Kanjira

Small 6-7 inch tambourine used in South Indian classical music. This drum has a lizard skin head with a single pair of jingles. The playing technique involves splitting the playing hand into two surfaces to achieve fast repetitions of a single sound. The type of lizard used to make this drum has been hunted to near extinction, so these drums are getting more difficult to find.

Visit the South Indian Percussionist Page for more on kanjira.