secular and religious, singing associated with festival, with death, etc. There was a class of bards of both sexes who were professional singers and musicians-pāṇar, viṛalis, etc. Most of them went from place to place dispensing music and thus earning their livelihood.4 The Tamilian genius for music is best illustrated by the śilappadi-kāram where a whole canto5 is devoted to various aspects of musical science. Besides the texts the commentary throws Welcome light without which it is impossible to make out anything of ancient music, In this canto mention is made of two kinds of kūttu: Ahakkūttu and Pufṛakkūttu and eleven kinds of āṭal. Then, a number of musical instruments are mentioned as well as the qualifications of a musician and a composer of songs. The musician exhibited his skill either by playing on the vīṇā or flute, or singing vocally, but in all cases accompanied by the low-toned mṛdangam and similar instruments. The commentator refers here to four kinds of vīṇā -periyāl, makarayāl śakoḍayāl, sengoṭṭiyāl. Speaking of the flute, five kinds are distinguished according to the materials of which the flute was made. It was made of bamboo, sandalwood, bronze, red catechu and ebony. Of these, that of bamboo is the best, that of bronze middling and those of sandal, etc. are of inferior quality. Here seven holes are made for seven svaras: sa, ri, ga, ma, pa, da, ni, and seven fingers; are pressed into service when playing on the flute. The seven fingers are three of the left hand leaving out the thumb and the little finger, and four of the right hand leaving out the thumb. Of the musical instruments which were accompaniments for any performance, thirty-one kinds are distinguished. Apparently all of them are made of leather. The songster must possess the instinct to divide and expand the svaras by distinguishing the foreign from the indigenous. He and his assistants who are the drummer and others must be versed in nāṭaka literature which is divided into two parts, one probably relating to the; king, and the other (Podiuviyal) relating to the populace. The qualifications of a drummer, of a flutist arid the vīṇā player are elaborately explained. The drummer was to adjust his performance to that of the songster so that the latter might not feel the strain nor the audience. He was to supply the deficiencies by a process of decrease and increase of his instrumental sound. His skill entirely depended on the continued practice. The flutist is an expert in what is known as cittirappunarppu which is nasalizing the hard consonants in singing a musical piece. He must ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4 See Peruṁpāṇāṛṛuppuḍai, 11. 18-22. 5 Canto iii. |