Lute

Surbahar

Sarat Sardar / Calcutta, India
India

Mahogany wood (Cedrela toona), calabash gourds, deer horn, ebony, metal strings
ca. 1950's-60's

Surbahar by Sarat Sardar, a very noted maker in Calcutta. His instruments are totally unique in the design and quality of carving. The upper resonator is also unique, it is made of staves like a barrel or lute back. All the pegs are custom crafted unlike almost all sitars that have pegs made by jobbers who turn them out by the gross. Provenance: Alan Suits of Coyote's Paw Gallery. The surbahar developed during the early years of the 19th Century and started making its appearance on the classical music scene around 1825. It is often described as the “bass sitar” in that it is bigger than a sitar, yet produces a sound closer to the ancient bin (veena). As recently as the early years of the 20th Century, it was commonplace for musicians to carry and play both sitar and surbahar. They would begin with the surbahar in the "alap" section (introduction), then switch over to the sitar during the "gat" and "improvised" sections.

Owner:
Catalog#: AS-CHLT-7

© Hartenberger World Music Collection