Sound and Ceramics

String Instruments Stringed instrumentis a type of musical instrument that produces sound by the vibration of stretched strings.

This string can be made from vegetable fibre, metal, animal gut, silk, or artificial materials such as plastic or nylon. In nearly all stringed instruments the sound of the vibrating string is amplified by the use of a resonating chamber or soundboard. The string may be struck, plucked, rubbed (bowed), or, occasionally, blown (by the wind); in each case the effect is to displace the string from its normal position of rest and to cause it to vibrate in complex patterns.

In Santoor the technique used is striking.

Pucking is used in Sarod and Sitar. For string instruments such as Esraj, bowing is used.

All string instruments produce sound from one or more vibrating strings, transferred to the air by the The three most common techniques are plucking, bowing, and striking.

DOTAR It is a two, four, or sometimes fivestringed musical instrument resembling a Sarod Origin: West Bengal, Assam, Bihar, Bangladesh Meaning: Two Wires Similar to two string lute in Central Asia , Dutar

GOTTUVADHYAM (VEENA) Other Names: Chitra Veena, Hanumad Vina, or Mahanataka Vina Origin: Southern India 20 or 21-string fretless lute.

Used by: Sadhu, Baul, Sant Used in: Natya Shastra, Carnatic Music

Used by: Bauls and Fakirs Used in: Folk and Bhawaiya songs

BUL BUL TARANG Origin: Punjab (India and Pakistan) Evolved from the Japanese Taishogoto Other names: Shanmukhi Meaning: Weaves of Nightingale SAROD Meaning: Beautiful sound or melody in Persian Origin: Central Asia, Afghanistan Used in: Hindusthani Music Sarod is a 17 to 25-stringed lute-like instrument- four to five main strings used for playing the melody, one or two drone strings, two chikari strings and nine to eleven sympathetic strings.

EKTARA It is a two, four, or sometimes five-stringed musical instrument resembling a Sarod Origin: India, Pakishtan (also played in Egypt and Bangladesh) Meaning: One String Used by: Sadhu, Baul, Sant Used in: Kirtan, Baul songs, Sufi Chanting

Diddley Bow Country of Origin: United States of America

Erhu Country of Origin: China

Duxianqin Country of origin: Vietnam

Ektara Bengal is a land of music. From the mountains of Darjeeling, to the forests of Doors; from the Santhals of Purulia to the Fakirs of Sunderbans , music in some form or the other have evolved to find an unique place in every corner of the state.

One of such community that thrives on music and musical story telling are the Bauls of Bolpur. Hailing from the abode of Tagore, Bauls are the worshippers of nature. Not being constrained by any religion, the foundations of these ascetics’ lifestyle lies in music.

The trusted companion of a Baul is his ‘ektara’, an one -stringed instrument, that originated in Bengal, and over the years evolved to reach as far as Egypt.

Made from bamboo and the dried shell of bottle gourd, the melody of this lightweight lute is a perfect foil to the harmonic psalms sung in the honor of nature and mankind.

For the first time, I worked with clay as a material. I learnt to use the potter’s wheel, and shaped the semi-ovoid hollow base with clay.

The next part was creating the neck, for which I had to work with bamboo. A strip was split in half and bent uniformly , before joining at one end , to design the support for the neck.

Amidst the split gap, the solo string was inserted. The entire contraption was then attached to the base.

Music often loses its charm without rhythm. To maintain the rhythm, a ghungroo was attached at the top, that provides the necessary beat.

Since childhood, I was fascinated by this instrument. So when I got the opportunity to create a musical instrument using clay and ceramics, ektara was the first name that came to my mind.

The melodious sound of the Ektara accompanying songs that tell the story of love and worship has won hearts around the world.

The songs from the remote regions of Bengal has now reached an world wide audience.

Udaipur

Udaipur has a rich heritage, not only in terms of its colour and people, but also music. I went on a solo place on a weekend during my open elective, with the hopes of exploring a new culture.

The city of lakes did not disappoint me.

Udaipur has a rich heritage, not only in terms of its colour and people, but also music. I went on a solo place on a weekend during my open elective, with the hopes of exploring a new culture. The city of lakes did not disappoint me.

Strolling around , in the soothing breeze, I found folk singers, creating their melodies on the roadside, oblivious to the surroundings.

Their pleasant music were in unison with the harmony of their accompanying instrument : Ravanahatha.

A bowed , stringed instrument, Ravanahatha has been an integral part of Rajasthani folk music since times immemorial; and has been suggested by the scholars as an ancestor to the violin.

With a dried and halved coconut shell as base, supported by bamboo strips, this sweet little instrument is played using a horsehair bow, in its traditional form. Mesmerised by the music, I decided to recreate the instrument using available materials, as a part of my coursework for open electives

Kingri

Mesmerised by the music, I decided to recreate Kingri, a portable version of Ravanahatha, as a part of my coursework.

The hollow, hemi-spherical base was made using clay, in the potter’s wheel. For the surface membrane, animal hide was used, which was a new experience for me. The neck was curved from bamboo.

For the bow, a bamboo strip was arched, and horsehair was used as the bowstring. The horsehair was covered with resin for smooth movement.

For tuning the string, a metallic key was attached on top; and the final finishing was done by designing it with ropes and patterns on the membrane made using black ink.

Shakers Indian music is known for its focus on melody rather than harmony.

However, we often fail to notice, one cannot exist without the other.

Since ancient times, harmony have been incorporated in our music, in various ways. One such technique is the inclusion of rhythm, through shakers such as ghungroo or payal.

Clay ,as material, was dried and rolled into tiny balls .

A hollow tapered sphere was created using the potter’s wheel.

Once the sphere dried up, multiple balls were placed inside it and sealed, to create a handheld shaker that generates the beats.

Being a passionate music lover and musician myself, I found the entire experience to be one of a kind.

Working with clay was therapeutic, and opened an entirely new field of possibilities for me.

Visiting two new cities viz Ahmedabad and Udaipur, and learning their culture, music and food further added to the experience.

The music lover in me realized that the strings of ektara and kingri, even being culturally distant, merged together harmoniously to create the universal language, music.

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