Dholak

The Dholak (Devnagari: ढोलक sometimes dholaki or in Suriname & Holland dhool) is a classical North Indian, Pakistani and Nepalese musical percussion instrument that is a hand drum. A dholak may have traditional lacing or turnbuckle tuning. The dholak has a simple membrane and a handle on the right side. The left-hand membrane has a special coating on the inner surface. This coating is a mixture of tar, clay and sand (dholak masala) which lowers the pitch and provides a well-defined pitch. It is arguable that the concept and usage of the term pitch itself was derived from the practice of using pitch or tar in flutes, drums, horns, etc. to change what we now refer to as musical pitch, meaning frequency of the oscillation of a given vibrating sound, whether it is that a flue pipe (pipe organ or flute), a string, a drum head, or other vibrating medium. While a trombone may use a pair of mated u-shaped pipes in a sliding fashion to change its effective length and hence its "pitch," the term pitch seems to have 'stuck' (if such a pun is allowed here).

The drum shell is usually made from sheesham or shisham wood (Dalbergia sissoo). The results of the finished process of hollowing out the drum (i.e. its resultant shape and the surface of the drum's interior, whether left rough-hewn by a drum carver or carefully smoothed) determines the tone quality of a dholak.

Perhaps the most characteristic rhythm played on the "dhol" is a "quick double-dotted figure" that may be counted in rhythmic solfege as "ONE -tah and -tah TWO -tah and -tah THREE-E (rest on 'and') -TAH, FOUR AND" (all-capitals here indicate accents), or simply a long string of double-dotted notes, over which the bass side is used for more or less free improvisation/rhythmic counterpoint. The high-pitched drum head is typically played using a thin (1/4"/6 mm or less) long (over 14"/30 cm) stick of solid rattan or hardwood (rattan is preferred for its flexibility), and the low-pitched drum head is usually played either by hand or using a somewhat thicker, semi-angled stick (roughly the shape of a small hockey stick). Dholak masters are often also adept at singing or chanting and may often provide a primary entertainment or lead drumming for a dance troupe, especially in the Punjabi/bhangra tradition. Many such dhols and their players' costumes are often decked out with impressively colorful pom-poms (of large tassel size, roughly 4"/7-10 cm balls of dyed yarn) that complement or contrast the colorful Punjabi vestments of the performers. Many modern dhols use a thin polyester plastic modern (snare-side thin) snare drum head for the high-pitched head. One commentator wrote that a dhol looks like a set of tabla grafted together because it is played horizontally; another referred to it as seeming like a "poor man's tabla" since one dhol drum is often less-expensive than a set of quality Hindi tablas, which usually include base rings upon which the drums rest--whereas a dhol is usually either set in the player's lap or held by a sling in performance.

A dholak has 2 drum heads: a smaller one for the high pitch, and the large part is for the low pitch and it is pitched depending on size and tuning sounding like a bongo in playing mode, that is a melodic interval of perhaps a perfect fourth or perfect fifth (that is, in the western diatonic or "do re mi fa sol"/Indian "sa re ga ma pa" melodic scalewise theoretical model). Traditionally, some players use hand playing on one or both drum heads stylistically similarly to tabla playing. However, more recently, and especially in Indian Punjabi folkloric dance music called bhangra, the dhol plays a key role in giving the music its characteristic 'funky' flavor. Popular exponents of bhangra include the Indian-ancestry singer-songwriter Jazzy B, an Indian-born star now popular especially among bhangra aficionados worldwide.

The dholak is often used in Filmi Sangeet or Indian film music. It is also used extensively in chutney music, baithak gana, and tan singing, the local Indian music of the Caribbean. It is the main instrument along with the harmonium brought by the indentured immigrants to Suriname, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. In the Fiji Islands, the dholak is widely used for bhajans and kirtans.

In a lot of Indian communities, traditionally, children sing and dance on the beat of the dholak during pre-wedding festivities. The dholak provides an interesting accompaniment for the naughty lyrics of teasing songs aimed at an abashed bride-to-be.

Discussion Do you have any strong opinions about the factuality or implications of the material presented in this wiki article? If so, please contribute. One contributor here would like to start a thread of conversation about the possibility of the phrases/terms 'being on the dole' and/or a person or the weather 'being in the doldrums' having their origin somehow connected with the dholak. What do you think? Is there any such basis in historical evidence and/or rhetorical etymology? How would you say has Indian and/or British society inculcated these terms with subjective qualities, either negative or condescending in their implications toward Indian folkloric drummers (e.g. did the expression "to dole out" [money] have a related origin)? Has such terminology either in literature or widespread casual-usage (vernacular) conversation contributed to strong negative social stereotypes (especially in relation to folkloric musicians and dancers) that persist? Can you cite written evidence?