Contextual Associations

Manjira is a pair of cup cymbals idiophone from Uttarakhand State, India. Purchased in the city of Haridwar in 1953 by Marianna Presler McJimsey while a student studying in India, she reports manjira to be “… easily portable, used by Sadhus [Hindu religious aesthetics], donkey train drivers, children, families, teachers—ubiquitous, in 1953.” A main of use for this instrument is to accompany the singing of Hindu devotional songs (bhajan).

Description

Two basically identical, circular discs of brass each with a raised boss at its center and a slightly upturned rim (detail #1). At the center of each boss a hole is drilled, through which the end of a rope is passed and then knotted on the inner side of the boss (detail #2).

Player - Instrument Interface and Sound Production

The player holds the rope with the thumb and first finger of each hand just above the boss of each cymbal. He/she basically strikes them rim against rim to produce a shimmering, ringing sound.

Origins/History/Evolution

The origin of manjira is unknown but is believed to be very old due to its associations with Hindu devotional singing and dance forms.

Bibliographic Citations

Dick, Alastair. 2014. “Manjira.” GDMI v.3: 390.

Dick, Alastar, and Pribislav Pitoeff. 2014. GDMI v.4: 689-670.

Personal correspondence with Marianna Presler McJimsey, 11 September, 2024.