[rating:.5/5]

Need I say more? This “book” is about the worst I’ve ever read – and I’ve read plenty. Not only that but the tingshas that are included are of the worst quality: in fact, they’re so bad that it’s embarrassing. I’ll review both (the book and the tingsha) to warn others about this substandard drivel:

Tingsha – as already noted, of that absolute worst quality. The sound that mine make are horrible (and that’s putting it mildly) – I’d rather listen to fingernails on a chalkboard. The tingsha that included are covered with eight auspicious symbols – most traditional instruments are unadorned. Of course, that makes them look “pretty” but that has nothing to do with quality – which these are not.

Book – very little is actually devoted to the discussion of tingshas and the little that is, is filled with errors and meaningless drivel. A closer look reveals that the book is merely filled with fluff and absolutely no substance. In fact, very little of the book pertains to tingshas; rather it contains rambling discussions on the “eight auspicious symbols,” other cultures (Indian, Chinese, etc.) other than Tibet, and other non-related information.

The errors and false information provided are astounding; examples include:

Page 10 – [the tingshas included with the book] are “pitched in approximately the key of E major.”

Facts: a pair of resonating objects (such as found in a tingsha) cannot be tuned to E major or any other diatonic Western scale – the author’s claim that they are is simply STUPID! Furthermore, each cymbal that came with my book is “tuned” to F# and G respectively which, of course, makes the author’s statement even more absurd.

Page 13 – “each individual ting-sha [sic] is skillfully tuned . . . to create a perfectly matching pitch for each pair.”

Fact: As noted above, my tingsha was not “perfectly matched” when; in fact, they were “tuned” to a minor second, one of the most dissonant intervals to the human ear! In other words, they sound awful!

Page 32 – “Musical prodigies, such as Mozart and Beethoven. . .”

Fact: Huh? What? Mozart is; of course, a well known prodigy, Beethoven, on the other hand, most certainly was NOT! Duh!

Pathetically, because the author is clueless as to what he was supposed to be writing about (he’s certainly NOT a scholar), he rambles on about topics ranging from Edgar Allen Poe to Feng Sui to add fluff. It’s too bad that he provides very little about Tibetan tingshas and most of what is mentioned, is just garbage. Avoid this nonsense at all costs – you’ll be glad you did.