Miruthangam

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Miruthangam is a South Indian Percussion Instrument which accompanies classical music. It arises from two Sanskrit words "mrith" and "anga" meaning clay and part respectively. Ironically, the modern day mridangam has little or very no clay in it. To see more deatails please visit

The mridangam is a percussion instrument from South India. It is the primary rhythmic accompaniment in a Carnatic music ensemble.

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[edit] Physical components

The mridangam is a double-sided drum whose body is made using a hollowed piece of jackfruit wood about an inch thick. The two mouths or apertures of the drum are covered with a goat skin leather and laced to each other with leather straps around the circumference of drum. These straps are put into a state of high tension to stretch out the circular membranes on either side of the hull, allowing them to resonate when struck. These two membranes are dissimilar in width to allow for the production of both bass and treble sounds from the same drum.

The bass aperture is known as the "thoppi" or "eda bhaaga" and the smaller aperture is known as the "valanthalai" or "bala bhaaga". The smaller membrane, when struck, produces higher pitched sounds with a metallic timbre. The wider aperture produces lower pitched sounds. The goat skin covering the smaller aperture is anointed in the center with a black disk made of rice flour, ferric oxide powder and starch. This black paste is known as the "sAtham" or "karnai" and gives the mridangam its distinct metallic timbre. Also, the combination of two inhomogeneous circular membranes allows for the production of unique and distinct harmonics. Pioneering work on the mathematics of these harmonics was done by C.V.Raman, a brilliant scholar in his own right.

[edit] Methods of use

Immediately prior to use in a performance, the leather covering the wider aperture is made moist and coated with a paste made from rice flour and water, which lowers the pitch of the left membrane and gives it a very powerful bass sound. The artist tunes the instrument by varying the tension in the leather straps spanning the hull of the instrument. This is achieved by placing the mridangam upright with its larger side facing down, and then striking the tension-bearing straps located along of circumference of the right membrane with a heavy object (such as a stone). A wooden peg is sometimes placed between the stone and the mridangam during the tuning procedure to ensure that the force is exerted at precisely the point where it is needed. Striking the periphery of the right membrane in the direction toward the hull raises the pitch, while striking the periphery from the opposite side (moving away from the hull) lowers the pitch. The pitch must be uniform and balanced at all points along the circumference of the valanthalai for the sound to resonate perfectly. The pitch can be balanced with the aid of a pitch pipe or a tambura. The larger membrane can also be tuned in a similar manner, though it is not done as frequently. Note that since the leather straps are interwoven between both the smaller and larger aperture, adjusting the tension on one side often can affect the tension on the other.

[edit] Posture

The mridangam is played resting it parallel to the floor. A right-handed mridangam artist plays the smaller membrane with his or her right hand and the larger membrane with the left hand. This can be described in words as follows: The mridangam rests upon the right foot and ankle, the right leg being slightly extended, while the left leg is bent and rests against the hull of the drum and against the torso of the artist. For a left-handed percussionist, the legs and hands are switched.

[edit] Basics

Any beginner in the art learns four basic stokes (also known as "sollus"): Tha, Thi, Thom, and Nam. These strokes are played with the fingers and palm of the hand. There is also a parallel set of rhythmic solfa passages (known as "solkattu") which is said by mouth to mimic the sounds of the mridangam. Students of this art are required to learn and vigorously practice both the fingering strokes and solfa passages to achieve proficiency and accuracy in this art. Many other strokes are also taught as the training becomes more advanced. The combination of these finger strokes produces complex mathematical patterns that have both aesthetic and theoretical appeal. Complex calculations (kanakku) and metres (nadais) may be employed when the mridangam is played.

[edit] Modern Usage

Within the Hare Krishna movement the mridangam is used exstensively especially when singing and chanting in streets. It has been the drum of choice ever since the late 1400's when the movements founder called Chaitanya Mahaprabhu used the drums in a procession on the streets of Bengal. A modern fibre-glass version known as 'Balarama Mridangam' was designed in recent years as a result of this.

[edit] Famous Artistes

  • Kaaraikkudi R Mani
  • Palghat T.S. Mani Iyer
  • Palani Subramannia Pillai
  • Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman

[edit] External links

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