Pattala

The pattala (Burmese: ပတ္တလား patta.la:, Burmese pronunciation: [pattəlá]; Mon: ဗာတ် ကလာ) is a Burmese xylophone, consisting of 24 bamboo slats called ywet (ရွက်) or asan (အဆံ) suspended over a boat-shaped resonating chamber.[1][2] It is played with two padded mallets.[1][2] The pattala is tuned similar to the diatonic scale.[1]

For the geographic location, see Indus River Delta.
Pattala
Percussion instrument
Other namesBurmese xylophone
Classification Percussion instrument
DevelopedBefore 1479
Related instruments
Ranat ek, Roneat ek
More articles or information
Music of Myanmar

In modern days, classical Burmese chamber music is accompanied by either the pattala or the saung (the Burmese harp), both of which are capable of performing a harmonic countermelody.[3] The pattala is also a key instrument in the Burmese ensemble orchestra, the hsaing waing.[4] The pattala is also prominently featured in Burmese drama, anyeint.[5]

Etymology

The Burmese term pattala is a calque of Sanskrit vādya (ဝါဒျ, "musical instrument") and Mon (ကလာ, "chest"). The Mon equivalent is called patkala (ဗာတ်ကလာ). In the Karen languages, it is called paw ku.[6]

Origins

The earliest extant mention of the pattala is in the Kalyani Inscriptions, which dates to CE 1479, followed by a reference in a treatise during the reign of Bayinnaung.[5] During the Nyaungyan era, the pattala was referenced in the poet-minister Padethayaza's verse poem, "Thuza Pyo" (သူဇာပျို့) as an instrument played for royal court affairs. The pattala is similar to other mainland Southeast Asian instruments, including the Thai ranat ek and the Cambodian roneat ek.

In pre-colonial Burma, the pattala was used in royal court music.[7] In fact, when the piano was first introduced to the Burmese court in the late 1800s, it was tuned to the scale of the pattala.[7]

Construction
A 19th century Burmese watercolour depicting a pattala musician

The bamboo slats are typically made from the wood of giant bamboo (Dendrocalamus giganteus), which is durable and produces a stable sound.[1] Slats are occasionally made from brass or iron.[1] The mallets are made from hardwoods such as teak, padauk, black cutch, yindaik, or pyinkado.[1] The resonance box is made from teak and decorated with inlaid glass or gold leaf.[1]

The pattala's components have specialized names in the Burmese language:[8]

  • Pallin (ပလ္လင်, lit. "throne") - the base of the pattala[8]
  • Phanat (ဖိနပ်, lit. "shoes") - the foot of the pattala[8]
  • Bedaungbya (ဘဲတောင်ပြား, lit. "flat duck feathers") - the resonating chamber[8]
  • Myinmo taing (မြင်းမိုရ်တိုင်, lit. "Mount Meru pillars") - decorative protrusions from the resonating chamber[8]
  • Myinmo peik (မြင်းမိုရ်ပိတ်, lit. "Mount Meru closure") - either end of the resonating chamber[8]

See also

References
  1. 簡約雍容狂野. 國立傳統藝術中心. 2006. pp. 112–113. ISBN 9789860059182.
  2. A Description of the Burmese Empire. Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. 1833. pp. 128.
  3. Rice, Timothy (2011). Ethnomusicological Encounters with Music and Musicians. Ashgate Publishing. p. 185. ISBN 9781409434023.
  4. Brandon, James R. (2009). Theatre in Southeast Asia. Harvard University Press. p. 127. ISBN 9780674028746.
  5. "Musical Instruments - Xylophone (Pattala)". Union of Myanmar Ministry of Hotels and Tourism. 2006. Retrieved 31 August 2013.
  6. Cooler, Richard M. (1995). The Karen Bronze Drums of Burma. BRILL. p. 29. ISBN 9789004099333.
  7. Parakilas, James; E. Douglas Bomberger (2002). Piano Roles: A New History of the Piano. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300093063.
  8. "မြန်မာ့အနုသုခမ အဘိဓာန် Dictionary of Myanma Performing and Plastic Art". WAING. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
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