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All people in this world are known to celebrate birth, marriage, death and many more festivities in between with music. That does not include just singing but the instruments play an important part too. So, let us indulge ourselves in present and play and read about a few. Here I am going to pick a few and write a bit about them.
SHENNAI:
No marriage is incomplete with out the Shennai (she - ha - na - e) as it is called in Hindi. One Mastero that comes to my mind when I write about this is Ustad Bismillah Khan. This instrument brings in the tune by the wind.
It is a wind instrument. This instrument is like an elongated tube and it widens at the end. Imagine a long bamboo bark with eight holes in it and it wideness as it reaches the end. This instrument is very difficult to play and needs specific finger movement and breathing techniques. If you want to listen to this I advise pick up Ustad's CD's and get blown by the music.
BASURI:
Lord Krishna had this with him 24/7, he is known as the Basuriwala. Basuri (ba - su - ri) is known as the Flute. Mastero who excels in this is Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasai. Basuri or the Flute is carved out of a bamboo. It is also the wind instrument. It is held by one in a vertical position and has six to seven holes. The music is very soothing and captivates its audience instantly. It is said that the flute has its history dated back to 30,000 years in. The Indian Flute has 2 varieties one is the earlier mentioned Basuri which is used in the Hindustani and the Venu or the Pullanguzal which is used in Carnatic. If you got to know it better pick up a CD or read bout it and immerse yourself in the delicate music a fusion of wind and breathing.
TABLA:
Have you heard about drums and does your head bounce back and forth and tap your feet when you hear them? If you do then Tabla (ta - ba - laa) is the right instrument for you. This instrument is accompanied with other instruments to create an amazing rhythm and also while vocal. This instrument comes in 2, which means it has 2 drums. They are known as the Dayan (Right) and Bayan (left).Ustad Amjad Ali Khan is the man for this music. It is loved for its percussive style, as a backing for many dance styles.
JAL TARANG:
This is an ancient musical instrument. Jal means water and Tarang means waves. Water is poured into say 15 cups made of various sizes like bronze for e.g. and the music is created by hitting softly on these cups filled with water. The pitch of the music is changed by the amount of water in each cup. Listen to Milind Tulankar or the noted Dr. Lalamani Misra to get to know what the music feels like.
SITAR:
Do you know what instrument does Pandit Ravishankar Play? Bingo! You got the answer right. The prime musical instrument called the Sitar (ci - ta - ar). This comes from the Veena family. It is said that the famous musician Amir Khusrao in the early 13th century discovered this from the Veena. It is has strings like the guitar, however it is not a small instrument. Sitar is rested on the right shoulder and the right hand is used to pluck the strings and create music. This might look very easy to an onlooker; however it requires high end concentration and coordination. Pandit Ravishankar made this popular in the western worlds and played along with the Beatles in one of there albums!!!
HARMONIUM:
Last but not the least the Harmonium (har- mo - ni - yum); it is essential for this instrument to be at the beginning at any compositions. It has a key board which is very similar to the piano however the body is much smaller. It is portable so one can carry it and take it around unlike the piano. While playing one hand is on the keyboard while the other is pumping the instrument. It is used in bhajans, qawalli's and so on.
There are many more instruments that give us the essence of true music and without them we would be like a tree without leaves or say an ocean without water.
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