The Comparative Study of Form and the Structure of Sri Lankan Gaṭaberā and Pahatharaṭa Berā with the Indian Mridanga Drum

The Gaṭaberā and Pahataraṭa berā are the main drums in two regions in Sri Lanka; also the Mridanga is one of all South Indian main drums. This research is a comparative analysis of the similarities and differences of form and structure between those Indians and Sri Lankans drums. That is conducted in the qualitative method. Several similarities and differences are discovered from the form and structure between those drums under the organization, order of the elements, construct process, and shape. The final conclusions are, 1) the form of all drum heads of Gatabera, Pahatharata bera, and Mridanga is similar, and also that form represents an Indian subcontinent drum head variety, but their structure is different according to the culture of both countries. 2) The form and structure of Gatabera and Mridanga drum bodies are slightly similar.


Introduction
The Gaṭaberā and Pahataraṭa berāya are main drums in the Sri Lanka. The Gaṭaberā traditionally has been used in Sri Lankan Up-country (Kandyan) dance and rituals, another two names called that as Kandyan Drum (Udarata Beraya) and Magul Beraya (Ramanayake, 1986, p. 2) (Disanayaka, 2018, p. 174. Suraweera has mentioned several names used for Pahataraṭa berāya (Low-country drum) in his theses, such as Yak Beraya, Devol beraya (named after the ritual Devol Maḍuva and the god devol), Ruhunu beraya (named after a historically important Sinhala kingdom of the south called Ruhunu) and Gōśaka beraya (gōśaka meaning noisy) (Suraweera, 2009, p. 50) (Ramanayake, 1986, p. 14). However, all Sri Lankan Artists have generally acknowledged that drums represent the two traditional aspects of Sri Lanka. The word "Mridangam" is derived from the two Sanskrit words "Mrid" (clay or earth) and "Ang," (body).

The Comparative Study of Form and the Structure of Sri Lankan Gaṭaberā and Pahatharaṭa Berā with the Indian Mridanga Drum
The name Mridanga has been mentioned in Valmiki's Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Baratha's Natya Shastra (Prapatthong, 1998, pp. 177-179). We cannot conclude the difference or similarity of present-day Mridanga and historical Mridanga. However, the present Mridanga may be a historical representation of music evolution and Indian drum structure. Because of that reason, the Mridanga drum is used for the present research among Indian drums. Today should comparative study the similarities and differences of the form and structure of Indian and Sri Lankan drums. The research problem is the similarities and differences of the form and structure of those Indian and Sri Lankan Drums.

Method
This comparative study has been conducted in the qualitative method. In the process of comparative study can be analyzed and compared, two or more objects or ideas. Also, a comparative study shows how two subjects are similar or show how two subjects are different (Bukhari, 2011   The definitions of the Pahatharata bera and Gatabera drums elements. Some meanings are referenced from Suraweera (Suraweera, 2009, p. 51).
• Bera kadathe shell of the drum.
• Warapatithe straps that connect the two drum heads along the drum.
• Bera gatiya (weniwara karalla)the woven ring around the edge of the drumhead (Drum rim or ring).

The body of Gatabera and Pahatharata bera
The Gatabera belongs to Compound Conical shaped, as well as the body may be made timbers such as Golden shower, ironwood, Thespesia populnea, Deodar cedar, Margosa, and Jackwood (Disanayaka, 2018, p. 175). The Low-country drum body is cylindrical-shaped and made from the Golden shower, Vitex altissima, Margosa, Jackwood, Coconut, and Caryota urens (Suraweera, 2009, p. 50). The traditional Low-country and Gatabera drum makers are measured from the "Viyat and Angul" system; a viyat is the length from the thumb to the little finger, as the fingers are spread. An angul is the length from the first joint above the palm to the end of the index finger.
Their traditional acceptance was three viyat and three angul in length, and one viyat at the diameter of the drumhead; this measure should be taken from the drummers' hands (Suraweera, 2009, pp. 52-53). That method represents the correlation of drum player (drummer) and instrument because traditional makers focused on the physical capacity of those things and got the maximum benefit. However, this method does not use in the present commercial productions. inches for Low-country drums length and diameter of the drumhead is around 7.5 to 9 inches (Suraweera, 2009, p. 50).

The Gatabera and Pahatharata bera head.
The form and structure of Gatabera and Low-country drum heads are similar, but different animal skins are used. Cow skin is used to cover the Gatabera left head, and monkey skin uses to cover the right head (Ramanayake, 1986, p. 3); however, in the present-day, monkey skins are very rare and instead use goat skins for the right side (Suraweera, 2009, p. 44). Both heads of the Lowcountry drum are covered from the cow's stomach (Ramanayake, 1986, p. 15) (Suraweera, 2009, p. 56). Those Sri Lankan drum heads have two parts as traditionally; the first part is Bera thattuwa or Bera asa, the second part is Bera hakma or Kapum hama. The Bera asa or Bera thattuwa is the basic skin and playing skin of Gata bera and Low-country drums. Before, attaching the Bera asa to the drum, a rim named Gatiwala (made of bamboo or vines) fixes like circular to the drum shell of Gatabera and Low-country ( Figure 03). After that, Bera asa soaks in water and puts it to the top of the drum hole, and string is used to tightly bind Bera asa with Gatiwala ( Figure 04).
The Low-country drum has used a Gatiwala for each head, but the Gatabera right face uses two Gatiwala, and the left face uses one Gatiwala. After that, Bera hakma is put on the top of Bera asa   The body of Mridanga is made from Jack-wood, Redwood, Morgosa, Coconut, and Palm trees; however, Mridanga makers and players most like Jack-wood and Redwood. Mridanga is made in various sizes as one-and-a-half or two feet in length, and its diameter is twenty-five to thirty centimeters (Baral, 2017). So also, for this research, obtained the sizes from Tamil  The below discussion focuses on the Mridangam, Gäṭaberaya and, Low-country drum.
Additionally, it discusses several Indian and Sri Lankan drums such as pakhawaj, tabla, khol, Shudda maddalam, and tammäṭṭama, etc. Gatabera, Pahatharata bera, and Mridangam shells are different, but approx; a similar formation has on the between Gatabera and Mridangam drum shells. So also, Pahatharata bera has a cylinder shape (Dennis, 2006, p. 09); however, all those drum heads are laced by the "W" method. The insides of Gatabera and Low-country drums are rough, carved with marks, and not smooth. However, the inside of Mridanga drum is slightly smoothed rather than the Sri Lankan drums. One unique physical/acoustical feature of the gäṭa beraya drumwhich it shares with another up-country drum, the tammäṭṭamais that the outer skin (käpum hama or häkma) is stiff, and affixed in a way that leaves it slightly raised above the inner skin." (Peiris, 2020, pp. 36-37) He has pointed out similarities between the drum heads in Sri Lankan drums (Gäṭa beraya and low-country drum) and Indian drums (pakhavaj, tabla, Mridangam, khol, and shudda maddalam).
We can name their form as a drum head variant in the Indian subcontinent ( Figure 09) because

Outer skin
Inner skin Drum rim that form is in a significant number of drum heads in the Indian subcontinent (e.g. -pakhawaj, tabla, Mridangam, khol, shudda maddalam, Thammatama, Gäṭa beraya, and low-country drum).
Those drum heads have been constructed with three or more animal skins in India and two animal skins in Sri Lanka under different measurements and tannery methods.  However, Gatabera and Low-country drummers stand and play while their drums are tied to players' hips.

Conclusion
Between Gatabera (compound conical-shaped) and Mridangam (barrel-shaped), shells have a slightly similar shape, but the Pahatharata bera Especially, this form is used in a significant number of drum heads among Indian subcontinent The outer skin of raised and slightly curved shaped.
drums. In there, Mridanga has used three or more skins for inner and outer and attached to each one and cannot be separated; as a result, inner and outer skins are touched together. Rather than that, a different method is used in Sri Lanka. Two skins are used to inner and outer of Gatabera and Low-country drum heads; also, their inner and outer skins are fitted to drum shells separately from each one; those skins do not touch each other. However, a mixture is pasted to the Mridanga inner skin, but that Sri Lankan drums are not like that. Traditionally, Sri Lankan drummers play with stand posture, and Mridanga players play with sit posture. Mridanga drums tuning to musical notes, but those Sri Lankan drums do not like that. Accordingly, the final conclusions are, 1) the form of all drum heads of Gatabera, Pahatharata bera, and Mridanga is similar, and also that form represents an Indian subcontinent drum head variety, but their structure is different according to the culture of both countries.
2) The form and structure of Gatabera and Mridanga drum bodies are slightly similar.