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Elathalam
Elathalam, or Ilathalam, is a metallic musical instrument which resembles a miniature pair of cymbals. This instrument from Kerala in southern India is completely made out of bronze and has two pieces in it. Elathalam is played by keeping one part of the cymbal in left hand banging the other cymbal to the one in left hand. Even though this instrument is small by size, it does have more thickness than the common cymbal, and thus gives a distinct chime. Elathalam is never a lead instrument but is used in a number of ethnic Kerala percussion ensembles like Panchavadyam, Chenda melam, Thayambaka and Kailaya vathiyam besides by second singer on a Kathakali stage beside providing the beat in Kuzhal Pattu and Kombu Pattu. Masters of Elathalam Leading elathalam masters of the present day include:Cheriyath Thanku Marar, Chelakkara Unnikrishnan, Maniyamparambil Mani, Kothachira Sekharan Nair, Chengamanad Paramu Nair, Pallavur Raghava Pisharody, Chelakkara Jayan, Pookottur Sasidharan ( ...
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Ilathalam
Elathalam, or Ilathalam, is a metallic musical instrument which resembles a miniature pair of cymbals. This instrument from Kerala in southern India is completely made out of bronze and has two pieces in it. Elathalam is played by keeping one part of the cymbal in left hand banging the other cymbal to the one in left hand. Even though this instrument is small by size, it does have more thickness than the common cymbal, and thus gives a distinct chime. Elathalam is never a lead instrument but is used in a number of ethnic Kerala percussion ensembles like Panchavadyam, Chenda melam, Thayambaka and Kailaya vathiyam besides by second singer on a Kathakali stage beside providing the beat in Kuzhal Pattu and Kombu Pattu. Masters of Elathalam Leading elathalam masters of the present day include:Cheriyath Thanku Marar, Chelakkara Unnikrishnan, Maniyamparambil Mani, Kothachira Sekharan Nair, Chengamanad Paramu Nair, Pallavur Raghava Pisharody, Chelakkara Jayan, Pookottur Sasidharan (A ...
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Cymbal
A cymbal is a common percussion instrument. Often used in pairs, cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys. The majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sound a definite note (such as crotales). Cymbals are used in many ensembles ranging from the orchestra, percussion ensembles, jazz bands, heavy metal bands, and marching groups. Drum kits usually incorporate at least a crash, ride, or crash/ride, and a pair of hi-hat cymbals. A player of cymbals is known as a cymbalist. Etymology and names The word cymbal is derived from the Latin ''cymbalum'', which is the latinisation of the Greek word ''kymbalon'', "cymbal", which in turn derives from ''kymbē'', "cup, bowl". In orchestral scores, cymbals may be indicated by the French ''cymbales''; German ''Becken'', ''Schellbecken'', ''Teller'', or ''Tschinellen''; Italian ''piatti'' or ''cinelli''; and Spanish ''platillos''. Many of these ...
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Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South Canara, and Thiruvithamkoor. Spread over , Kerala is the 21st largest Indian state by area. It is bordered by Karnataka to the north and northeast, Tamil Nadu to the east and south, and the Lakshadweep Sea to the west. With 33 million inhabitants as per the 2011 census, Kerala is the 13th-largest Indian state by population. It is divided into 14 districts with the capital being Thiruvananthapuram. Malayalam is the most widely spoken language and is also the official language of the state. The Chera dynasty was the first prominent kingdom based in Kerala. The Ay kingdom in the deep south and the Ezhimala kingdom in the north formed the other kingdoms in the early years of the Common Era (CE). The region had been a prominent spic ...
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India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west; China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north; and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; its Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand, Myanmar, and Indonesia. Modern humans arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa no later than 55,000 years ago., "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by modern humans originating in Africa. ... Coalescence dates for most non-European populations average to between 73–55 ka.", "Modern human beings—''Homo sapiens''—originated in Africa. Then, interm ...
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Bronze
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such as arsenic or silicon. These additions produce a range of alloys that may be harder than copper alone, or have other useful properties, such as strength, ductility, or machinability. The archaeological period in which bronze was the hardest metal in widespread use is known as the Bronze Age. The beginning of the Bronze Age in western Eurasia and India is conventionally dated to the mid-4th millennium BCE (~3500 BCE), and to the early 2nd millennium BCE in China; elsewhere it gradually spread across regions. The Bronze Age was followed by the Iron Age starting from about 1300 BCE and reaching most of Eurasia by about 500 BCE, although bronze continued to be much more widely used than it is in modern times. Because historical artworks w ...
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Panchavadyam
Panchavadyam (Malayalam: പഞ്ചവാദ്യം), literally meaning an orchestra of five instruments, is basically a temple art form that has evolved in Kerala. Of the five instruments, four — timila, maddalam, ilathalam and idakka — belong to the percussion category, while the fifth, kombu, is a wind instrument. Much like any chenda melam, panchavadyam is characterised by a pyramid-like rhythmic structure with a constantly increasing tempo coupled with a proportional decrease in the number of beats in cycles. However, in contrast to a chenda melam, panchavadyam uses different instruments (though ilathalam and kompu are common to both), is not related very closely to any temple ritual and, most importantly, permits much personal improvisation while filling up the rhythmic beats on the timila, maddalam and idakka. Panchavadyam bases itself on the seven-beat thripuda (also spelt thripuda) thaalam ( taal) but amusingly sticks to the pattern of the eight-beat chempa ...
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Chenda
The Chenda ( ml, ചെണ്ട, ) is a cylindrical percussion instrument originating in the state of Kerala and widely used in Tulu Nadu of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu in India. In Tulu Nadu (Coastal Karnataka), it is known as ''chende''. It is greatly identified as a cultural element in Kerala and Tulu Nadu. This instrument is famous for its loud and rigid sound. A Chenda has two sides, the left side called " Edamthala" (ഇടം തല)(Left Head) and the right side " Valamthala" (വലം തല)(Right Head). The "Edamthala" is made of only one/two layer of cow skin and the "Valamthala" will have a five/seven layer skin, so as to have a bass sound. The skin are dried in the shade and fastened on wooden rings (Chenda Vattam, ചെണ്ട വട്ടം) made of the trunk of a locally available palm tree (Eeranpana) or bamboo, using a gum prepared from the seed of a tree called "pananchi maram". The circular frame is kept in a vessel, boiled for an entire day and th ...
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Melam
Melam is a group of Maddalams and other similar percussion instruments' ( Chenda) rhythmic performance. Those who play melam are called 'Melakaar'. In ancient Tamilakam (Tamil country) melam was used for all the occasions in temples (''Kovil Melam'', ''Naiyandi Melam'', ''Urumi Melam''), marriages (''Ketti Melam''), functions, funeral wake(''Parai Melam''). In Kerala the most traditional of all melams is the Pandi Melam, which is generally performed outside the temple. Another melam called the Panchari Melam, which is similar to Pandi Melam, but the Panchari Melam is played inside the temple. History Found in the list of Musical instruments used by Tamil people out in Tirumurai dated 6th to 11th century மத்தளந் துந்துபி வாய்ந்த முருடிவற்றால் எத்திசை தோறும் எழுந்தியம்ப - ஒத்துடனே மங்கலம் பாடுவார் வந்திற� ...
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Thayambaka
Thayambaka or tayambaka is a type of solo chenda performance that developed in the south Indian state of Kerala, in which the main player at the centre improvises rhythmically on the beats of half-a-dozen or a few more chenda and ilathalam players around. Performance A thayambaka performance on the chenda has thus its focus on the stick-and-palm rolls produced on the itantala (treble) of the chenda, while the rhythm is laid by his fellow instrumentalists on the (bass) and (cymbals).Simon Broughton, Mark Ellingham. ''World Music'', vol. 2, p. 97 (contributor Rolf Killius). Rough Guides, 2000. Thayambaka, believed to have flourished during the feudal era, spans an average of 90 minutes. It begins at a slow pace before scaling on to a medium tempo and eventually culminating in high, frenzied speed. It has a skeletal pattern on which the performance progresses, but the main performer has the liberty to improvise and innovate to showcase his grip of rhythm, finesse of techniq ...
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Kathakali
Kathakali ( ml, കഥകളി) is a major form of classical Indian dance. It is a "story play" genre of art, but one distinguished by the elaborately colourful make-up and costumes of the traditional male actor-dancers. It is native to the Malayalam-speaking southwestern region of Kerala and is almost entirely practiced and appreciated by Malayali people. Kathakali's roots are unclear. The fully developed style of Kathakali originated around the 17th century, but its roots are in the temple and folk arts (such as Krishnanattam and religious drama of the kingdom of the Zamorin of Calicut) southwestern Indian peninsula), which are traceable to at least the 1st millennium CE. A Kathakali performance, like all classical dance arts of India, synthesizes music, vocal performers, choreography and hand and facial gestures together to express ideas. However, Kathakali differs in that it also incorporates movements from ancient Indian martial arts and athletic traditions of South I ...
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Kuzhal Pattu
Kuzhal pattu is a form of traditional temple music practised in the Kerala state of India. It centers on the use of the kuzhal, a double reed wind instrument, and is typically performed at temple festivals. Structure In kuzhal pattu, the kuzhal plays the lead with the support of several accompanying instruments, which may include chenda (both treble and bass), ilathalam, toppi maddalam and a sruti (drone) kuzhal. A Kuzhal Pattu typically starts with the lead kuzhal essaying an alapanam to establish a raga. The other instruments may join in as the kuzhal pattu progresses through several ragas and compositions. The span of the musical form ranges from five minutes to over an hour, with an average length of 30 minutes. Performance Kuzhal pattu is typically used as a prelude to panchari melam, but may also be played prior to night seevelis (temple circumambulations) that perform panchavadyam. It is usually performed inside the temple before midnight. The kuzhal pattu is generally ...
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