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The '''sarod''' is an Indian classical [[musical instrument]] which probably originates from the Senya rebab an Indio-persian instrument played in [[India]] to the 19th century. In terms of prominence and popularity amongst connoisseurs of Hindustani instrumental music, it occupies a position next only to that of the sitar. |
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The '''sarod''' is an [[India]]n classical [[musical instrument]] similar to a [[lute]].[[Image:LmM_Sarod.jpg|thumb|right|Sonorous Instrument: Sarod]] |
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It is a 25-stringed lute-like instrument, whose body is hand carved from a single block of ''tun'' ( Indian Mahogany) or [[teak]] wood, with a steel fretless finger board. The bridge rests on the belly of the instrument which is covered in goat skin. |
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== Origin == |
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The strings are struck with a with a triangular [[plectrum]] made of polished coconut shell or other materials. The sarod has four to five melody or playing strings, two to four rhythm strings, and nine to fifteen sympathetic strings. Sarod strings are made either of steel or phosphor-bronze. Most contemporary sarod players use Roslau, Schaff or Precision brand music wire. |
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The sarod probably originates from the Senya ''[[rebab]]'', an Indian instrument played till the 19th century. However, this is disputed by some sarod musicians, notably Ustad [[Ali Akbar Khan]], who are of the opinion that the instrument existed in ancient India. They refer to instruments which resemble the sarod found in carvings of the 1st century in the Champa temple and also in paintings in the Ajanta caves. |
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Most scholarly and anecdotal accounts place the Afghan rabab to be the immediate source of the sarod, though there are speculations that a similar instrument might have existed almost two thousand years ago in ancient India. The sarod in its present recognizable form dates back to c. 1820 when it started gaining recognition as a serious instrument in Rewa, Shahjahanpur, Gwalior and Lucknow. In the twentieth century, the sarod received some finishing touches from Allauddin Khan, the performer-pedagogue from Maihar best known as Ravi Shankar's guru. In 1998, Prattyush Banerjee unveiled a scaled-down ergonomic version of the sarod which could serve as a pilot project for future research on mechanical and acoustic enhancements that may propel the sarod into a truly modern instrument. |
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It is similar to the ''[[Rabab]]'' of [[Afghanistan]] and [[Kashmir]]. The instrument was modified by Amir Khusru in the 13th century. Ustad [[Allaudin Khan]] also changed the shape to improve the tonal quality. Dr. [[Lalmani Misra]] opines in his [[Bharatiya Sangeet Vadya]] that sarod is an amalgamation of ancient ''[[Chitra Veena]]'', medieval [[Rabab]] and modern ''[[Sursingar]]''. |
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* External link: [http://www.sarod.com/sarod/default.htm All about the sarod] |
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== Sarod Design == |
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The design of the instrument varies with the school (gharana) of playing. There are three main types of the instrument, as detailed below. |
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One version (conventionally used by a majority of sarod players) is a 25-stringed [[lute]]-like instrument, whose body is hand carved from a single block of tun (Indian Mahogany) or [[teak]] wood, with a [[steel]] [[fret]]less [[fingerboard]]. The bridge rests on the belly of the instrument which is covered in [[goat]] skin. It is played with a [[plectrum]] or jaba made of [[coconut]]. Four of the strings are melody or playing strings, three are rhythm strings, and the rest are [[sympathetic strings|sympathetic]] and jawari strings, all made of metal. |
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Another version is that devised by Ustad [[Amjad Ali Khan]]. In his version, the instrument is also made of teakwood but is shorter in length. It has fewer strings (total of nineteen) with four main strings, two jod strings (tuned to Sa), two chikari strings (tuned to Sa of the upper octave) and eleven tarab or sympathetic strings. The main strings are tuned to Ma, Sa, Lower Pa and Lower Sa, giving the instrument a range of three [[octaves]]. The gauge of these strings differs from other schools. The sarod gauges used by Ustad Amjad Ali Khan are 00 (double zero) for Ma, 1 for Sa, 3 for Pa and copper 28/29 for the lower Sa. Jod Strings are of 0 gauge and chikari are 00 or 000. Tarab stings use 0 or 00 or 000 for the higher notes. |
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And lastly, there is a version that was devised by Radhika Mohan Moitra and is used most prominently by Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta. This style of sarod can be made of teak or toon wood. It has 23 strings. The main difference in comparison to the Amjad Ali Khan style of sarod is that this style of sarod has a low Pa string. This string can be used as a melody string or as a jawari strings. |
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Hemen Sen of [[Calcutta]] is regarded as currently making the finest sarods. |
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== Play == |
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The lack of [[fret]]s and the tension of the strings makes it very technically demanding to play, as the strings must be pressed hard against the fingerboard. |
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There are two schools of sarod playing, one where the tip of the fingernails are used to stop the strings, thus certain strength and stiffness of the fingernails is a prerequisite for accuracy of pitch, and the other using a combination of the nail and the fingertip to stop the strings against the fingerboard. The technique which uses the fingernails produces a ringing tone to the sarod as against the flatter tone produced by the fingertip technique. |
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== Senior/late players == |
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* [[Aashish Khan]] |
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* [[Ali Akbar Khan]] |
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* [[Allauddin Khan]] |
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* [[Amjad Ali Khan]] |
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* [[Bahadur Khan]] |
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* Brij Narayan |
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* Buddhadev Das Gupta |
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* Damodar Lal Kabra |
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* Dhyanesh Khan |
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* Hafiz Ali Khan |
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* Jotin Bhattacharya |
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* Kalyan Mukherjea |
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* Kaukubh Khan |
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* Mohammed Amir Khan |
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* Radhika Mohan Moitra |
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* Rajeev Taranath |
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* Sharan Rani |
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* Timir Baran (Bhattacharya) |
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* [[Vasant Rai]] |
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* [[Asad Qazilbash]] of Pakistan |
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* [[Nazar Hussain]] of Pakistan |
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*[[Shekhar Borkar]] |
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== Contemporary Performers == |
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* Abhik Kumar Sarkar |
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* Aditya Verma |
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* Amaan Ali Khan |
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* Anirban Das Gupta |
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* Aniruddha Vasant Rai (Andrew) |
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* Apratim Majumdar |
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* Arnab Chakrabarty |
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* Basant Kabra |
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* Biswajit Roy Chowdhury |
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* Joydeep Ghosh |
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* K Sridhar |
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* [[Kalyan Mukherjee (musician)|Kalyan Mukherjee]] |
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* Narendranath Dhar |
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* Partho Sarathy |
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* Prattyush Banerjee |
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* Suraranjan |
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* Satyam Vasant Rai |
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* Tejendra Narayan Majumdar |
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* '''[[Wajahat Khan]]''' |
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== External links == |
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* [http://WWW.VASANTRAI.COM Vasant Rai's Homepage] |
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* [http://www.aacm.org Ali Akbar College of Music] |
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* [http://www.sarod.com Amjad Ali Khan's homepage] |
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* [http://www.kalyanmsarode.com Kalyan Mukherjee's homepage] |
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* [http://www.wajahatkhan.com Wajahat Khan's homepage] |
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* [http://www.shekharborkar.com Shekhar Borkar's homepage] |
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* [http://www.sridhar.org K Sridhar's homepage] |
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[[Category:Drumhead lutes]] |
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[[Category:String instruments]] |
[[Category:String instruments]] |
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[[Category:Hindustani musical instruments]] |
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[[bn:সরোদ]] |
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[[de:Sarod]] |
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[[fr:Sarod]] |
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[[hi:सरोद ]] |
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[[nl:Sarod]] |
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[[nn:Sarod]] |
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[[fi:Sarod]] |
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Revision as of 23:01, 18 October 2006
The sarod is an Indian classical musical instrument which probably originates from the Senya rebab an Indio-persian instrument played in India to the 19th century. In terms of prominence and popularity amongst connoisseurs of Hindustani instrumental music, it occupies a position next only to that of the sitar.
It is a 25-stringed lute-like instrument, whose body is hand carved from a single block of tun ( Indian Mahogany) or teak wood, with a steel fretless finger board. The bridge rests on the belly of the instrument which is covered in goat skin.
The strings are struck with a with a triangular plectrum made of polished coconut shell or other materials. The sarod has four to five melody or playing strings, two to four rhythm strings, and nine to fifteen sympathetic strings. Sarod strings are made either of steel or phosphor-bronze. Most contemporary sarod players use Roslau, Schaff or Precision brand music wire.
Most scholarly and anecdotal accounts place the Afghan rabab to be the immediate source of the sarod, though there are speculations that a similar instrument might have existed almost two thousand years ago in ancient India. The sarod in its present recognizable form dates back to c. 1820 when it started gaining recognition as a serious instrument in Rewa, Shahjahanpur, Gwalior and Lucknow. In the twentieth century, the sarod received some finishing touches from Allauddin Khan, the performer-pedagogue from Maihar best known as Ravi Shankar's guru. In 1998, Prattyush Banerjee unveiled a scaled-down ergonomic version of the sarod which could serve as a pilot project for future research on mechanical and acoustic enhancements that may propel the sarod into a truly modern instrument.
- External link: All about the sarod