A mridanga that can be assembled? Have you heard of such an effort, where a mridanga can be fitted in parts and dismantled to make it tone-and-travel friendly? Bangalore’s mridangist, Srinivasa Anantharamaiah, the owner of Shantha Tabla Works near Balepete Circle, has pioneered the making of this three-piece mridanga after 18 months of research, which he demonstrated at the Suswaralaya College of Music’s anniversary celebrations at the Rama Lalitha Kala Mandira on Tuesdya. Laya stalwarts such as Srimushnam V. Raja Rao and B.N. Chandramouli declared that the innovation needs to be hailed. “Without disturbing the ‘meetu’ and ‘chaapu’ (tonal effects) if a mridangist is offered nearly 12 shrutis at his disposal, the novelty is worth recognising and trying out for its merits,” said Mr. Raja Rao.
The new three-part mridanga still retains jackfruit wood for its body make-up. The two drum heads on either side are made into separate pieces, fitted with nut-and-bolt with steel bars. They can be interchanged with different ‘shruti-drums’ or drum heads that can be assembled and removed to suit the tonal requirements of a concert. “Mridangists can carry just one instrument with drum changers to suit different baseline pitches,” explains Srinivasa.
“While mridangist H.S. Sudhindra says it actually is a ‘green effort’ as it reduces the cutting of jackfruit trees, the two variations of drum heads when alternated can bring in shrutis from one to six!” he says. Mr. Srinivasa has also attempted a glowing Brass Mridanga, weighing just 7 kg. Call 98440 27006 for details.
