Ānandalaharī

Although built like a drum, this is a chordophone (or stringed instrument). The body of the instrument (with the head pointing back) is tucked under a player’s left arm. A string that is attached I the center of the skin head passes through the wooden body and is longer than the open shell. The player grasps a knob tied to the end of this string with their left hand. Sound is created by plucking the string with a small plectrum made of bone, plastic, or another material. The player can change the pitch by how much tension is applied to the knob (and thereby the string). Adept players can change the pitch quickly and achieve many different effects. The instrument can be used for rhythmic accompaniment or melodious. It is one of a handful of similar types of stringed instruments used in the Indian subcontinent. This type was used by religious sinters of the Baul faith in Bengal.

Description: turned wood cylinder tube with skin glued to wider opening; skin with small central hole through which a twisted string (missing) is inserted and secured; a wood knob partially covered with hide; the cylinder with circumferential incising.