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Indian Music
Indian music is readily identified by instruments like the sitar and the tabla but the music of the land is much more than the playing of these instruments. India’s music is unique and comprises of classical, semi-classical, folk, and the ubiquitous Bollywood genres. Indian Classical Music Hindustani classical music is mainly vocal-centric with two main vocal forms (known as ragas) of music, the Dhrupad and Khayal. Dhrupad or rendering of verse into music is primarily devotional in nature and performed by male singers with accompaniments like the tanpura and pakhawaj, a percussion instrument. Khayal, meaning imagination, is a more improvised and free-form style of singing and includes themes such as love. Thumri is a type of semi-classical vocal music usually sung at the end of khayal concerts with instruments like tabla, tanpura, dholak or a double-headed drum, sarangi, a bowed string instrument, and harmonium, an air-pumped keyboard. Thumri also has gharanas or styles of music like the Banaras style and the Bihar style and includes prominent singers who created their own style like Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. Like Hindustani classical, Carnatic music is also vocal-centric and is based on raagas, a concept using scale and melody type, and talas or rhythmic patterns. Carnatic music compositions are commonly associated with south Indian classical dances and also devotional music. Devotional or religious songs are a prominent feature in the Indian system of music and include a variety of traditions. Bhajans or kirtans are Hindu devotional songs or music compositions used for worship or offering prayers. Bhajans have evolved with times and include devotees like Mirabai, a mystic famous for her songs of worship for Lord Krishna. Bhajans are not just a form of worship or prayer but are meant to incite ‘bhakti’ or devotion and ‘bhav’ or feeling in both the singer and listener. While bhajans can be sung individually, kirtans are usually a group performance and are also referred to as sankirtans to refer to the congregational element. Kirtans include chanting of hymns or mantras and are the major form of devotional music in the Vaishnava or Bhakti tradition of the saint-reformer of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu of Bengal and the Sikh tradition of Gurmat Sangeet in devotion of the mystic Guru Nanak of Punjab. The Chaitanya style of kirtan involves fervent singing, dancing, and lyrical story-telling of the Lord with rhythmic drumming patterns using the dhol, a double-headed percussion instrument, while the Gurmat style involves singing and playing the hymns of the Sikh scripture Guru Granth Sahib with unique instruments like rabaab, sarangi, and dilruba. Devotional music is not confined to the realms of temples or gurudwaras but is also performed openly, even in trains as done by the wandering minstrels known as Bauls in Bengal. The Bauls claim to carry the music tradition of the Bhakti movement as well as the mystic discipline of the Sufis and are believers in simplicity of religion, celebrating celestial love. The Bauls are easily identified by their trademark saffron robes and instruments like the ektara, a one-string instrument, a two string instrument called dotara, or four string instrument like a guitar, and khamak, a one-headed drum with a pluckable string. Indian devotional music also includes the Sufi religious music of Qawwali, popularized internationally by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and the soft, romantic Ghazal songs on the themes of love and separation with icons like Jagjit Singh and Bhupinder Singh, all featuring in alternative style Bollywood films. Indian music is not just classical or devotional but is also popular internationally, particularly with the hip-hop generation, thanks to the energetic Bhangra music and the Punjabi diaspora. Bhangra has transformed itself over time from being mellow and folksy to urban, pop music and has incorporated not only traditional instruments like the dhol drum but also modern electronica. Some major exponents of Bhangra music include Bally Sagoo with his funky remixes, Daler Mehndi, known for his sensational ‘Bhangra pop’ and Apache Indian, responsible for fusing Bhangra with international music genres like ragga, rap or hip-hop. A major export of India is Bollywood films and their music is played not only in radios and television but also in clubs and discotheques in India with lot of remixes. Bollywood music has transcended the boundaries of classical or folk music, Indian or Western music, and has included genres from typical soft, romantic numbers to dance based ‘item’ numbers. Some music directors who revolutionized Indian film music include Shankar-Jaikishen, the favourite musicians of Indian film legend Raj Kapoor, S. D. Burman and his son R. D. Burman, responsible for bringing western elements in Indian film music, Bappi Lahiri, for infusing disco dance music in Hindi films, brother duos of Jatin-Lalit and Anand-Milind, giving Hindi film music a unique identity through their innovative compositions, and the Oscar winner A. R. Rahman.
Chillibreeze's disclaimer: This is a contributed article and was published on Chillibreeze in December, 2009. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Chillibreeze as a company. Chillibreeze has a strict anti-plagiarism policy. Please contact us to report any copyright issues related to this article. The relevance of the facts and figures cited (if any) could change after a period of time.
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