Sitar
Sitars from Kanai Lal & Sons, Monoj K Sardar, Hiren Roy and our own workshop, in both Ravi Shankar and Vilayat Khan styles. Every instrument is strung, fretted and set up in our Delhi workshop before it ships.
Choosing yours
The first decision is style, and it is a decision about music rather than quality. Ravi Shankar style sitars carry a second gourd and the lower kharaj strings, giving a full instrumental voice built for long alap and heavy meend. Vilayat Khan style drops the second gourd and some lower strings for a brighter, more vocal tone suited to gayaki ang, the singing style.
Kharaj pancham is the tuning most Ravi Shankar instruments come in, with seven main strings and thirteen sympathetics. Gandhar pancham is the usual Vilayat Khan tuning, with six main strings. If you study with a teacher, buy what they play, because the fingering and the repertoire follow the instrument.
Decoration is the third variable and it is not only cosmetic. Full gulab patta, kaddu patta and angur patta carving take longer and use better wood, so a heavily decorated instrument is usually built to a higher standard throughout. But a plain student sitar from a good maker will out-play a decorated one from a poor maker every time.
An electric sitar is a different instrument, not a cheaper one. It has a solid or semi-solid body, a pickup, and no sympathetic strings to speak of. It is for stage and studio work where a traditional sitar cannot be mic'd cleanly.
Tuning and setup
We string every sitar to the gauges it was designed for and cut the jawari by hand before it ships. The jawari is the curved bridge surface, and it is what produces the characteristic buzzing overtone. A sitar with badly cut jawari sounds dead no matter how good the wood is.
Expect to retune on arrival. Strings stretch and pegs shift in transit, and a sitar that arrives at perfect pitch has usually been shipped under too much tension. Bring it up over a day or two rather than forcing it.
Sympathetic strings are tuned to the scale of the raga being played, so they get retuned as repertoire changes. They also break more often than main strings. Keep a spare set; they are inexpensive.
Jawari wears with playing. The buzz gradually goes dull over a year or two of serious practice, and the bridge needs recutting by someone who does it regularly. That is routine maintenance rather than damage.
Care and climate
The gourd is the vulnerable part. Dry heated air shrinks it and can open a seam; persistent damp softens the lacquer. Keep the instrument away from radiators, vents and direct sun, and off the floor in a humid room.
Slacken the strings if the sitar is going into storage for more than a few weeks. Left at full tension for a year, the neck will pull.
Wipe the strings after playing. Sweat is what kills them, and a cloth costs nothing.
Questions we get asked
Which sitar style should I learn on?
Whichever your teacher plays. Ravi Shankar style has a fuller instrumental voice with a second gourd and lower strings; Vilayat Khan style is brighter and closer to the singing voice. The fingering and repertoire follow the instrument, so matching your teacher matters more than the tone.
How many strings does a sitar have?
Typically seven main strings and thirteen sympathetics in kharaj pancham tuning, or six main strings in gandhar pancham. The sympathetics are not played directly; they ring in response to the melody.
Will my sitar arrive tuned?
It arrives set up but expect to retune. Strings stretch in transit and pegs move with temperature. Bring it to pitch over a day or two rather than all at once.
What is jawari?
The curved bridge surface that produces the sitar's buzzing overtone. We cut it by hand before dispatch. It wears with playing and needs recutting every year or two of serious practice.
Is a student sitar good enough to learn on?
Yes. A student instrument from a good maker plays correctly and holds tune. The difference in wood seasoning and sustain becomes audible as your playing improves, which is usually years rather than months.