.png) Sarasvati veena | |
| String instrument | |
|---|---|
| Classification | string |
| Musicians | |
| Veenai Dhanammal, S. Balachander, Chitti Babu, Kalpakam Swaminathan, E. Gayathri, Jayanthi Kumaresh, Rajhesh Vaidhya, Punya Srinivas | |
| Sound sample | |
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| More articles or information | |
| Rudra veena, Vichitra veena, Chitra veena | |
The Sarasvatī vīṇa (also spelled Saraswati veena) (Telugu: సరస్వతి వీణ, Kannada: ಸರಸ್ವತಿ ವೀಣೆ, Tamil: சரஸ்வதி வீணை, Malayalam: സരസ്വതി വീണ) is an ancient Indian plucked veena. It is named after the Hindu goddess Saraswati, who is usually depicted holding or playing the instrument. Also known as raghunatha veena, it is used mostly in Carnatic Indian classical music. There are several variations of the veena, which in its South Indian form is a member of the lute family. One who plays the veena is referred to as a vaiṇika.
The Saraswati veena is one of 4 major types of veena today. The others include chitra veena, vichitra veena and rudra veena. Out of these the rudra and vichitra veenas are used more often in Hindustani music, while the Saraswati veena and the chitra veena are used more frequently in the Carnatic music of South India. They can be used to play either traditional music or contemporary music.