Instrumental music has the ability to strike a cord in ones heart without there being a single word and Malayalam instrumental music definitely stands out in that respect. Many free downloads of the latest new hot and rare old traditional Malayalam instrumental mp3 are available online on various sites. These can be downloaded for free or by paying a small fee.

Bharata in his "Natya-shastra" in the first century AD developed the first   classificatory system applicable to all Indian musical instruments which was based on the method of sound production. He broadly distinguished "Vadyas" which were the musical instruments in four categories the first being "tata" which means to stretch, the second being "ghana" which means to to strike a solid material, the third being "avanadha"  which means to be attached or covered, the fourth last one being "sushira" which means to be hollow or pierced.

 
According to their function in the kshetram that is the rituals of the temple the musical instruments are generally classified into "Devavadyam" and "Asuravadyam". The term "deva" is used for the higher gods and "asura" for the lower gods according to the Rigveda. Thus according to this classification the drums timila, edaykka, valantala which is the bass side of the chenda, maram, the conch shankh, and the small chengila gong are devavadyam. The drums itantala which is the treble side of the chenda, both forms of maddalam, the cymbals ilatalam, and the wind instruments kombu and kuzhal are asuravadyam. The devavadyam instruments are played beside the Srikovil entrance. Found only in the "kshetram" and "kavu" ritual music contexts of Kerala are some of the instruments like chenda, edaykka and timila. "Urulakkai", a unique drumming technique performed on chenda and edaykka, is also indigenous to Kerala and its Malayalam instrumental music.

A list of my favorite Malayalam instrumentalists is:

1.  G S Rajan who plays the flute
2.  N. Ramani who plays the flute
3.  Mandolin Shrinivas who plays the mandolin
4. T.V. Gopalkrishnan who plays the mridangam
5.  Lalgudi Jayaraman who plays the violin.

Malayalam pop music is slowly but steadily carving a niche for itself. One can download free latest hit new Malayalam pop songs mp3 at many sites. These sites also provide with the lyrics, videos and video clips which are free download or can be seen online.

Malayalam pop songs or light songs are also known as Lalitha Sangeetham. Its emerging as a popular form of Malayalam music breaking all the barriers of age, creed and colour. Not only is it getting recognized in the Malayalam speaking communities but also through out south India and seems to be catching up with the rest of India. Malayalam pop music is soon becoming the style thing with the cool quotient and the latest fad. It’s a fast growing industry and new fresh voices and faces are getting launched by the month. With new talent making it to the limelight, this form of music renders a new and unique mode of expression.

Like most other pop genres Malayalam pop music also has its roots in the classical Malayalam music with it being a fusion of Indian classical music and western genres, thud drawing inspirations from the folk, classical, devotional, semi classical forms of Malayalam music. Malayalam pop music seems to be gaining a strong foothold not just because of its fresh talent but also because of the fact that media like the radio, television, internet etc are helping a lot in its growth to become a successful independent industry.

Very few songs of today’s age actually have the true folk flavor retained in them. To keep the Malayalam folk music alive the most of these sites have been very useful by providing free downloads of rare old and latest fresh new hit Malayalam folk music mp3. These sites also provide lyrics, videos and video clips which can be seen online or downloaded for free.

The majority of the musical heritage of Kerala lies in its folklore which includes not just songs but also its early poems and verses. Malayalam folk music has treated songs as an essential part of Kerala’s rich heritage of literature and used them as a medium to express thoughts, ideas and culture. Thus we see Malayalam folk songs and regional poetry exists as one and the same which is not seen in other arenas like Sanskrit.

Through oral tradition the innumerable varieties of folk songs have been composed, preserved and handed down to the succeeding generations. This oral tradition had the disadvantage that the authorship of many of these songs and the exact time of their composition is not clearly known. Yet, they form an unbroken link between the ancient and the modern people and provide valuable records of their religious, social and cultural progress.

The earliest Malayalam folk songs were either religious or heroic since the earlier Malayali had great pride in his religion and his chivalry. They later incorporated a variety of other subjects related to occupation while certain songs like maveli, thumpi, jnaruppattu etc had different tunes.

The accompanying instruments of the folklore were chenda, para, talam, chengala, kuzhal, villu, kinnam, kudam, veena etc. Some of these are still in use even today and are exceptionally brilliant instruments. It is the singular pride of the Malayalis that they have been able to posses a rich heritage of original and unaltered instruments and instrumental playing which are as old as those of natya sastra.

Similarly many of the old and obsolete ragas can still be traced in the traditions of Kerala folk music. Also in them, one sees the traits of sopana which is the original music system of Kerala which reigned supreme till the classical Carnatic music swept the state. The exquisite rustic music of Kerala faced a set back in its popularity about half a century ago with the sudden establishment of new styles like the concert music, light music, drama music, film music, pop music etc., in whose expansion, the radio and television played the major role. Unable to withstand the growing popularity of such well organized music disciplines the folk songs and their artists either receded to remote villages or modified themselves in form and character. Recently, an earnest attempt has been going on to rediscover and preserve the folk music in their original form and charm so that the true musical legacy of Kerala in its Malayalam folk songs can live on.

Malayalam classical music is one of the ramifications of Carnatic classical music. Many sites provide with free download of classical traditional old rare Malayalam classical songs. These could also be old devotional Malayalam songs as most of the classical songs were religion based. Most of these sites also provide with free lyrics, videos and video clips which can be downloaded for free or can be seen online. These Malayalam classical songs are available mp3, real, audio and most other formats. 

Indian classical music is principally based on melody and rhythm. The system of Indian music known as "Raga Sangeet" which can be traced back nearly two thousand years to its origin which lies in the Vedic hymns of the Hindu temples, the fundamental source of all Indian music. Carnatic music is the popular classical form. Kerala’s own contribution is the "Sopana" style which is slow in tempo and emotional. Kerala’s folk music, on the other hand, is neither sophisticated nor refined, but it displays a strong sense of rythm and rhyme. The songs are usually devotional, as in "Sarpa Pattu", "Bhadrakali Pattu" and "Ayyappan Pattu".

One of the most famous music composers of malayalam classical music was Maharaja Swati Thirunal who ruled over the region of Travancore in the early part of the 19th century. Other well accomplished composers of the time were Irayimman Thampy and Shadkala Govinda Marar. The Carnatic classical music as is heard and understood in Kerala today had established itself during the reign of Maharaja Swathi Thirunal. At the Royal court The Maharaja encouraged musicians and singers to perform. From all over South India a great number of talented musicians flowed into the kingdom. This period marks the golden age of Malayalam classical music in Kerala. The age saw the creation of innumerable compositions, practised and popularised not just all over Kerala but outside the State as well.

This form of music faced crisis after the death of Maharaja Swathi Thirunal. However the great task of restoring the original musical excellencies of the compositions of Swathi Thirunal, Tampi, Thankachi, K.C. Kesava Pillai and others had been succesful in the later years safeguarding a tradition.
Some of my favorite Malayalam classical / devotional songs are :

• Kettum Ketti by Vaishali Dinesh
• Sankara Nandhana by Venugopal
• Mandalam Nolukkum by Shreeni.

Malayalam music is the music belonging to the state of Kerala. Free downloads of most of the latest new hot Malayalam mp3 and of many rare old Malayalam songs is available widely on the net. Most of these sites also provide with the lyrics of these Malayalam songs. Malayalam pop, folk, instrumental and classical songs are downloadable for free. One can also download free videos or see these video clips online.

Malayalam films and film songs have played a very important role in popularizing great musical art forms such as Carnatic Music, Kathakali, to the masses and the general public and thus increasing the egalitarian makeup of Kerala and giving it an important standing in the world of music and cinema. Malayalam cinema and its music has established its reputation during the last 50 years not just in India but in the in the International film arena as well.

To a Malayali the Malayalam music not only stands for nostalgia but is much more than that especially the ones living abroad for whom it’s like a connection with their motherland. The golden era of Malayalam music is considered to be that of G Devarajan, V Dakshinamoorthy, M S Baburaj, M.K Arjunan, K Raghavan to name a few. Malayalam music has many subtypes mainly being classical, semi-classical, pop, movie songs, devotional, folk and instrumental songs.

A list of my favorite Malayalam songs is :

1. Indravallari from the movie  Gandharva Kshethram
2. Akale Akale from the movieAkale
3. Kannil Nin Meyyil from the movie Innale.