Indian classical music

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The origins of Indian classical music can be found from the oldest of scriptures, part of the Hindu tradition, the Vedas. Samaveda, one of the four Vedas, describes music at length.The Indian classical music has its origin as a meditation tool to attain self realization. All the different forms of these melodies (ragas) affect various "chakras" (energy centers, or "moods") in the path of the "Kundalini". There are specific mental, biological and spiritual results associated with activation of these centers.

Indian classical music has one of the most complicated and complete musical systems ever developed. Like Western classical music, it divides the octave into 12 semitones of which the 8 basic notes are Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni Sa, in order, replacing Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Si Do. However, it does not use the equal temperament tuning system.

The two main streams of Indian classical music are:

• Hindustani music, from North India, and

• Carnatic music (Karnataka Sangeeth), from South India.

The prime themes of Hindustani music are Rasleela (Hindu devotionals) of Krishna and Nature in all its splendour. There have been many great exponents of this music; some of them are Allauddin Khan, Vilayat Khan, Omkarnath Thakur, Bismillah Khan. Gangubai Hangal, Bhimsen Joshi, Pandit Jasraj, Ravi Shankar, Pt. Vijay Raghav Rao, Hariprasad Chaurasia, Zakir Hussain, Shivkumar Sharma, Annapurna Devi, Ali Akbar Khan, Aashish Khan, Kishori Amonkar, and Satyasheel Deshpande are among the arts' most notable living performers.

Indian classical music is monophonic and based around a single melody line which is played over a fixed drone. The performance is based melodically on one particular raga begins with the performers coming out in a ritualized order: drone instruments, then the soloist, then accompanists and percussionists. The musicians begin by tuning their instruments; this process often blends imperceptibly into the beginning of the music.

Rhythmic cycles are known as tala. In Hindustani music, the tala is normally marked by the tabla.

Indian musical instruments typically used in North Indian classical music include sitar, sarod, tambura, bansuri, shenai, sarangi, and tabla. Instruments typically used in Carnatic music include gottuvadyam, veena, mridangam, kanjira, and violin. The fundamental authoritative book on the subject, Bharatiya Sangeet Vadya was based on years of research carried out by Dr. Lalmani Misra.

Players of the tabla, a type of drum, begin by tapping the edges with a hammer to make sure it is in tune with the soloist. Another common instrument is the stringed tambura (sometimes also called tanpura), which is played at a steady tone (a drone) throughout the raga. This task traditionally falls to a student of the soloist, a task which might seem monotonous but is, in fact, an honour and a rare opportunity for the student who gets it.

The beginning of the raga is called an alap in Hindustani music and an alapana in Carnatic music. Many aficionados consider the alap their favourite part, but the alap is often inaccessible to others. It is widely considered that a proper rendering of any raga will take more than half an hour.

In Hindustani music, once the raga is established, the ornamentation around the mode begins to become rhythmical, gradually speeding up. This section is called the jor. After the jor climaxes, everything stops and the audiences applaud. Finally, the percussionist begins to play as the tala is introduced, interacting with the soloist, eventually reaching the spontaneous and competitive jhala section.

Carnatic raga elaborations are generally much faster in tempo and shorter. The opening piece is called a varnam, and is a warm-up for the musicians. A devotion and a request for a blessing follows, then a series of interchanges between ragams (unmetered melody) and thaalams (the ornamentation, equivalent to the jor). This is intermixed with hymns called krithis. This is followed by the pallavi or theme from the raga. Carnatic pieces can also be fixed; these are famous compositions that are popular among those who appreciate Carnatic (especially vocal) music.

Carnatic music is similar to Hindustani music in that it is mostly improvised (see musical improvisation), but it is much more influenced by theory and has stricter rules. It emphasizes the expertise of the voice rather than that of the instruments. Primary themes include Devi worship, Rama worship, descriptions of temples and patriotic songs. Sri Purandara Dasa(1480 - 1564) is known as the father of Carnatic music. Tyagaraja (1759 - 1847), Muthuswami Dikshitar (1776 - 1827) and Syama Sastri (1762 - 1827) are know as Trinity of Carnatic music. Among the most popular living performers are D. K. Pattammal, Dr.M.Balamuralikrishna, Dr. K. J. Yesudas, T V Sankaranarayanan and Madurai T N Seshagopalan. M. S. Subbulakshmi was one of the greatest carnatic vocalists ever. M L Vasanthakumari, G N Balasubramaniam, Dr. S. Ramanathan, Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar, Vidwan. Gopala Pillai are famous musical legends who lived in the last century.

[edit] External links

• The South Asian Women's Forum has a collection of great articles on Indian Classical music with explanations and links to audio extracts from rare recordings.
• Sound of India --Raga reference with audio, musicological articles and online lessons.
• Raga list The Melakarta scheme with the aaroha and avarohas of over 250 ragas. The list has been compiled by Kumaran Santhanam.
• SwarGanga by Adwait Joshi - Raagabase, Taalabase, Bandishbase; different music samples and articles on Indian classical music
• vimoksha - Indian classical music and dance portal - Information on Indian classical music and various forms of Indian classical dance.
• Online Music Education - portal discussing theories, practices and available resources on Indian Classical Music
• Basics and history of Indian classical music
• A page that collects Indian classical and semiclassical music clips hosted on youtube, google video.....etc
• Indian Classical Music Circle - non profit organization, concerts in Dallas Fort Worth area