Recommendations on Buying an Esraj or Dilruba
If you ask me “Where can I buy a Quality Esraj or Dilruba?” (as seen on my blogspot blog)
Earlier , I would have told everyone : ” Err I don’t Know – Mine is from Raj Musicals in Delhi, so I suppose you can get one there ”
But .. I don’t recommend them at this point – unless you fly down to buy and inspect the instrument yourself.
I have nothing against them. I just wish they would pay more attention to details and give the ‘average’ customer better service.
Being totally objective and just stating facts : Every Musical Instrument that my teacher has ordered from him since he ordered mine – has been flawed in some way. Each flaw has been small – caused by the makers lack of attention to detail.
Either the Bridge was too big which caused the resonating strings to be raised too high and touch the frets. Which means they were “blocked” and did NOT resonate.
Or they put the strings in such a way that every tuning head did not Tighten the same way. Some tightened clockwise, others tightened counter-clockwise.
Or they put the wrong string (too thin) as the main playing string – and the Saaz barely makes any sound.
Granted, Everything was fixable (with a few hours of work – each – by someone experienced), but if you order something, ideally, it should reach you in proper working order – or at least with instructions on how to tweak it so it works great.
Can’t blame them though – they’re too popular.
In conclusion, my opinion of Raaj Musicals in Delhi : their instruments are good – but you need to have someone who knows how to inspect instruments properly pick it up. OR, if you are friends with a famous or semi-famous musician – ask them to place the order for you.
Note: Raj Musicals in Dehli is different from “Raj Academy” which is based in the UK. If you’re planning to buy from Raj Academy in the UK – then you don’t need to worry about what I’ve written above. Their instruments will most likely be OK because they have been inspected thoroughly.
Anyways.. Now I have someone else I can recommend with confidence.
Check out Monoj Kumar Sardar & Bros – in Kolkata.
My good friend Angad bought an Esraj from him. I have seen photos, and heard it on Skype. She’s a beauty !
Best of all , it reached him with everything taken care of nicely. Nothing needs to be adjusted or messed with.
I hope they always give all their customers – newbies, amateur and professional – fantastic workmanship and great service.
*Update May 2008: My friend Sarab Singh also ordered one from MKS. He has just received it, and is very happy with it.
Call Mr. MONOJ KUMAR at the office number, tell him Angad from Singapore recommended him.
Don’t bother emailing – just CALL .
Office Telephone: +91-33-2237-5835
Showroom Telephone: +91-33-2248-4519
Their Basic Site: Monoj Kr. Sardar & Bros.
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* RIKHI RAM is another big brand name used by several professional Hindustani Classical musicians. Seek them out and ask them too. I think they’re Delhi Based.
* If you’re ready to invest in a TOP NOTCH, traditional Sikh Instrument (Rabab, Taus , Dilruba, Saranda, Jori, etc.): Get in touch with Bhai Baldeep Singh
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A few personal recommendations:
1) I suggest you buy an ESRAJ rather than a DILRUBA because the main playing string of the ESRAJ is further away from the edge, and it’s just more comfortable to play. (For me at least)
He’s got 3-4 different grades of Esraj – so you can order one that suits your budget.
If you felt like you NEEDED this information, I’d say you don’t really need an instrument made of teak, so go for the Toon Wood.
If you’re picky – A One-piece Toon Wood Esraj will do fine. If you want to watch your Budget , go for a two piece Toon Wood Esraj.
I’m sorry I don’t quite know the proper English name for Toon wood – if you do , post a comment.
Order machine head tuners for the main strings and sympathetic strings, because if you’re tall and get a small Esraj with big wooden tuning pegs, you wont be able to sit properly.
They’re just easier to tune.
*** I visited Singapore in Dec 2007 and got a chance to play Angad’s Esraj. See Videos from January 2008. His Esraj is smaller than mine, and the big wooden tuning pegs for the main strings go behind my neck when I play – so I can’t sit straight. Other than that It’s a brilliant Esraj though – I like it.
Except the tension on the main playing strings are not very high, which makes it a quiet instrument. You can instruct the manufacturer that you want the instrument to be a little louder than Angad’s – so he should increase the string tension a bit – maybe 20% . He will probably do this by putting a taller bridge or putting slightly thicker stings. I’m not sure – ASK him. ***
Under the bridge of your instrument – there MUST be a leather strip that goes across the sound-box, over the first layer of skin. For Reinforcement.
Because of the nature of animal skin and the way it is attached to the Soundbox of the instrument – it will stretch and “sink in” somewhat after a while. A layer of reinforcement is highly recommended.
My own Esraj/TarShehnai is a two piece model from Delhi’s Raj Musicals. I don’t know what wood it’s made of. I didn’t have much input when ordering it. It’s a little bit large – 70cm string length from the point where it is suspended until where the bridge starts. String tension on my instrument’s main string is about 30% higher than Angad’s. (personal estimate)
You can order a two piece or one piece from MKS. One piece is more expensive, but should sound slightly better and theoretically be more solid/longer lasting.
Like I said: Toon wood will work just fine. Go for Teak later when you don’t need my advice anymore.
Let MKS know that you want to be able to tune the main playing string to play a range of Sa = C to D#
If you are tall, tell the manufacturer how tall you are – so they can make an instrument that suits your size.
If you’re seriously planning to get one – Write all this stuff down 
2) Secondly, Order the TarShehnai Horn/Soundbox. He charges only a tiny bit more, and it will be like you are buying 2 instruments in one.
3) Regarding the TarShehnai Horn – ask him for a horn that is SHORT and WIDE. It is my observation that they sound a bit deeper/sweeter than the Long/Narrow ones. But double check with the seller about this.
If possible, the Horn should be detachable from the Soundbox. If it is , order 2 horns – It WILL make a difference to the sound. Options I suggest you choose from:
* Light/Wide/Short
* Heavy/Wide/Short
* Light/Tall/Narrow
* Heavy/Tall/Narrow
But of course, in the end, the best thing is for you to get what YOU really want.
The above is just to just give you some guidelines based on what I know and like.
Jun 21st, 2008 at 7:58 pm
With MKS, tell him to search for an old swiss horn. If he trys to fob you off and says ‘no the delhi one is fine’ tell him your cancelling the order. This was he will find you the best tarshehnai horn possible! You have to be a little brave with this guy as he has started getting alot more popular and wants even more fame so tell him that you will recomend him to other people and so on, this way he spends more time and care on your instrument!
Jun 24th, 2008 at 2:03 pm
Brother,
Will you enlighten me to what kind of bone is used for the bridge on Dilrubas? Is it possible to have a ebony bridge? I think I have seen videos wear the bridge looks to be ebony. Is their a difference in sound between the 2 that you know of?
I have a dilruba and have fooishly smashed the bridge. I plan on carving myself a new one.
thank for any advice.
Guru Fateh
Jun 24th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
Pritpal VeerJi –
I do know that the use of a hardwood bridge will produce a slightly different sound compared to a bone bridge. How exactly? – I can’t say.
If bone, what kind of bone? I read that they normally use camel bone in India, but have no clue on where you can buy some.
Ebony should work.
Other info:
I know that you have to plan the curvature of the “feet” of the bridge carefully – They have to be curved inwards a tiny bit to help the skin handle the pressure exerted on it by the strings. If your bridge has small, flat feet, it may puncture the skin.
On a Turkish instrument I bought – the bridge is a wooden arch glued on to circular “feet” (also made of wood) to increase the surface area and therefore distribution of pressure of the strings on to the skin.
Whatever you’re using, it’s best that the bridge be strong, and as lightweight as possible. Drilling holes at strategic points will reduce the weight significantly and still maintain strength.
An American luthier I read about often drills out a beehive pattern into the wood he uses – reducing the weight a LOT while maintaining structural strength.
If you’re open to experimenting:
It’s possible that you use a piece of hardwood
* carve it into the shape of a bridge without making it an arch = leave the bottom in one piece so you have one long foot rather than two small ones – this is good for the skin on the soundbox , but may or may not be good for sound – it will depend on how much weight you can remove from the bridge.
* make sure the bottom is curved up slightly on each side to accommodate the curvature of the skin as it is pressed down by the strings
* the top is curved a little more significantly to allow you to bow at least the first two playing strings separately
* decide where you will drill holes for the tarabs – drill now or after the next step
* drill a beehive pattern of ~0.50cm diameter holes into your bridge – take out as much wood weight as you can without sacrificing strength.
Jun 25th, 2008 at 10:43 am
Sat Ski Akal,
Thanks alot for the advice Manav.
I’ve managed to get a nice piece of ebony and am planning to start making my bridge tomorrow.
When I bought my dilruba last year it came with a bridge that needed alot of work and I followed advice from the following link :
http://chandrakantha.com/articles/indian_music/dilruba/dilruba_bridge.html
which I’m sure your familiar with, and patterned my bridge on that one. After the work my dilruba was making the most beautifull sound. Sadly it fell and broke.
I think I am going to make 2 different ones this time. One based on my previous design and one based on the honeycomb pattern that you describe. I’ve also see that myself on other types of bridges.
I’ll let you know how things go and what I find that the difference to be between the bone I had and the ebony I will be using.
Waheguru ji ka Khalsa
Waheguru ji ki fatheh
Jun 25th, 2008 at 11:08 am
Pritpal Ji – that’s exactly the link I read 80% of the information I gave you from. Thank you for posting it – I was unable to find it earlier.
The honeycomb thing is an idea from another Luthier’s site – which I read quite some time ago.
Here is another interesting idea for a bridge : http://www.ehhs.cmich.edu/~dhavlena/acoustic.htm
I can’t guarantee it will work very well on the dilruba , but it looks like it would be quite “safe” for the skin.
Good luck,
GurFateh.
Sep 16th, 2008 at 4:10 am
sat sri akal ,
I also have a dil ruba, i bought mine from
GURDIAL SINGH & SONS , they are in jalander close to phagwara gate i think ther the best ones out there.
Jul 11th, 2009 at 1:06 am
I just bought a new esraj made by DMS. It was well built with machine head tuning on all main strings and sympathetic strings. My problem is that there is a wolf tone (a kind of uncontrollable wah-wah sound all over the place) while playing the Shuddha Ma when tuned to concert C. I can actually feel this vibration on my finger tip while playing Ma on the fret. I am aware the cello player has this common problem but not aware of it on the esraj. I had another esraj made by MKS and there is no problem. Anyone with any suggestion to eliminate this will be great.
Sep 3rd, 2009 at 11:56 am
I am looking for a dilruba I can buy online and am frequently seeing one made by Mid-East. Are you at all familiar with this manufacturer? I played a dilruba a friend had gotten in India that was 50 years old, but after a couple years he wanted it back. Though I had the instrument a couple years, I am not an experienced musician, and wouldn’t be able to get an instrument into shape that arrived with anything more than tuning needed. But the prices I’m seeing for MKS is twice that I’m seeing for the Mid-East models.
As a new player, I feel stuck in the middle. On the one hand, I need a good instrument because I can’t correct an “off” one, but on the other hand I many not be a good enough musician for the difference between a good instrument and a great one to show.
Jan 9th, 2010 at 5:17 am
I just bought a dilruba a couple of days ago. The information here and David Courtney’s site has been extremely helpful in pointing me in the right direction! I was able to go in person over to the AACM store in San Rafael where they had two MKS dilrubas and an MKS esraj for me to horse around on. One dilruba had machine head fittings and the other just pegs (like all other Indian stringed instruments). It was clear that the peg one had a much better tone, so that’s the one I went for–I can always swap out the pegs later. Also, since the maker shellacked the skin of the one with the machine head tuners (apparently to protect it against weather variation), we weren’t sure if it would ever break-in enough to match the tone of the one I got.
The moral: if possible, go try them out in person or order from a music store that specializes in Indian instruments and has their own quality control…and ask a lot of questions! You’ll pay a premium for this, but if you’re new to string instruments like me and want to avoid fixer-uppers (for now), it’s a good way to go. Ask them to through in a hard case and tabla ring for free.
The only quirky thing about my dilruba is the sympathetic string closest to the Jawari strings hits the last fret (welcome to Indian instruments). It’s not a deal breaker, though; I damped that string for now, and it still sounds great!