Indian Classical Music

Indian Classical Music A BRIEF OVERVIEW: The beauty, grace, and melody of Indian Classical Music are now universally accepted and appreciated. Many countries, including those of the West, have embraced it, absorbing it, moreover, into their own cultures and way of life. Indian music is remarkably plastic in its ability to assume the form, shape, and color which a performing musician chooses to give to it. Thus, though bounded by rules, classical music of India is unlimited in the range it affords for creative improvisation and exploration Indian Classical Music, with its origins in religion, philosophy, and spirituality, dates back to the ancient Vedic period (1500-500 B.C.), approximately 2000 years ago. It is believed to have the power to move not only human beings, but plants and animals as well. Indian classical music goes far beyond the narrow aspects of just one culture or spiritual faith. Musicians trained in the tradition have noted, in regard to such music, that the deeper one's immersion, the more generous it seems to become in breadth and scope, and the more artistic freedom it affords. This music is all encompassing, apparently without limits.

THE VAST MUSICAL “OCEAN”: There exist two related but distinct classical music traditions of India: the North Indian tradition and the South Indian tradition. Within these two primary schools of music, three different types of art forms can be identified: vocal music, instrumental music, and classical dance. In a typical Indian classical music recital, there are usually two to three performers. In a vocal performance, there are three musicians: the main artist (the vocalist/singer), a percussionist, and a harmonium player. In an instrumental performance, there are usually only two musicians: the main instrumentalist and an accompanying percussionist.

TECHNICAL ASPECTS

OF

INDIAN MUSIC:

The present system of Indian music is based upon two important pillars: raga and tala. Raga is the melodic form, while tala is the rhythmic form. Furthermore, a raga creates an atmosphere, which is associated with particular sentiments and feelings. Thus, each raga is linked with a particular mood and is closely connected to a particular time of the day or a season of the year. The artist, therefore, determines which raga he/she is going to perform, based upon the time of the day, the setting, his/her own mood, and the overall ambience. Such finely tuned understanding of the mood created by different musical notes does not exist in any system of music, anywhere in the world.

Indian music scholars have estimated that, with all their permutations and combinations, there exist over 6,000 ragas! In terms of aesthetics, a raga is the projection of the artist's inner spirit, a manifestation of his most profound sentiments and sensibilities brought forth through tones and melodies. The musician must breath life into each raga as he/she unfolds and expands it: As much as 90 percent of Indian music may be improvised. A  kind of standardized music where everyone sings or plays in the same way is clearly  undesirable in Indian Classical Music. Therefore, each musician will render a particular raga based upon his or her own perception of it, thus making each performance a unique experience, which cannot be recreated. The second most important factor in Indian music is the 'Tala' or the rhythmic cycles. This is usually provided by the Indian drums known as the tabla, which always accompany any Indian classical music performance.

FUSION MUSIC: The history of collaboration between Indian and Western musicians dates to the 1960s, when the legendary sitarist, Ravi Shankar, first started playing alongside Western musicians. In subsequent years, the sarod (a string instrument) maestro, Ali Akbar Khan, and the tabla (Indian drums) maestro, Alla Rakha, the father of the world-renowned percussionist, Zakir Hussain, also worked with Western musicians. Other successful collaborations over the years have been between Ravi Shankar and Philip Glass, Sultan Khan (a sarangi-a stringed instrument-player) and Marco Guinar (on the Spanish guitar), and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt (Hawaiian guitarist) and Ry Cooder. More recently, the Indian mandolin virtuoso, U. Srinivasan, produced an album, released under the label "Real World", in collaboration with Michael Brook.

RAVI SHANKAR: "Ravi Shankar has brought me a precious gift and through him I have added a new dimension to my experience of music. To me, his genius and his humanity can only be compared to that of MOZART'S." -Yehudi Menuhin Famed as the man who popularized Indian music in the West, Ravi Shankar’s life has been devoted to the mutual exchange and enlightenment of Indian music between all nations of the world. George Harrison dubs him the "Godfather of World Music." Ravi Shankar, the legendary sitarist and composer, is India's most esteemed musical Ambassador and a singular phenomenon in the Ravi Shankar (left) with Peter Sellers and George Harrison

classical music worlds of East and West. As a performer, composer, teacher and writer, he has done more for Indian music than any other musician. He is well known for his pioneering work in bringing Indian music to the West. Ravi Shankar has written violin-sitar compositions for Yehudi Menuhin and has done music for the flute virtuoso, Jean Pierre Rampal and Hosan Yamamoto. In 1966, he played his first sitar-violin duet with Menuhin at the prestigious Bath Festival. He and Menuhin together issued three volumes of West Meets East recordings, the first of which won the Grammy Award for 1967's Best Chamber Music Performance. In the mid-1960s, his preeminence as one of the world's leading serious musicians was augmented with wide popular success. George Harrison of the Beatles developed a deep, abiding interest in Indian Classical music, and began to study with Shankar. One influence of this study can be heard in his song Within You, Without You. Mr. Shankar’s meeting with and teaching Harrison in 1966 proved most earth shaking: Indian music and culture were suddenly given maximum exposure in the West. Shankar was featured in popular music venues along with the Beatles, most notably at the Monterey Pop and Woodstock Festivals, both of which were filmed and embraced, leading to his first Grammy Award in 1966. Shankar received his second Grammy Award in 1972. His list of special awards and honors is extensive, and he is the recipient of honorary doctorates from numerous institutions.

INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC

SCHOOLS AROUND THE WORLD:

There are many schools of Indian Classical music established in the United States over the past few years. Most notably, the Ustad Ali Akbar School of Music in San Francisco has been successfully teaching Indian music to a diverse group of students in California for the past twenty years. Its branches can be found all over the world, including one in Australia and Switzerland. Also, in San Francisco, there is yet another school of Indian music, Brindavan Gurukul, dedicated to teaching the Indian wooden flute (the bansuri). In Tampa itself, there is a school of Indian classical music, The Pandit Jasraj Music Foundation (PJMF), which was established a year ago and now has over 75 students from all origins, learning classical vocal and instrumental Indian music. A branch of PJMF can also be found in Toronto, Canada, which has been also successfully teaching Indian music to a variety of people for over the past 10 years. Other universities that participate in promoting Indian classical music in the United States and abroad include University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business, University of Los Angeles, University of Cincinnati, University of Pittsburgh, Harvard University, University of California, Berkley, University of Toronto in Canada, and University of Rotterdam in Holland.

Most notable however, seems to be the achievement of University of Pittsburgh in consistently promoting Indian Classical music since the mid 1980s. Since 1985, many leading exponents of Indian Classical Music have been presented by the University in over 1,300 performances and some 250 workshops at over 80 Universities, Colleges, Schools and other similar organizations throughout the United States.

FAMED INDIAN

CLASSICAL MUSICIANS--GRAMMY

AWARD WINNERS:

Ravi Shankar: won two Grammy Awards in 1966 and 1972. Zakir Hussain: was awarded the Grammy for Best World Music Album in 1992 for his fusion album, “Planet Drum,” with Mickey Hart. Zakir Hussain has also collaborated with other famed Western musicians like John McLaughlin, George Harrison, Joe Henderson, Van Morrison, Billy Cobham, and many others. Zakir is also the receipt of the esteemed 1999 National Heritage Fellowship, the United States’ most prestigious honor for a master of the traditional arts. Zakir was also the co-composer of the opening music at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. Vishwa Mohan Bhatt: won the Grammy Award in 1994 for his world music album, “A Meeting by the River,” with Ry Cooder. He is the foremost disciple of Ravi Shankar, specializing in playing a stringed instrument called the “Mohan Veena”— similar to a guitar.

A

FEW TYPES OF INSTRUMENTS:

The Tabla (Indian drums): this is the most popular Indian percussion instrument. It is always an accompanying instrument in any Indian Classical Music recital.

The Mrindangam: this is another popular accompanying percussion instrument

Popular String Instruments

The Sitar Santoor –Hammered Dulcimer

The Sarod

The