Singing bowls

In Buddhist practice, singing bowls are used as an auxiliary tool for meditation, prayers and immersion in a trance . Chinese Buddhists , for example, use bowls with moktak (a kind of wooden box ) during chants, striking the bowl at the moment of singing a certain phrase in a sutra , mantra or anthem . In Japan and Vietnam, in addition, with the help of bowls, they measure time in the process of prayer or signal a change in activity .

There are still no written sources describing the use of bowls in antiquity, however, there are many images and sculptures in which this musical instrument appears. In private collections there are bowls of the X-XII centuries, however, the first bowls could appear much earlier - bronze bells in Asia, for example, began to be produced around the 9th century BC. e. ^{[1] [2]}

Playing on singing bowls is a leisurely driving of a wooden or sometimes plastic pestle ( stick ) along the edges of the bowl, as a result of friction a long, “singing” sound is filled with overtones. Example “filling” of sound with harmonic overtones directly depends on the quality of the manufacture of the bowl . By varying the force of pressing the stick on the edges of the bowl or the weight of the stick, you can get different tones . The second version of the game on singing bowls is a slight blow of a stick wrapped in suede, giving rise to a warm sound, an example similar to ringing a bell .

Traditionally, the ancient singing bowls were made of an alloy of five metals, known in Hinduism as panchaloha and having sacred significance for the countries of the Himalayas . The base was copper , with the addition of tin , zinc , iron and other metals , most often gold , silver or nickel . In fact, it turned out cast bronze or brass , ennobled with precious metal. However, according to some collectors, in reality, the alloy used was not standard, and the bowls were made of a wide variety of components, from 3 to 12 different metals ^[2] .

The uniqueness of the ancient singing bowls is that several harmonic overtones sound simultaneously. This is due to the fact that the bowls are made of an alloy of several metals, each of which sounds on its own "wave" . Despite the fact that the traditional techniques of making singing bowls are considered lost, bowls made by traditional hand forging are still being delivered from different parts of Nepal . True, the quality of the alloy is noticeably worse than that of the ancient bowls, and it is believed that the aging process itself ennobles the sound, makes it warmer and softer ^[1] .

Ancient singing bowls were often decorated with abstract patterns, ornaments , both along the edge of the bowl and at its bottom.

Like any antiques , the ancient singing bowls are collectibles , but not only their age, but also their musical qualities give value to them.

Today, the production of singing bowls is on the rise and their quality is growing . Due to the fact that singing bowls are increasingly being bought as souvenirs , they began to be decorated with popular religious symbols and various spiritual motifs. Buddhist mantras such as Om mani padme hum , Hindu Ashtamangala and Buddha images are classics .

Modern singing bowls are made of bronze , but without the addition of rare and precious metals , which affects the sound ^[2] . The most common are bowls from Nepal and northern India , but Japan and Korea also produce high-quality bowls, although they are less exported. .

Unlike handmade bowls, which can still compete with ancient samples, singing bowls made by machine have rather poor musical performance, all of their sound is limited to two harmonic overtones, which is too small for demanding musicians .

The main distribution of singing bowls was in ethnic music and new age music , largely due to these styles they became popular . Now, bowls began to be used in a variety of styles, from ambient to neo-classical and rock music .

• Tibetan bowl // Musical instruments. Encyclopedia. - M .: Deka-VS, 2008 .-- S. 580. - 786 p.