Zerbaghali
Encyclopedia
The zerbaghali is a goblet-shaped hand drum that is played in the folk music of Afghanistan.
, and a Pashtun
double drum known as the dholak
which is played by hand in a sitting position, similar to the dohol
, which is hung around the neck with a ribbon and played with sticks.
, to change the tone of the drum, following the Indian tradition. The size can vary greatly, from 30 inches in diameter and a length of 45 cm.
The player sits cross-leggedojn the floor, with the drum under his left armpit. Or he may lay it horizontally over his legs. The beat is mainly kept with the right hand. The playing technique is based on the Persian tombak or the Indian tabla. The giners of the right hand beat the low notes, and the fingers of the left hand produce the high notes, pressing the skin to change the sound. Various versions of hand-motion are used to modify the sound.
In rural areas of Afghanistan, zerbghali playing is primitive, with no special techniques employed. It is played throughout the country, except in the far north. Even in cities, the zerbghali is common in traditional musical ensembles, along with the rubab and dholak
or tabla. In the rural areas, these may be replaced by the tanbur
or various flutes.
In the early 20th century the zerbghali was not common in Herat, with the dohol being more important. From the 1950s on, the zerbghali was introduced in Herati teahousese as an accompaniment to the Persian dutar
. In the 1970s, bands were using a 14-string dutar, an Indian harmonium
or rubab, and zerbghali. In 1978 or 1979, Germans recorded a group of musicians playing Negrabi Malang Zerbaghali.
Women generally prefer to play the dairah for amateur music at weddings, or for vocal accompaniment along with the harmonium. In the 1970s, a few women played zerbghali. To accompany female wedding guests, musicians also played the bamboo flute and the tula.
Origin
The shape of the zerbghali is derived from Persian forms. In contrast with the Persian tumbak, which has a wooden body, the zerbghali is made of clay throughout Afghanistan. The zerbghali and the tumbak fall into the same family of Oriental goblet drums as the Moroccan darbuka and the doumbek of Azerbaijan. Several drums are common in Afghanistan, including a skin-covered open-ended drum from India, a drum similar to the Indian tablaTabla
The tabla is a popular Indian percussion instrument used in Hindustani classical music and in popular and devotional music of the Indian subcontinent. The instrument consists of a pair of hand drums of contrasting sizes and timbres...
, and a Pashtun
Pashtun people
Pashtuns or Pathans , also known as ethnic Afghans , are an Eastern Iranic ethnic group with populations primarily between the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan and the Indus River in Pakistan...
double drum known as the dholak
Dholak
The Dholak is a North Indian, Pakistani and Nepalese double-headed hand-drum Madal. The name dholki may also refer to a slightly different instrument that uses high-pitch tabla style syahi masala on its treble skin. This instrument is also known as Naal or Dholki....
which is played by hand in a sitting position, similar to the dohol
Dohol
A dohol is a large cylindrical drum with two skin heads. It is generally struck on one side with a wooden stick bowed at the end, and with a large thin stick on the other side, though it is also played by the bare hands. It is the principal accompaniment for the sorna...
, which is hung around the neck with a ribbon and played with sticks.
Form and technique
Drums may be glazed or unglazed. Zerbghalis are more durable than clay, but more expensive, with some being made out of wood. The skin is glued and clamped to the edge with a strip of red goatskin. If needed, the skin can be held near a fire to tighten it. More recently, musicians have employed dabs of black paste, known as SyahiSyahi
Syahi is the tuning paste applied to the head of many South Asian percussion instruments like the dholki, tabla, mridangam, and pakhavaj.-Overview:...
, to change the tone of the drum, following the Indian tradition. The size can vary greatly, from 30 inches in diameter and a length of 45 cm.
The player sits cross-leggedojn the floor, with the drum under his left armpit. Or he may lay it horizontally over his legs. The beat is mainly kept with the right hand. The playing technique is based on the Persian tombak or the Indian tabla. The giners of the right hand beat the low notes, and the fingers of the left hand produce the high notes, pressing the skin to change the sound. Various versions of hand-motion are used to modify the sound.
In rural areas of Afghanistan, zerbghali playing is primitive, with no special techniques employed. It is played throughout the country, except in the far north. Even in cities, the zerbghali is common in traditional musical ensembles, along with the rubab and dholak
Dholak
The Dholak is a North Indian, Pakistani and Nepalese double-headed hand-drum Madal. The name dholki may also refer to a slightly different instrument that uses high-pitch tabla style syahi masala on its treble skin. This instrument is also known as Naal or Dholki....
or tabla. In the rural areas, these may be replaced by the tanbur
Tanbur
The term tanbūr can refer to various long-necked, fretted lutes originating in the Middle East or Central Asia. According to the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "terminology presents a complicated situation. Nowadays the term tanbur is applied to a variety of distinct and related...
or various flutes.
In the early 20th century the zerbghali was not common in Herat, with the dohol being more important. From the 1950s on, the zerbghali was introduced in Herati teahousese as an accompaniment to the Persian dutar
Dutar
The dutar is a traditional long-necked two-stringed lute found in Iran, Central Asia and South Asia...
. In the 1970s, bands were using a 14-string dutar, an Indian harmonium
Harmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
or rubab, and zerbghali. In 1978 or 1979, Germans recorded a group of musicians playing Negrabi Malang Zerbaghali.
Women generally prefer to play the dairah for amateur music at weddings, or for vocal accompaniment along with the harmonium. In the 1970s, a few women played zerbghali. To accompany female wedding guests, musicians also played the bamboo flute and the tula.
Discography
- Abdul Majid (Tanbur), Golam Nabi (Dilruba), Malang (Zerbaghali), Gholam Hassan (SarindaSarindaA sarinda is a stringed Indian folk musical instrument similar to lutes or fiddles. It is played with a bow and has three strings. The bottom part of the front of its hollow wooden soundbox is covered with animal skin...
) u.a.: Afghanistan – Music from Kabul. Aufgenommen 1973. Als CD bei Lyrichord Archive Series - Bangicha (Zerbaghali) u.a.: Afghanistan. A Journey to an Unknown Musical World. Aufgenommen 1974 vom WDR. Als CD bei Network 1994. (4 tracks with zerbaghali)
Literature
- John Baily: Music of Afghanistan: Professional Musicians in the City of Herat. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1988, S. 19f, 32, 36, 132, 167
- Hiromi Lorraine Sakata: Afghan musical instruments: drums. Afghanistan Journal, 7 (1), 1980, S. 30–32
- Mark Slobin: Music in the Culture of Northern Afghanistan. University of Arizona Press, Tucson 1976, S. 261–264
External links
- Visual Information Access. Harvard University Library Photo by Josephine Powell in BalkhBalkhBalkh , was an ancient city and centre of Zoroastrianism in what is now northern Afghanistan. Today it is a small town in the province of Balkh, about 20 kilometers northwest of the provincial capital, Mazar-e Sharif, and some south of the Amu Darya. It was one of the major cities of Khorasan...
, 1959–1961