Cineplot Music

Santoor

Santoor

A variety of harp something like the swaramandal originating from Kashmir which has been innovated and developed to become a solo playing concert instrument replacing swaramandal. The most outstanding exponents of santoor are now Shiv Kumar Sharma, Omprakash Chaurasia and Bhajan Sopori of whom Shiv Kumar Sharma is now based mostly in Mumbai while Chaurasia resides in Bhopal. Amongst the younger generation Tarun Bhattacharya of Kolkata is a distinguished player. The santoor horizontally has three strings for each note and a bridge at both ends for each set of three strings. The santoor is played with two curved shaped sticks. The santoor has a scintillating tone and has about twenty-five playing wires with fixed pitches like those of the piano but with a remarkable brilliance of tone. It can render those ragas particularly well which do not have elaborate gamaks. Thus, it is much easier for a performer to play on the santoor effectively ragas like Durga, Bhopali, Eman, Rageshri, Kafi, Kirwani, etc. and not ragas like Darbari Kanhra, Miyan-ki-Malhar, Miyan-ki­Todi or even a Bageshri or Malkauns. Skilled players like those mentioned above, however, manage to transcend these limitations and produce the semblance of nuances of gamaks deftly and delicately by gliding and sweeping over the various notes in quick succession to create an aura and impression of gamaks.

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Instruments