Editing Sarod (section)

==Origins==
The word sarod was introduced from Persian during the late [[Mughal Empire]] and is much older than the Indian musical instrument. It can be traced back to ''sorūd'' meaning "song", "melody", "hymn" and further to the Persian verb ''sorūdan'', which correspondingly means "to sing", "to play a musical instrument", but also means "to compose".<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Heinrich FJ Junker |author2= Bozorg Alavi |title= Persisch-deutsches Wörterbuch |trans-title= Persian-German dictionary |language=de |publisher= Leipzig/Tehran |date= 1970 |page= 420}}</ref>

Alternatively, the [[shahrud]] may have given its name to the sarod.<ref>{{cite book |first= Adrian |last= McNeil |title= Inventing the Sarod: A Cultural History |publisher= Seagull Books |place= London |date= 2004 |page= 27 |isbn= 978-81-7046-213-2}}</ref> The Persian word šāh-rūd is made up of ''šāh'' ([[shah]] or king) and ''rūd'' (string).<ref name="EIS">{{cite book |first= Martijn Theodoor |last= Houtsma |article= Ud |editor= E.J. Brill |title= Encyclopaedia of Islam |date= 1913–1936 |volume= 2 |page=987 |publisher= BRILL |isbn= 9004082654 |quote= rud is of Persian origin and the word, like tar, means a string |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wpM3AAAAIAAJ&dq=rud+persian+instrument&pg=PA987}}</ref> Many scholars of Indian classical music believe that the sarod is a combination of the ancient chitravina, the medieval Indian rabab  and modern [[Surasingar|sursingar]].{{citation needed|date=January 2025}}

The origins of sarod music can be traced back to the rhythmic and vibrant melodies of the Afghani [[Rubab (instrument)|rubāb]], as well as the Indian [[Seni rebab|seni rubāb]], which held a significant place in the Mughal royal courts. The sarod emerged in India during the early 19th century as an evolved form of the Afghani rubāb, commonly played in the regions to the east of Delhi, inhabited by Afghan communities. In the latter half of the 19th century, the progeny of the rubab musician and Afghan merchant Ghulam Bandagi Khan endowed the instrument with metal strings and a metallic plate, elements that are characteristic of the contemporary sarod. These enhancements facilitated longer-lasting notes and the ability to execute the intricate embellishments characteristic of dhrupad and [[khyal]] styles of music.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Music |first=Garland Encyclopedia of World |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hzIt6ZL5lY0C&dq=%22is+still+an+important+instrument+in+Afghanistan+and+in+parts+of+Pakistan+and+Kashmir%22&pg=PA942 |title=The Concise Garland Encyclopedia of World Music, Volume 2 |date=2013-02-01 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-136-09602-0 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Manuel |first1=Peter |last2=Miner |first2=Allyn |date=1999 |title=Sitar and Sarod in the 18th and 19th Centuries |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/767986 |journal=Yearbook for Traditional Music |volume=31 |pages=139 |doi=10.2307/767986 |jstor=767986 |issn=0740-1558|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
[[Lalmani Misra]] opines in his ''[[Bharatiya Sangeet Vadya]]'' that the sarod is a combination of the ancient chitravina, the medieval rubab and modern [[Surasingar|sursingar]]. Another instrument, the sur-rabab, is known to exist, which has the characteristics of both the dhrupad rabab/seniya rabab and the sarod. The sur-rabab has the structure of the dhrupad rabab but has a metal fretboard and uses metal strings.

Among the many conflicting and contested histories of the sarod, there is one that attributes its invention to the ancestors of the present-day sarod maestro, [[Amjad Ali Khan]]. Amjad Ali Khan's ancestor Mohammad Hashmi Khan Bangash, a musician and horse trader, came to India with the Afghan rubab in the mid-18th century, and became a court musician to the Maharajah of [[Rewa, India|Rewa]] (now in [[Madhya Pradesh]]). It was his descendants, notably his grandson Ghulam Ali Khan Bangash, a court musician in [[Gwalior]], who changed the rubab into the sarod we know today.<ref name="amjadalisite1">{{cite web|url=http://www.sarod.com/sarod/default.htm |title=Tools of the Trade: Sarod |access-date=2006-12-02 |last=Broughton |first=Simon |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061118162205/http://www.sarod.com/sarod/default.htm |archive-date=November 18, 2006 }}</ref> A parallel theory credits descendants of Madar Khan, Niyamatullah Khan in particular, with the same innovation around 1820. The sarod in its present form dates back to approximately 1820, when it started gaining recognition as a serious instrument in Rewa, [[Shahjahanpur]], Gwalior and [[Lucknow]]. In the 20th century, the sarod was improved significantly by  [[Allauddin Khan]] and his brother Ayet Ali Khan. They increased the number of chikari (drone) strings and increased the number of tarafdar (sympathetic) strings. However, as is the case with most young, evolving instruments, much work remains to be done in the area of sarod [[luthiery]] in order to achieve reliable customization, and precise replication of successful instruments. This reflects the general state of Indian instrument-making in the present day. Although the sarod has been referred to as a "[[Bass (instrument)|bass]] rubab"<ref name="bassrebab2">{{cite web |last=Courtney |first=David |title=Sarod |url=http://www.chandrakantha.com/articles/indian_music/sarod.html |access-date=2006-12-02 |publisher=David and Chandrakantha Courtney}}</ref> its tonal bandwidth is actually considerably greater than that of the rubab, especially in the middle and high registers