in south Indian classical performances or folk music. The sitar developed during the collapse of the Moghul empire (circa 1700). It reflected the culture of the times in that it showed both Indian and Persian characteristics. SAROD Sarod is an instrument which is derived from the rabab. It is not an ancient instrument, probably no more than 150 to 200 years. It is essentially a bass rabab. It has a metal fingerboard with no frets. The bridge rests on a taut membrane which covers the resonator. The sarod has numerous strings, some of which are drone, some are played, and some are sympathetic. The approach to tuning is somewhat similar to other stringed instruments. It is played with a pick made of coconut shell. There are a number of artists who have excelled at this instrument. Today the most notable are Amjad Ali Khan and Ali Akbar Khan. TAMBURA Tanpura is a drone instrument. It resembles a sitar except it has no frets. It has four strings tuned to the tonic. The word "tanpura" (tanpoora) is common in the north, but in south India it is called "tambura", "thamboora", "thambura", or "tamboora". The tanpura is known for its very rich sound. There are three main styles; the Miraj style, the Tanjore style and the small instrumental version sometimes called tamburi. The Miraj style is the typical north Indian tanpura (tambura). This is the favourite of Hindustani musicians. It typically is between 3 to 5 feet in length. It is characterized by a pear shapped, well rounded tabali (resonator face) and non-tapering neck. It usually has a resonator made of a gourd, but rarely one may find resonators made of wood. SARANGI Sarangi is a common representative of vitat. It has three to four main playing strings and about a number of sympathetic strings. The instrument has no frets or fingerboard; the strings float in the air. The pitch is determined by sliding the fingernail against the string rather than pressing it against a fingerboard (like violin). This instrument is extremely difficult to play, as a consequence its popularity is on the decline. This instrument has traditionally been associated with the kathak dance and the vocal styles of thumri, dadra and kheyal. TABLA Tabla is a pair of drums. It consists of of a small right hand drum called dayan and a larger metal one called bayan. The tabla has an interesting construction. The dayan (right hand drum) is almost always made of wood. The diameter at the membrane may run from just under five inches to over six inches. The bayan (left hand drum) may be made of iron, aluminium, copper, steel, or clay; yet brass with a nickel or chrome plate is the most common material. Undoubtedly the most striking characteristic of the tabla is the large black spot on each of the playing surfaces. These black spots are a mixture of gum, soot, and iron filings. Their function is to create the bell-like timbre that is characteristic of the instrument. Although the origin of tabla is somewhat obscure, it is generally belived that it evolved from the barrel shaped drum called pakhawaj. This was about three hundred years ago. DHOLAK Dholak is a very popular folk drum of northern India. It is barrel shaped with a simple membrane on the right hand side. The left hand is also a single membrane with a special application on the inner surface. This application is a mixture of tar, clay and sand (dholak masala) which lowers the pitch and provides a well defined tone. There are two ways of tightening the dholak. Sometimes they are laced with rope, in which case, a series of metal rings are pulled to tighten the instrument. Sometimes metal turnbuckles are employed. It is said that this instrument used to occupy a position of considerable prestige. Today it is merely relegated to filmi and folk music. DHOLKI Dholki, also called nal, is an drum with a barrel shaped shell. The left side resembles the bayan (large metal drum of the tabla) except that it uses dholak masala (oil based application) on the inner surface instead of a syahi (permanent black spot). The right head is unique in its construction. Goat-skin is stitched onto an iron ring. In the centre of this skin is a syahi, similar to tabla except much thinner. The traditional nals were laced with rope and had sticks to function as turnbuckles. Today, metal turnbuckles have replaced the rope lacing in most models. The nal is very popular in the tamasha (street performance) of Maharashtra. It has been absorbed into the Hindi film industry and today the nal is very popular for filmi music. DAFFALI Daf is a tambourine. It is quite large, about two feet across, with a conspicuous absence of jingles. It is commonly used in folk music but is rarely heard in other styles. It is also called dapphu, daffali, or a number of other names. It is related to the kanjira of South Indian music. Manjira is known by many names. It is also called jhanj, tala or a host of other names. It is basically a set of small cymbals. It is a ubiquitous component of dance music and bhajans. It is a very ancient instrument; examples may be seen on temple walls going back to the earliest of times. MANJIRA Manjira is known by many names. It is also called jhanj, tala or a host of other names. It is basically a set of small cymbals. It is a ubiquitous component of dance music and bhajans. It is a very ancient instrument; examples may be seen on temple walls going back to the earliest of times.