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Rigsar
Dranyen >>
A
local Bhutanese musician has added extra strings and tuning keys to the
traditional Bhutanese guitar or dranyen to create what he calls a "rigsar
dranyen".
Unlike
the traditional dranyen which has six and half nylon strings, the rigsar
dranyen has 15 metal strings, two bridges, and an extra set of tuning keys
along the upper neck of the instrument. "The Rigsar dranyen has a set of
new strings (one octave) or the artillery branch which will naturally vibrate
while playing on the main strings," says 29-year old musician and composer
Sonam Dorji who did the modifications. "The eight-string artillery branch
can be tuned to any song to give a faint background vibration and will
never let the singer go out of tune," he said.
One
can play lead, rhythm, plucking and stroking on the rigsar dranyen according
to Sonam Dorji who specialised in vocal and bowing instruments during his
four-year study at Visva-Bhaharati University in India.
Bhutan
first ethnomusicologist, Jigme Drukpa, of the royal society of performing
arts, says the rigsar dranyen is a healthy development in Bhutanese music.
But at the same time he has reservations about outside influence on Bhutanese
instruments. "The Bhutanese concept of music and voice stresses on the
softness of the sound. The rigsar dranyen is best suited for the changing
taste of the Bhutanese audiences for more lively songs in open air concerts,"
he said.
The
ethnomusicologist added that some of the old Bhutanese dranyens did have
numerous strings, (sympathetic strings or under strings) to produce more
resonance. |
