Musical Instruments of India

Over the past five decades the Sangeet Natak Akademi has acquired a large number of musical instruments. Its gallery of musical instruments, a permanent exhibiton, was opened by Lord Yehudi Menuhin in February 1964. A major exhibition in Delhi in 1968 with about 400 instruments made Akadmi's collection duly methodical and representative. Since then several exhibitions of musical instruments, masks and puppets from the Akademi's collection have been held in India and abroad includiing in Hongkong, Rome, Moscow, and Athens.

Also a part of its golden jubilee celebrations, Sangeet Natak Akademi arranged an exclusive display of 70 odd instruments for an exhibition in Alexandria, Egypt from 22 to 26 March 2003 in collaboration with Indian Council for Cultural Relations, New Delhi, India; Indian Cultural Centre, Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture, Embassy of India, Cairo; and Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Alexandria, Arab Republic of Egypt. The display were meant only to provide a glimpse into the varied world of Indian musical instruments.

The selection had been made keeping in view the four-fold classification followed in India since ancient times: tata vadya (chordophones), susheera vadya (aerophones), ghana vadya (idiophones) and avanaddha vadya (membranophones). The criterion of regional and cultural representation had also been sought to be followed, even though imbalances are inevitable in such a small sample. What is likely to strike the uninitiated visitor is the multiplicity of forms that musical instruments have taken in this country, and the variety of materials used in making them.

The instruments on display represented a number of musical systems, of varied provenance and histories of development. This provided some visual impetus to the study of these systems - living traditions in the mosaic of Indian culture.

22 March 2003,

Jayant Kastuar

Secretary, Sangeet Natak Akademi,

New Delhi, India.