Product Code Database
The nadaswaram is a double reed wind instrument from South India.Vijaya Ramaswamy, Jawaharlal Nehru University (2017). 9781538106860, Rowman & Littlefield. . ISBN 9781538106860 It is used as a traditional Carnatic music instrument in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Kerala and in the northern and eastern parts of Sri Lanka.
This instrument is "among the world's loudest non-brass acoustic instruments". It is a wind instrument partially similar to the shehnai, but much longer, with a hardwood body, and a large flaring bell made of wood or metal.
In South Indian culture, the nadasvaram is considered to be very auspicious, and it is a key musical instrument played in almost all Hindu weddings and temples of the South Indian tradition. It is part of the family of instruments known as mangala vadyam (lit. mangala "auspicious", vadya "instrument"). The instrument is usually played in pairs, and accompanied by a pair of drums called thavil; it can also be accompanied with a drone from a similar oboe, called the ottu.
It is a double reed instrument with a conical bore which gradually enlarges toward the lower end. The top portion has a metal staple () into which is inserted a small metallic cylinder () which carries the mouthpiece made of reed. Besides spare reeds, a small ivory or horn needle is attached to the instrument, and used to clear the reed of saliva and other debris and allows free passage of air. A metallic bell () forms the bottom end of the instrument.
The seevali, or reed, is made from a dried grass.
Traditionally the body of the nadasvaram is made out of a tree called (Tamil ஆச்சா; Hindi अंजन) , although nowadays bamboo, sandalwood, copper, brass, ebony, and ivory are also used. For wooden instruments, old wood is considered the best, and sometimes wood salvaged from demolished old houses is used.
The nadasvaram has seven finger-holes, and five additional holes drilled at the bottom which can be stopped with wax to modify the tone. The nadasvaram has a range of two and a half octaves, similar to the Indian bansuri flute, which also has a similar fingering. Unlike the flute where semi and quarter tones are produced by the partial opening and closing of the finger holes, in the nadasvaram they are produced by adjusting the pressure and strength of the air-flow into the pipe. Due to its intense volume and strength, it is largely an outdoor instrument, and much more suited for open spaces than for indoor concerts.
● Tiruvidaimarudur P. S. Veerusamy Pillai
American composers such as Lewis Spratlan have expressed admiration for the nadasvaram, and a few jazz musicians have taken up the instrument: Charlie Mariano (1923–2009) was one of the few non-Indians able to play the instrument, having studied it while living in India. Vinny Golia, J. D. Parran, and William Parker have performed and recorded with the instrument. The German saxophonist Roland Schaeffer also plays it, having studied from 1981 to 1985 with Karupaia Pillai.
|
|
