About Mridangam

• Mridangam is a percussion instrument made of leather and jackwood.
• A cylindrical body tapered at both the ends.
• This traditional instrument is found in various parts of South India.
• It is a popular bifacial drum of Carnatic music and is used as an accompaniment in South Indian Classical music.
• In modern times, Mridangam is used in Carnatic music performances.
• History
  • Sangam Period: Mridangam is known as Tannumai in Tamil culture.
    • In ancient Tamil literature, Sangam literature there is the earliest mention of the Mridangam.
    • There is a detailed reference of the instrument in the Natyasastra. It was the most used and primary percussion instrument in the Sangam period.
  • Silappatikaram (epic): After the Sangam period, it is mentioned in the epic ‘Silappatikaram’.
  • Hindu religious scriptures: It is said that it was one of the favorite instruments of Lord Ganesha and Lord Shiva’s bahana, Nandi.
• Mridangam is very close to another classical percussion instrument Pakhavaj that is mostly used in the Hindustani traditional music in Northern India.
• Mridangam schools: The most famous and prominent Mridangam schools then and now are the Thanjavur School and the Puddukottai School. 
• Most notable Mridangam players: Guruvayur Dorai, Anoor Anantha Krishna Sharma, Karaikudi Mani, Bombay C N Balaji, Kovai Venugopal, Mannargudi Easwaran, Prapancham Ravindran, Srimushnam Raja Rao, N. Lakshmi Ganesh, Rohan Krishnamurthy, Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman, Vasudevan Govindarajan, K. Murthy, Palghat R. Raghu, Tiruvarur Bhaktavatsalam, and more.