Kartals - 1 pairmade in Mayapur, India$25
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Kartals add a shimmering, energizing, brisk rhythmic pulse to a kirtan! Whether you're playing the simplist "ti-ti-ta" pattern, or more intricate rhythms, kartals can add beauty, excitement, and energy to your chanting. They can be used to accompany your solo chanting, keeping a steady beat. Or they can be added to a kirtan band's instrumentation to enliven things!
All too often, these Indian-style cymbals get a bad reputation for sounding brash and out of tune. That's because most kartal cymbals are... brash and out of tune! The difference between a low-quality instrument and a refined, high-quality instrument is obvious when it comes to harmoniums, pianos, or other larger instruments. Kartals are so physically simple that you might think the variety in their quality isn't significant... but in fact it is! Most manufacturers of kartals in India are metal shops, run by metal smiths, not musicians. The product is often two perfectly round cymbals that are completely out of tune from one another! Very painful to listen to. In 2010, Kirtan Central teamed up with a kartal cymbal manufacturer just outside of the kirtan epicenter of Mayapur, India. After the raw cymbals are made at the metal shop, a master musician - a kirtan wallah and teacher of kartals himself - goes to the shop to pick out the purest ringing cymbals, and pair them by tuning with one another. These pairs are then sent to the tailor, who fits them with vibrant straps of blue cloth - the most comfortable material to wrap around your fingers as you're playing. The end result is a beautiful instrument with the sweetest bell tone - very different from tourist quality kartals on a string! | |
