The birth of cymbals is etched in ancient Indian temples and can therefore be relegated to their presence over a few thousand years. Originally created as an accompaniment amongst folk singers, its main stay remains till this day, in ecstatic chants and devotional songs.

Hand smelted and hand moulded, each piece is tuned by the artisan by holding them to their ear to sense the balance of the depth of sound they produce. Also struck to build positive vibrations in living spaces or places of worship, they can be mastered to perform quite easefully. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN & LEARN

Indias musical tradition dates back to the Indus valley civilization, around 3000 BC and one can trace its representation in the Vedas (ancient scriptures) referred to as sangeet sungeet - the three art forms of vocal, instrumental and dance, where taal (rhythm) and raag (melody) remain to this day the very essence of music and instrumentation. In fact, way back between 200 BC and 200 AD an ancient system natya shastra written by the sage Bharat Muni classified musical instruments into the categories of string, wind and percussion.

Varied instrumentation forms evolved across India thereafter, with their own traditional renditions and like the artist and artisan, are on the verge of final extinction. While these unusual instruments are playable, they come in their original semi crude form, just the way they have been turned by hand in villages, for village festivals over centuries.

Your hand may help revive and perhaps sustain the very birth of music.