The Surbahar India s Bass Sitar, Musical Wonders of India

, darbarfestival, The surbahar (springtime of musical notes) is among North Indias most revered instruments. It is akin to a bass sitar, but with an older, slower repertoire of deep bends. Join our newsletter at for the finest in Indian classical music and dance, and watch full length exclusive concerts in pristine HD on the Darbar Player: Learn more about the music: The surbahar is much more than just a bass sitar. Its deeptoned strings can bend upwards over an octave, allowing artists to explore the contours of a raga using only a single fret. Suited to the slow elaborations of dhrupad, it is large, heavy, and notoriously difficult to play. Western bassists are (often unfairly) the butt of jokes. But this trend is reversed in Indian classical music, with many seeing the surbahar as harder to master than the sitar. Raga performance is a test of strength and stamin