Other flat bridged instruments 2
In traditional Japanese music, sawari is the name of a buzzy sound quality that is often found in, and sometimes expected of certain traditional stringed instruments. The Japanese lute Biwa, particularly the Satsuma Biwa, has wide rounded frets and a rounded ivory bridge, placed curiously at the top end of the neck called “the mountain of sawari”. The making of the instrument is such that the strings are stopped by pulling them between frets, that are raised centimeters from the neck of the instrument. This allows the player to create the desired sawari effect at each fret. The process of rounding the bridge in Japan is called “sivari”. Shomyo, the music of the Biwa, is highly influenced by Bhuddist texts. Thus the link to India.
