Ektara

tinctive sound. There are no markings or measurements

to indicate what pressure will produce what note, so the
pressure is adjusted by ear.[3] The various sizes of ektara
are soprano, tenor, and bass. The bass ektara, sometimes
called a dotara often has two strings [4] (as literally implied by do, two).
The ektara is a common instrument in Baul music from
Bengal. Some controversy has arisen in recent years over
the adoption and alleged corruption of Baul music by popular bands and lms in Bengal. It has become common
to mix traditional instruments like the ektara with more
modern sounds in an attempt to appeal to a wide audience, which traditional musicians feel is destroying the
true beauty of Baul music.[5]

2 Kirtan Chants

Ektara

Ektara (Bengali: , Hindi: , Punjabi:

; literally one-string, also called iktar, ektar, yaktaro, gopichand, gopichant, gopijiantra, tun tuna) is
a one-string instrument most often used in traditional music from Bangladesh, India, Egypt, and Pakistan.
In origin the ektara was a regular string instrument of
wandering bards and minstrels from India and is plucked
with one nger. The ektara is a drone lute consisting of a
gourd resonator covered with skin, through which a bamboo neck is inserted [1]

Use of Ektara

The ektr player holds his instrument upright, gripping

the neck just above the resonator and plucking the playing
string or strings with the index nger of the same hand.
If he is dancing, he supports the gourd resonator with his
other hand, in which he carries clusters of small bells
which sound as he beats his hand against the gourd.[2] Parvathy Baul at Ruhaniyat mystic music festival, at Purana
Pressing the two halves of the neck together loosens the Qila, Delhi
string, thus lowering its pitch. The modulation of the tone
with each slight exing of the neck gives the ektara its dis- These instruments are commonly used in kirtan chant1

ing, which is a Hindu devotional practice of singing the

divine names and mantras in an ecstatic [6] call and response format. The Ektara is used by Sadhus, or wandering holy men and for Su chanting, as well as by the Bauls
of Bengal.[7]

See also
Tumbi

References

[1] Miner, Allyn (1999). South Asia: The Indian Subcontinent. Routledge. p. 343. Retrieved 2014-09-07.
[2] Ektar. Oxford Music Online. Retrieved 2014-09-18.
[3] Ektara. Musical Instruments Archives. Retrieved 201409-15.
[4] Lillian Henry. What is Kirtan Music. Entertainment
Scene 360. Retrieved 2014-09-17.
[5] Baul Songs - From Ektara to Fusion Music. INdo-Asian
News Service. Retrieved 2014-09-24.
[6] Kirtan. Dictionary.com. Retrieved 2014-09-16.
[7] Stringed Instruments.
2014-09-16.

Gandharva Loka.

Retrieved

REFERENCES

Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

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