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MUSIC
Eternal India
encyclopedia
Tribal
Mohori
:
Two-reed
instru-
ment. They are made of special type
of leaves or marsh grass. The nar-
row ends of the reed are fitted into
a small tube. This is inserted into a
long wooden pipe of conical bore.
This has four to seven holes for play-
ing and is responsible for the sound.
Sankh
: In India sankh or conch shell
is
known
throughout
the
subconti-
nent. It was used in war as heraldic
instrument
and
nowadays
used
in
puja and dance. It has a prominent
place in pancha vadya.
Srnga (Horn)
: Fashioned out of a
buffalo horn. A piece of bull's horn
was attached to increase the volume
of the sound.
Folk Shehnai
: A double reed wind
instrument. It finds a place in our
literary works from 13th C. Till
recently
they
were
outdoor
instru-
ments
played
on
auspicious
occa-
sions.
WIND INSTRUMENTS
Narsingha
: S-Shaped trumpet. Also
known as Ransingha in Himachal
Pradesh, Ture in Uttar Pradesh.
Pungi
: The best known and most
ubiquitous single beating reed is
the pungi also known as the mahudi
and
nadaswaram,
the
snake
charmer's pipe.
Bansuri
: Flute of northern
India, very common especially
as a pastoral instrument.
-Pancaturya
In the sculpture of Konark, there is a representation in which
the player plays five wind instruments with his mouth
simultaneously.
Tarpo
: Similar to pungi, in place
of the small bottle gourd, there is a
long gourd. It is a characteristic
wind instrument of the rural areas
of Gujarat and the Varli people of
Maharastra.
Khung
: In eastern India, it has a
small gourd shaped container. In addition, it
has
half
a
dozen
sound
tubes inserted into the gourd. It produces
simple
but
extremely
sweet
tunes.
Tirayo
: A horizontal flute. It is used
in tribal and folk music. It is closed
at one end and open at the other. A
few cm. from the blocked end there is
a blow hole into which the flutist
blows.
Pepa
: It is played at
Bihu
or spring
dances in Assam, it consists of two
bamboo pipes nearly 20 cm long
tied together with finger holes. One
end has the reed. This end is put
into the mouth and blown to pro-
duce the sound.
Kombu
:
C-shaped trumpet used in
south India. It is made of brass or
copper and is usually constructed of 3
pieces with the blowing end having a
mouthpiece and the outerpiece spread-
ing out into a circular shaped flare. It
is played at weddings and religious
processions.