Pakhawaj
: Lesson 2

The
pakhawaj is a hollowed block of wooden cylinder. On
either side, it is tightly covered by skin, which is
stretched over both the openings and is fastened with
a leather gajra. The leather is held over gatthas, which
help in fine-tuning the pitch of the instrument.
The
pitch of the instrument can be adjusted according to
the artist's desires. The left side of the pakhawaj
is covered with a paste of water and flower, intended
to give resonance while the instrument is played. The
right side is covered permanently with syahi and gives
out sharp overtones. This syahi also denotes the pitch
in which the instrument is played. The syahi is often
sprinkled with powder for the artist to get smoother
finger movements.
A
very important tool in tuning the instrument is the
hammer. The artiste squats on the floor with folded
legs and places the instrument horizontally in front
of him. (S)he may either place it on the floor or on
his lap, or partially on his lap. (S)he may rest the
pakhawaj on a cloth ring, a cloth bag or any piece of
cloth to keep it in place. It requires tremendous physical
energy, stamina and muscle power to play this instrument.
Usually, male artists play the instrument. However,
there are ancient sculptures and paintings showing women
playing it.
Related
instruments : Mridangam (the south Indian counterpart)
Major
exponents : There are many gharanas of pakhawaj
playing. These gharanas have produced eminent artists
over the decades. Some of them are: Raja Chatrapati
Singh (Delhi gharana) ; Pt. Makanlal (Delhi gharana)
Ambadasji (Phanse gharana) ; Swami Pagal Das (Delhi
gharana) ; Tarachand Boral ;
Arjun Shejwal (Phanse gharana) was born in Mumbai,
in 1934. He dedicated his life towards preserving and
perpetuating the age-old tradition of pakhawaj music.
He belonged to a family of traditional kirtankars and
musicians. He learned pakhawaj from Pt. Narayan Rao
Kohli, an eminent exponent of the famous Panse gharana,
which was pioneered by Pt. Nanasaheb Panse. Pt.Shejwal
accompanied several top-notch artists of the dhrupad
gayaki, like Pt. K G Ginde, Pt. S C R Bhatt, the Dagar
brothers, as well as instrumentalists like Pt. Mukundrai
Goswami (veena) and Pt. Ramesh Prem (veena). Pt. Shejwal
traveled widely in European countries giving solo performances
and lecture demonstrations. He regularly gave solos
recitals on radio and television and he was a part of
the teaching faculty of Shri Vallabh Saangeetalaya.
Today's
young players include Pt. Arjun Shejwal's son, Prakash
Shejwal as well as Bhawani Shankar, Madhav Pawar and
Prashant Goswami.
Pakhawaj
: Lesson 1 Lesson 2
More
lessons on other instruments?