The Musical Instrument Harmonium is also known as peti or Baja. The Musical Instrument Harmonium is not a native indian musical instrument. It is a European musical instrument which was imported into India in the 19th century. The Musical Instrument Harmonium is a reed organ with hand pumped bellows.
The Classical Indian Stringed Instrumtent Veena or Vina has a body made of jackwood (generally). The highest quality veenas have the entire body carved from a single block of wood, while the ordinary veenas have a body which is carved in three sections (resonator, neck and head). There are 24 frets made of brass bars set into wax. There is another resonator at the top of the neck but it is no longer functioning. It is not uncommon to find that the upper resonator may be made of acoustically neutral materials such as paper mache, cane or other materials. The veena has no sympathetic strings. It has only four playing strings and three drone strings (thalam). The main bridge is a flat bar made of brass. This bar has a very slight curve. It is this slight curve which gives the veena its characteristic sound. A major center for the manufacture of veenas is Tanjore. Most veenas crafted in Tanjore are called Saraswati Veena or Tanjore Veena. There are also Nuvzid Veena and Boballi Veena so called because of where they are crafted. Recently an electronic veena has been manufactured by Radel Sunadavinodini Electronic Veena.
We are offering a couple of unique musical stringed instruments. Each has been handcrafted by master craftsmen. The Vipanchana Veena is a revival of an extinct and truly unique veena combination instrument. We are also offering a Veena / Sitar Combination This is the instrument for a fusion sound.
The Handcrafted Sarod is an Stringed musical instrument which is derived from the rabab. It is not an ancient Musical instrument,It is probably no more than 150 to 200 years old. 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 Handcrafted 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.
The Handcrafted Musical Instrument Sarangi is a common representative of vitat. It has three to four main playing strings and a number of sympathetic strings. The handmade stringed musical instrument has no frets or fingerboard; the strings float in the air.The Pitch Of this Musical Instrument is determined by sliding the fingernail against a fingerboard like a violin. This stringed musical instrument is difficult to play, as a consequence its popularity is on the decline.
The Handmade Stringed Musical Instrument Dilruba is a cross between the sitar and sarangi. It is extrememly close to the esraj and the mayuri vina. The difference in the Handcrafted Dilruba is to be found in the shape of the resonators and the manner in which the sympathetic strings attach. The approach to tuning is similar to the sitar. Like the sitar, almost all the playing is performed upon only one string. There are a number of metalic frets, some of which will be moved according to the requirements of the rag. This stringed musical instrument is bowed with a bow (known as gaz) in a manner very much like the sarangi.
The Handcrafted Musical Instrument Esraj or Israj is a combination between saringda and sitar. The base of this musicalinstrument is like saringda while the neck and strings are like sitar. The Handmade Esraj or Israj gives a sound very much like sarangi without being as difficult to play. This stringed musical instrument is often confused with a dilruba. Both have similar construction and technique. The approach to tuning is somewhat similar to the sitar. The esraj is popular in the Bengal area of India.
The Indian Musical Instrument the Santoor or Santur is a musical instrument indigenous to Kashmir, but nowadays it is played throughout the Northern part of India. It is a hammered dulcimer which is struck with light wooden mallets. The number of strings for this musical instrument may be as few as 24 or more than 100. Typical sizes tend to be around 80 strings. It has a vibrant tone and has become very popular in the last 20 years.
The Musical Instrument Shehnai is a North Indian oboe. Although it is referred to as a double reeded instrument, it is actually a quadruple reed musical instrument. This is because it has two upper reeds and two lower reeds. The woodwind instrument has a wooden body with a brass bell. The reed is attached to a brass tube which is wrapped in string.The Shehnai has eight or seven holes however it is common to find some of the holes partially or completely occluded with wax. The sound of the shehnai is considered particularly auspicious. For this reason this woodwind musical instrument is found in temples and is an indispensible component to any North Indian wedding. In the past, shehnai was part of the naubat or traditional ensembles of nine instruments found at royal courts.
Nadaswaram, Nagaswaram or Nadhaswaram a Relative to the Shehnai. Nadaswaram is a South Indian version of the Shehnai. It is also called NAGASWARAM. It is substantially larger than the shehnai and has simple double reed rather than the more complex quadruple reed. It is considered a very auspicious instrument and is found at temples and weddings. It is normally accompanied by a sur peti, ottu and tavil. There is a smaller version of the nadaswaram which is playin in folk music and known as mukhavina.
The Musical Instrument Tabla is a pair of drums. It consists of a small right hand drum called dayan and a larger metal one called bayan. The most striking characteristic of the tabla is the large black spot on each playing surfaces. These black spots are a mixture of gum, soot and iron fillings. Their function is to create the bell-like timbre that is characteristic of the instrument. The origin of the tabla is somewhat obscure, it is generally belived that it evolved from the barrel shaped drum call pakhawaj about 300 years ago.
We also offer Professional Quality Tabla Replacement Heads. Tabla Set, Bayan Head and Dayan Head
The bulbul tara or bulbul tarang is a common folk instrument in India. It is a multi stringed instrument that has typewriter keys or piano like keys used to change the pitch. All of the strings are tuned to the same note. There are also drone strings which create a hum or vibration under the note played. The bulbul tara is a neat instrument and easy to play for musicians of all levels. The bulbul tara has also been "electrified" electric banjo.
Almost universal to any culture is the neat musical instrument called a Morchang. In the US it is better known as a Jew's Harp, Mouth Harp or Juicy Harp. This instrument is easy to play and perfect for all ages.
