Tanpuras

Tanpura is a classic Indian stringed instrument that does not play a melody, but creates a steady, flowing tonal foundation. Music naturally unfolds from its sound and returns to it again. The tanpura has a rich, softly vibrating sound full of overtones and harmonies - calm, pleasant, and slightly mystical.

A traditional tanpura usually has four to six strings tuned to the root note, its octave, and a fifth or fourth. The typical rich resonance is created thanks to the special shape of the bridge, or also thanks to fine threads inserted under individual strings.

Original Indian tanpuras often feature a sound body made of a resonant gourd. They sound beautiful, but are fragile and more demanding to transport. In our selection, you will therefore also find modern tanpuras with a wooden body, which have a full, rich sound while being easy to carry.

Polytanpura is an expanded variant of the tanpura. To the basic meditative harmony, it adds further melodic strings that can be tuned to various scales. Each of these strings shares a similar resonant character to the main strings of the tanpura. Thanks to this, the polytanpura offers broader musical possibilities, while retaining the flowing, resonant character of the tanpura.

Tanpuras and polytanpuras create a calm, meditative atmosphere with their flowing sound, even when played entirely on their own. They are suitable for accompanying the OM mantra as well as other mantras, for vocal work, singing, yoga, meditation, relaxation, sound baths, and as a steady tonal foundation for harmonizing with other instruments.

You can listen to all our instruments in audio samples, watch them in videos, or try them out in person in our showroom in Jablonec nad Nisou. We will be happy to advise you on your selection and show you how to play individual tanpuras and polytanpuras.