NO. 61. — 1908.] KANDYAN MUSIC. 



159 



The next five are varieties of mini or bells. 



The final five are hollow bell-metal bangles with small 

 balls of bell-metal put in to cause a sound when vibrated. 

 These are called gigiri, from, I believe, gir, to sound. 



The above are all the instruments I have been able to hear 

 of. At present only the bera, dekki, nald, horane, sak, tdlan- 

 pola, taliya, rahu-gigiri, the mini -nald, two kinds of vind, and 

 two ndgasinnamas are in use. 



X. 



The melody of the tolas lies in the proper distribution of the 

 sounds and the harmony of the words combined to form a 

 tola ; as also the proper arrangement, according to the rules, 

 of the accents, the measures, the pause, and the cadence. 



A sound is called a mata, a moment or instant. A short 

 sound or one instant is called a lagu ; a long sound or two 

 instants is called a guru. Lagu means short or light and 

 guru heavy or long. The " instant," or letter immediately 

 preceding a hal or silent letter is also a guru. A hal letter 

 is equal to half an " instant." An " instant " is the time 

 taken in the twinkling of the eye. Mata means an instant. 



Short sounds or lugu or lagu are marked thus, — and the 

 long sounds or guru thus, Letters have long and short 

 sounds indicated by symbols which indicate their quantity. 

 A puluta, marked thus, =E , consists of three instants. 

 Three of these sounds or instants produce a gane, which 

 means a foot. There are eight gana. 



Vritta means metre ; tdla, musical time or measure ; mdtraya 

 means quantity in metre, a syllabic foot, or a phonetic addi- 

 tion of words, wannan means a time, from vana, a sound; 

 chandas means poetical metre, or the system of the arrange- 

 ment of poetical metre, or the rules for the arrangement of 

 poetical metres. 



The letters are divided into eight classes, according to the 

 places from where the sounds are created. They are gut- 

 turals, palatals, Unguals, dentals, labials, gutturo -palatals, 

 gutturo-labials, and dento -labials. A correct knowledge of 

 all the above has to be acquired for correct singing. 



