Early History in India

• World’s Largest Democracy• India’s name came from the Indus River-

site of the world’s oldest civilization.• A huge triangular peninsula of south Asia• The capital is New Delhi• The most famous river is the Ganges • Variety of races: Aryan( Caucasian ) Origin Mongoloid or Negroid

• The dominant religion is Hinduism ( 85%) the rest is Muslim

• There are 14 language and 831 dialects

• Hindi is the official language, but English is widely spoken

• The early dark-skinned people called DRAVIDIANS lower castes member.

• The FAIR-skinned Aryans invaded the Indus Valley

• They spoke Sanskrit and founded and small kingdoms

• They gave India the Vedic literature, Sanskrit epics, Hinduisms and the caste system.

• Vedic Literature- Vedas are composed of hymns, prayers, rituals, magic and poetry.

• It has 300 million gods and goddesses representing natural forces and personified gods to suit human needs.

History of Music

• India is the largest country in the south asia.• Its music is as vast as its geographic location and as

large as its demographic population.• The music of India reflects different aspects of Asian

culture through its Timbre, Rhythm, melody, texture, form and style.

• Indian music remains fundamental to the lives of the people of India as a source of spiritual inspiration, cultural expression, and entertainment.

• India is the inheritor of one of the oldest and most evolved musical systems in the world.

• Its music is considered as the oldest unbroken musical tradition with the most intricate musical system that contains highly developed polyrhythm. Delicate nuances, ornamentation, and microtones

• The center of Indian music lies in the imaginative melodies and improvised rhythmic patterns created by the Indian composers

• In India, music is called “Sangeet”, which means the art of playing musical instruments, singing and dancing.

• According to ancient Hindu scriptures, music was a gift from heaven, that is, a gift from the gods SHIVA (the destroyer), BRAHMA (the creator) and VISHNU ( the preserver).

• The people of INDIA also have the Idea that sound is GOD and that everything is a manifestation of GOD.

Tala, Raga, Shruti and Drone:Elements of Indian Music

• A tala is a regular, repeating rhythmic phrase, particularly as rendered on a percussive instrument with an ebb and flow of various intonations represented as a theka, a sequence of drum-syllables or bol.

• A raga or raag (literally "colour, hue" but also "beauty, melody"; also spelled raaga, ragam; pronounced rāga, or rāgam or "raag") is one of the melodic modes used inIndian classical music. A raga uses a series of five to nine musical notes upon which a melody is constructed.

• Shruti in Indian Music is the musical pitch. Basically it is a note from which all others are derived. This word is derived from the root "Shru" means to hear, and its core meaning is any sound that cab be distinctly heard by the ear.

• It is used in Indian music and is played with the tanpura (or tambura) and other Indian drone instruments like the ottu, the ektar, the dotara (or dotar; dutar in Persian Central Asia), the surpeti, the surmandal (or swarmandal) and the shank (conch shell).

• Indian music is based on three unique concepts or elements that are distinctly indian. The Raga, the Rasa and the Tala are basic tools used to help indian musicians improvise music. Other elements such as the shruti , and the drone also contribute to the beauty and uniqueness of the music of India.

• Practice the talas below • You can do this by clapping or tapping the beat on the

table or an inprovised drum.

• LegendX – Tap the drumO – Wave the hands silence - Clap hands for unmarked beats.Dadra 1 2 3 4 5 6

X OTintal 1234 5678 9101112 13141516 X X O X

Ektal 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

X O X O X

Jhaptal 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 X X O X

Traditional Vocal Music of India

• Vocal music is a genre of music performed by one or more singers with or without accompaniment.

• It is the oldest form of music in the world because it does not require any other instrument except the human voice.

• Vocal music is considered the most ancient of all musical traditions.

• Samaveda, the old musical text which has crude musical notation, is also considered important and well-regarded in India.

• Vocal music in India is a medium of communication between the worshipper and the deity. The performer or the singer feels the presence of Brahma, the Creator, when the Rasa or dynamics is clearly expressed. A song is an expression of the people’s love and devotion to God.

• For the Indians, vocalization is not just a vocal exercise or warm up but an act of worship. They do this with physical exercise and yoga. This leads the singer to be confused and ready to perform the song accurately and precisely.

• In northern India, the classical songs are mostly religious and devotional. Some of these are the Hindus’ Dhun or Kirtan, Bhajan, the Shabad for Sikho, and the Muslims’ Kawali (qawali).

• Indian music is generally conservative and intent. Gangal is a musical style that has a romantic and poetic content. The style for musical education is Lakshan Geet and the style used for pedagogy is Swarmalika. Instead of words, sargam is used in this style.

Traditional Instrumentin India

Tabla

• An indian musician using his right hand to play melody and his left hand to play the bass of the tabla.

• Non membranos percussion (ghan)– These percussion

instruments have solid resonators. They are either melodic or rhythmic in nature.

– The ghatam (a clay pot) Is percussion instrument made out of clay.

• Another popular non-membranous percussion intsrument in India is the chimpta. It is a fire tong with small brass jingles. This Instrument is played by clicking the tongs with the hands

• The classical drum of Southern India is called mridangam which literally means clay-body. It is a barrel shaped double-headed drum which is used in playing the tala.

• The mridangam is placed between the thighs of the percussionist.

Wind blown Instruments

• These instruments are played by blowing air to excite the resonators. The most commonly used wind instrument in Southern and Northern India is the flute. It is one of the oldest wind instruments in India that could be made out of different materials like bamboo, ivory, ebony, sandalwood, or metal.

• .

The 2 types of flute in India are the venu and the bansuri

• VENU- Which is found in the southern part of India, has eight holes

• Bansuri- from the northern part of India, has six holes.

Plucked Stringed Instruments (Tat)• VEENA - These instruments are played by plucking its strings.

The most distinctive plucked instrument in Southern India is the veena. This instrument is carved from a single block of jackwood which continues as a long fretted neck from which another resonator is attached. Several strings function differently in this instrument: three strings are used to play the drone while the remaining four strings are used to play the melody.

• SITAR - In Northern India, the most popular stringed instrument is the sitar. It is made of teakwood and seasoned gourds. It has a long neck with twenty metal frets and six to seven main strings, and it is used for solo parts in a composition.

Veena Sitar

Sarod• Another stringed musical

instrument that is smaller than the sitar is called the sarod. It has a metal finger board with no frets. The strings are plucked or played with a pick made of coconut shell. This instrument is mainly used in classical indian music and is known for its deep and introspective sound which is contrasts with the sound of sitar.

Tambura• one of the india’s most

important plucked strings instrument is the tambura. It is a drone instrument made of jackwood. It has a long unfretted neck with four to six tuning pegs inserted into the upper end of the resonator. The tambura is played by holding it upright and placing it on the lap of the instrumentalist. The strings are plucked by the forefinger and middle finger.

Bowed Stringed Instruments (Vitat)• SARINGDA• The most popular stringed instrument that is used to

accompany vocal music in India is the sarangi. This instrument has no frets. It is shaped like a squashed guitar and is made from a block of hollowed-out wood that is covered with parchment. It is played with a bow. Its sympathetic vibrator creates a harmonious sound.

• A bowed fiddle similar to the sarangi is the saringda. It has either a round or pointed head that is usually one to two feet in length. It is played with a bow made from the hair of the horse.

SARANGI SARINGDA

Sarangi

Saringda

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tala_(music)• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raga• http://www.indianetzone.com/55/shruti_india

n_music.htm• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drone_(music)