War in Ancient India c15.14

c15.14

Even among the war instruments relating to music in the epic period we find a distinction between the music in the field and music in the camp. In the camp the melodies are softened and the warriors are ‘greeted by the milder notes of the lyre.’⁹ This incidentally shows the advance made by epic peoples and their keen artistic sense. The primitive and simple musical style has been replaced by the mature and civilised style. The soldiers enjoyed good and sweet music after the hard and harsh music of the battlefield. Mṛdaṅga and paṇava were more for the use of the camp than for the field.¹⁰ Nanda and upanandakas, special kinds of mṛdaṅga were played upon by mechanical contrivance so as to produce a joyous note.¹¹