Introduction
There is large different in sound of machine made and handmade singing bowl. In this artice we will discuss about the cons and pros of handmade and machine-made singing bowl.
Singing bowls have become very popular nowadays and its demand in the market is growing rapidly. Singing bowls are quite easy to use and are unique in its design and functions. it comes with a mallet and a cushion.
The mallet helps to play the sound and the cushion is to rest the singing bowl. Based on how it is made, singing bowls are classified into two types: Handmade singing bowl and machine made singing bowl.
Handmade singing bowls are the aesthetic singing bowls, which are generally made under full moon ( called full moon singing bowl) by artisans without using any sort of machine or modern equipment.
Machine made singing bowl
Machine-made singing bowls are the metal made bowl, which is generally processed by a machine or any modern equipment. Nepal being one of the biggest place for the production of singing bowls have a great variety of them.
Handmade singing bowls are generally used for healing purpose, meditation and for spiritual therapies whereas machine made singing bowls are used for producing music and decoration purpose. As Handmade singing bowls need more efforts and labour to produce, so they are little expensive in comparison to machine made singing bowls.
Price vs demand
As the price differs, the demand also differs. Though machine made singing, bowls are cheaper in cost than handmade singing bowls but also Handmade singing bowls have a high demand than machine made singing bowls.
This is because hand-made singing bowls are very alluring and attention catching, also the sound produced by them is deep and rich but machine made singing bowls are not that attractive in comparison to handmade singing bowls. Many small workshops produce them. Handmade singing bowls do have music tone notes.
Both machine made and handmade singing bowls are played by the friction of rubbed metal made or wooden made mallet around the rim of the bowl to produce overtones, which are rich and healing.
High quality singing bowls produce a complex cord, which is generally very sweet, and its pitch can be adjusted as per the player or listener’s wish. To produce a warm sound, singing bowls are hit with a soft mallet instead of the metal or wooden one. The sound can be varied according to the way it is played.
Handmade singing bowl
Handmade singing bowls produces multiphonic and polyharmonic tunes and they are unique. It is very easy to distinguish a handmade singing bowl from machine made singing bowl. Their surface is covered with small pit marks where the hammer hit the surface.
As it is handcrafted so its outer wall is nor smooth nor soft. Machine made singing bowls are produced from different techniques. Machine made singing bowls are wonderfully clear and consistent; their size does not varies and sounds good.
While handmade singing bowls are dressed up the small hammered pits, machine made singing bowls are often dressed up with chemical etching. These two types of singing bowls can easily be distinguished if you consider its outer look and the sound produced by it.
The price of singing bowl depend on plenty of factors. While there is so many vague price range, you need to consider on so many factors before buying one. It is thickness, materials, engravings and so on. The quality of sound also matters, as it is the most important phenomenon for healing.
Handmade singing bowls are little costly than machine made singing bowls as they carries traditional values and are well built. Apart from this, they need little more effort to make in comparison to machine made singing bowls. The price of handmade singing bowls can range from Rs. 10,000 – Rs 80,000. Machine made singing bowls cost less than that.
Conclusion
Both the type of singing bowls are unique and best in their own way. You just need to be clear what you need before buying one. So consider every small things about them and make a decision. The healing sound of singing bowl is notes than heaven so buy it and experience this incredible sound