The Singing Bowls of Tibet

Strictly speaking the Tibetan Bowls are not bells but they are part of the wider bell family and so share the same traditional sacro-magical significance, as do bells and other metal instruments in ancient folklore. A search for the earliest development of bells leads us to ancient China. The Chinese have used bells since their remotest civilisation for purposes profane and sacred.

Does anyone have any additional information about these bowls?

Singing Bowls Link

I don't know a lot about them, I've seen them a few times. Here is a link that has sound bytes, in case you want to hear them.

www.buckeyehollow.com...

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Be Cool
K_OS

How very cool. I had never heard of these before. K_OS, the soundbytes you lined are very nice. Hypnotic, I could definitely see why one would use this as a meditation aid.

These are a delight: I got used to them in Nepal whither as many Tibetans as could manage it, escaped.
They're very well known and any search will reveal numerous traders who will sell them to you as household ornaments.
If you really love this sound, I might mention an English chap who made several recordings of these: one was a CD called Shambala with an entire piece scored for an orchestra of these artefacts.
I believe it's still available here: www.frankperry.co.uk...

Originally posted by Estragon
...If you really love this sound, I might mention an English chap who made several recordings of these: one was a CD called Shambala with an entire piece scored for an orchestra of these artefacts.
I believe it's still available here: www.frankperry.co.uk...

I have forgotten the name of the recordlabel and the album code, but if you're into contemporary music, I can also recomend the album Sogno by a friend of mine called Jan-Erik Pettersen. He uses these bowls in a couple of songs. During one song one of them even falls to the floor (it's my favorite sound from the whole album). As a drummer and percussionist, I'll have to add that bowls like these are early cymbals and gongs, but I guess they have more in common with glassharps due to their unique tones that span from way below our hearing capability to way above. You can actually feel them when they are "singing". If you hit a 40" chinese gong you can even feel that it's producing heat when you hold your hand or your cheek close into it. God, I love this Pettersen guy. Among other things he owns the largest marimba in Scandinavia. I believe Sogno was released on a rather obscure Swedish label back in the early nineties, but I'm not sure. The album is at my parents' house... I guess you could get some help at a classical music store if you'd like to buy it on import... Incredibly cool sound! Way out!

Blessings,
Mikromarius