Principles of Hindustani music: The rhythmic organization is based on rhythmic patterns called tala .

The melodi c foundations are called ragas. One possible classification of ragas is into melo dic modes or parent scales , known as thaats, under which mostragas can be classifie d based on the notes they use. Thaats may consist of up to seven scale degrees, or swara . Hindustani musicians name these pitches using a system called Sargam, the equivalent of the Western movable do solfege: Sa (Shadaj) = Do Re (Rishab) = Re Ga (Gandhar) = Mi Ma (Madhyam) = Fa Pa (Pancham) = So Dha (Dhaivat) = La Ni (Nishad) = Ti Sa (Shadaj) = Do Both systems repeat at the octave. The difference between sargam and solfege is that re, ga, ma, dha, and ni can refer to either Natural (shuddha) or altered Flat ( komal) or Sharp (tivra) versions of their respective scale degrees. As with movabl e do solfege, the notes are heard relative to an arbitrary tonic that varies fro m performance to performance, rather than to fixed frequencies, as on a xylophon e. The fine intonational differences between different instances of the same swa ra are called srutis. The three primary registers of Indian classical music are mandra (lower), madhya (middle) and taar (upper). Since the octave location is n ot fixed, it is also possible to use provenances in mid-register (such as mandra -madhya or madhya-taar) for certain ragas. A typical rendition of Hindustani rag a involves two stages: Alap: a rhythmically free improvisation on the rules for the raga in order t o give life to the raga and flesh out its characteristics. The alap is followed by a long slow-tempo improvisation in vocal music, or by the jod and jhala in in strumental music. Bandish or Gat: a fixed, melodic composition set in a specific raga, perform ed with rhythmic accompaniment by a tabla or pakhavaj. There are different ways of systematizing the parts of a composition. For example: Sthaayi: The initial, phrase or line of a fixed, melodic composition. Antara: The first body phrase or line of a fixed, melodic composition. Sanchaari: The third body phrase or line of a fixed, melodic composition , seen more typically in dhrupad bandishes Aabhog: The fourth and concluding body phrase or line of a fixed, melodi c composition, seen more typically in Dhrupad bandishes. There are three variations of bandish, regarding tempo: Vilambit bandish: A slow and steady melodic composition, usually in larg o to adagio speeds. Madhyalaya bandish: A medium tempo melodic competition, usually set in a ndante to allegretto speeds. Drut bandish: A fast tempo melodic composition, usually set to allegrett o speed or faster. Hindustani classical music is primarily vocal-centric, insofar as the musical fo rms were designed primarily for vocal performance, and many instruments were des igned and evaluated as to how well they emulate the human voice. Some of the renowned artists(played live at Sankat Mochan 2012) who were perform

ing at the festival with their inspirational music, a ready reference to look at the few of the best to see and listen further.. ======================================= Nada Yoga is the core of Dhrupad Music By Dr.Acharya Trigunateet Jaimini Dhrupad is the oldest surviving form of Indian Classical music and traces its or igin to the chanting of VEDIC HYMNS and MANTRAS. Though a highly developed class ical art with a complex and elaborate grammar and aesthetics, it is also primari ly a form of worship, in which offerings are made to the divine through sound or naada. Dhrupad can be seen at different levels as a MEDITATION, a mantric RECIT ATION, a worship, a YOGA or TANTRA based on the knowledge of the NADIS and CHAKR AS and also purely as a performing art portraying a universe of human emotions. It is mainly a vocal tradition based on the practice of NADA YOGA, but is also p erformed on instruments like the Rudra Veena and the Sursringaar. For the past f ive centuries Dhrupad has mainly thrived under the patronage of Mughal and Rajpu t kings. Indian traditional systems of health and healing also include various musical tr eatment approaches. A few healing traditions are also integrated in modern music therapy practice in India. Vedic traditions dating back roughly 5000 years ago had a great intuition about the power of sound and intonation. The Vedic chants and music which had more sou nd and rhythm, used as a source of healing and up liftment reflected the intuiti on that each intonation and inflection of voice could have beneficial or adverse effects. Music Raga Therapy, an extinct sanskrit treatise, as its name implies dealt with curative ragas and suggested specific ragas with specific therapeutic and a pro phylactic medium in clinical and educational settings. the Vedic system of healt h care concerned with healthy living and not disease specific takes into account the patient s entire personality, body, mind and the spirit and guides the partic ipants for a healthy living along with the therapeutic measures that relate to p hysical, mental, social and spiritual harmony. Nada Yoga is the core of Dhrupad, the most ancient style of Hindustani Classical Music. Originally only sung by priests in the temples as an act of worship, it induces a deep meditative state in the singer as well as the listener. Vrindaban, the abode of Lord Krishna, situated on the bank of the Holy river Yam una, is known for its devotional classical music Dhrupad . Bhagwat Puran states tha t Lalita Sakhi sang in Dhrupad style during the famous Raas -dance. Since then this tradition of ancient form of worship of Lord Krishna has been maintained in the temples of Vrindaban. Dhrupad is a particular north Indian style of classical m usic related to Vraja . This was enriched and elevated to godly heights by the cele brated swamy Haridas of Vrindaban, the Guru of world famous musician Tansen. There are two interpretations for the word Dhrupad. One is that it is derived fr om dhruva, the steadfast evening star, and pada, meaning poem . The other is that t he word druva means fixed and pada poem which makes it into a poem set to music. Its origins have been traced back to the recitation of the sama veda, one of the fo ur sacred vedic scriptures. The form developed through the sama gaan, the chante d transmission of holy texts. The nature of Dhrupad is spiritual- its purpose is aradhana (worship), seeking n ot to entertain, but to induce deep feelings of peace and contemplation in the l

istener. Its origin is linked to the recitation of Sama veda, the sacred Sanskrit text. D hrupad probably evolved from the earlier chanting of Om, the sacred syllable whi ch is claimed to be the source of all creation. Later, the rhythmic chanting of the Vedic scriptures evolved into singing of Chhanda and Prabandha. According to some accounts, Dhrupad was sung in temples, the singer facing the d ivinity. From this early chanting, Dhrupad evolved into a sophisticated, classic al form of music. The language of Dhrupad changed from Sanskrit to Brijbhasha so metime between the 12th and the 16th century. Dhrubad, Dhruvatara the evening star, the star that never trembles, and Pada poe try, merge to give name to this music, Dhrupad. Dhrupad, the name does what it s hould, it makes luminous the nature of that which is named. Sometime during the first millenium A.D. the chanting evolved into the singing o f chhanda and prabandha. The modern Dhrupad is said to have emerged out of the p rabandha style of the 12th to 14th centuries. By the 11th century it had develop ed its perfect form. Dhrupad was and still is an act of worship during which the priest or musician surrenders to the Divine and invokes the rasa (mood) of the raga (musical mode). The intention is to put the listener into a state of inner peace and contemplation. Between the 12th and 16th centuries the language of the compositions changed fro m Sanskrit to Brijbhasha (the language spoken in the area of Vrindavan) and abou t six centuries ago the music came under the patronage of the royal Moghul court s, where it was adapted for performance, thus evolving into a refined and sophis ticated art form. The compositions became more secular though and were often pra ises of the emperors, whereas before they had been devotional and philosophical in nature. One of the patrons of Dhrupad was the Moghul ruler Man Singh Tomar of Gwalior wh o also practiced the art. It reached its peak during the time of the legendary c ourt musician of Akbar, Tansen, and Swami Haridas, who is often thought to have been the teacher of Tansen. ===================================== Our Raga system is based on the principle that any pitch can be tonic, or SA ( o r Shadaja) . All other musical pitches derive their position and musical effect in relation to this fundamental pitch. Also, if like to imagine the Indian scale as a family , each pitch has a specific relationship with all other pitches of the scale, just as members of a family have specific relationships to each other . From this it is apparent that the basis for all intervallic relations within t he scale is the SA. If we choose to alter the position of the Sa within the scale, all the other int ervals change accordingly. The character of the raga also changes. Therefore, if we choose to change the position of the Sa in any Raga, then each pitch in the scale of that Raga would also change. Sometimes these changes can be so minute t hat they are difficult to perceive. Many Indian musicians and scholars believe that it is not only difficult but imp ossible to notate Indian pitches and Ragas properly, especially using the musica l notation commonly used today. On the other hand many musicians feel that we ha ve to notate our music, even we lack a suitable system of notation. So we notate our music somehow. However it is time we asked ourselves if notating our ragas is contrary to the nature of this ancient music.

By carrying on with inexact notation of our musical pitches, have we been able t o preserve the soul of our Ragas ? The present authors believe that the needless compulsion to notate pitches has negatively effected to the basic nature of our Raga music. Perhaps because we are no longer aware of the melodic intervals in our ragas, we have tended to identifying our Ragas by catchphrases reducing them to the simple Tunes. We have started relying on fixed melodic models rather than using the tra ditional approach that of identifying the relative positions of the notes in the raga scale to create new music. For those who believe that the SA is fixed , and that the multitude of frequenci es within the octave must be reduced to only twelve semitones, it is almost inco nceivable that the phrases SA Re Ga could be sung in many ways to create the moo d of various Ragas, such as Bhoopali, Jaijaivanti, Yeman, Chayanat and Shuddha K alyan. The secret to creating a particular Raga from this phrase lies in placing each pitch in the appropriate position for each Raga. But this has become incon ceivable for many of us today. It is because we have become unable to identify our Ragas by fixing (by hearing) the position and intervals of the pitches within each Raga, that we have begun to create and rely on catchphrases for various Ragas. We have thus abandoned the s ubtle distinguishing features of each Raga and have conversely become fixated on the gross differences between Ragas. For example, we have established the phrase Ni Sa Dha Ni Re as the catchphrase f or Raga Jaijaivanti, and we believe that no performance of this Raga could be co mplete without that phrase. We have been taught to believe that Jaijaivanti shou ld be identified by this phrase and have altogether forgotten that the true natu re of Jaijaivanti revealed in the slow glide (Meend) from Gandhar to the Rishabh finally resting on the later note. Indeed we are no longer taught to pay attent ion to this subtle glide as the distinguishing feature of Jaijaivanti. In this way the subtleties of the entire Raga system have been disappearing. And it is happening because of our misinterpretation of Ragas In our obsession with catchphrases, reproducible even on the harmonium. For example, the phrase Pa Ni Sa Ga when sung correctly, can communicate the pre cise mood of Raga Bihag. But this essential Bihag phrase is also present in othe r Ragas, and must be intoned differently in each Raga. However, when this phrase is played on the harmonium, it always sounds the same, because the harmonium is only able to produce twelve equal semitones in the octave. So then, if we are u sing the harmonium, how do we distinguish raga Bihag from other Ragas containing this phrase? We adopt another phrase as the catch phrase for Raga Bihag. It becom es necessary to use this new phrase, Pa Ma (Sharp) Ga Ma Ga,although it is not e ssential for Raga Bihag, it is not present in other Ragas, also can be notate ea sily. Thus the phrase-based approach to Ragas corrupted the essence of our Ragas. We h ave abandoned the Swarbhed system, which is emphasizes listening rather than wri ting, and have started identifying each Raga by a few fixed phrases. We are comp elled to do this because we are no longer sufficiently trained to hear the subtl e differences of pitches in various Ragas, and because we have needlessly put ou r faith in notation. The whole trouble began with our coming to regard the SA as immutable, in accordance with western practice, and then reducing the scale to only twelve pitches. Ten years ago, our Ustad Z.M. Dagar related to us a story about the Dhrupad maes tros Allabande Khan and Zakir-ud-din Khan; this story relates to the subject we are talking about. The incident occurred around 1920. The two brothers were givi

ng a recital of Raga Kedar at a conference, and while singing the true form of t his ancient Raga, they purposely avoided singing the catch phrase associated wit h this Raga. The famous musicologist Pandit V.N. Bhatkhande was seated in the au dience. Even after listening to the brothers lengthy Alap , Pandit Bhatkhande-ji was still unable to identify the Raga, and eventually asked the Ustads for the n ame of the Raga. Only then the Ustad sang the common Kedar catch phrase Ma (Sharp ) Pa Dha pa Ma . At once the entire audience exclaimed: Oh, so this is Raga Kedar ! . Pandit Bhatkhande established schools which taught the general public the catch phrases in many common Ragas. For this task, some notation was necessary. The tr aditional Guru-Shishya mode of one to-one teaching was not possible in these schoo ls where large classes were the norm. And students can be trained to grasp the m inute variations of pitches and intervals in each raga only through one-to-one t eaching and learning. In the Dhrupad tradition of Hindustani music, much attention is given to the exa ct position of each pitch, and there is no obsession with catch phrases. The Gur u demonstrates to the each student the subtle position of each note in the Raga, makes no attempt to notate the pitches. This is not because he is indifferent t owards preservation and propagation of his music, it is because practiceners of Dhrupad understand the true nature of the Ragas, and refuse to ruin their music through superficial rendering of the Ragas. Pandit Bhatkhande chose to preserve and teach our Rags through notation. Even th ough it is not possible to capture the essence of the Ragas in notation, he was driven to use notation because he wanted to make our classical available to the general public. In our opinion this has resulted perpetuating in the minds of mu sicians and listeners fixed forms of ragas which are often far removed from thei r original conception. Perhaps Pandit Bhatkhande-ji never considered these issues, or perhaps his think ing was faulty. The use of catch phrases in Raga identification can be exemplifi ed by a layman s trying to understand Raga Malkouns through hearing a film song in that Raga. Many years ago, Shri Naushad composed a film song Man Tarpat hari dar san based on raga Malkouns. Bhatkhande-ji used this same superficial approach to our Raga system when he assigned the catchphrase Ga Ma Ga Sa or some others to Rag a Malkouns. Translated by NANCY LESH Published in Sangeet Natak Volume XXXVI Number 1, 2001 ====================================== Dhrupad (Hindi: ??????) is the oldest surviving style of music in the Hindustani musical tradition in India. Its name, from dhruva-pada, simply means refrain , and today denotes both a form of poetry and a style of music in which the poetry is sung. Like all Indian classical music, dhrupad is modal, with a single melodic line an d no harmonic parts. The modes are called raga, and each raga is a complicated f ramework of melodic rules. What sets dhrupad apart from other styles are long el aborate alapas without drum accompaniment, with a slow and deliberate melodic de velopment, gradually developing an accelerating rhythmic pulse. Apart from obvio us differences in the form of the musical presentation, one may notice a wealth of micro-tonal ornamentations that move between or around the tones that are typ ical for Dhrupad. The composition is sung to the rhythmic accompaniment of a pak havaj and not tabla as in Khyal.

There are said to be four broad stylistic variants of dhrupad the vanis (or bani s): Gauri (Gohar), Khandar, Nauhar, and Dagar. These are tentatively linked to t he five singing styles (geetis) known from the 7th Century: Shuddha, Bhinna, Gau ri, Vegswara, and Sadharani but more importantly, there are a number of dhrupad gharanas: houses , or family styles. How the gharanas relate to the vanis is a debated question. At any rate, the mos t well-known gharana is that of the Dagar family, who of course sing in the Daga r vani. The Dagar style puts great emphasis on alap, and for several generations , their singers have been known to perform in pairs (often pairs of brothers). T he Dagars are Muslims, but sing Hindu texts. Dagar family lore speaks of twenty generations of dhrupad singers in an unbroken line. Some of the best dhrupad sin gers outside the Dagar family, such as Pt Ritwik Sanyal, Uday Bhawalkar, Gundech a Brothers and Nirmalya Dey belong to the Dagar vani. As the family repertory an d all details are passed down orally by father to son or uncle to nephew, the el ders were vieuwed first and foremost as Guru (teacher). In the Dagar-family it i s usage to place the fathers name before the personal name, to which -uddin is ad ded. Note as example: Nasir Fayazuddin, whose father was > Nasiruddin <. Nasir a nd Fayaz are the personal names. N.Fayazuddin Dagar s son is called Wasif, thus Fa yaz Wasifuddin Dagar. From Bihar state come two other gharanas, the Malliks (Darbhanga Gharana) and th e Mishras (Bettiah Gharana). The Malliks are linked to the Khandar vani, and emp hasize the composed song over improvised alap. Pt. Ram Chatur Mallik was a famou s exponent of Darbhanga Gharana in the last century. Today the famous Dhrupad pe rformers of Darbhanga Gharana are Pt.Abhay Narayan Mallick and Pt.Vidur Narayan Mallick. The Mishras practice Nauhar and Khandar vani, with some unique techniques for no mtom alap. This gharana flourished under the patronage of Kings of Bettiah. The most famous exponents of Bettiah Gharana today is Pt. Indrakishore Mishra and Pt . Falguni Mitra. The form of Dhrupad prevalent in Darbhanga and Bettiah is also known as Haveli S tyle of Dhrupad. In Pakistan, dhrupad is represented by the Talwandi gharana, who sing in the Kha ndar vani. Alongside the classical performance tradition, the practice of singing dhrupad i n temples continues to this day. Only a very small number of recordings of this singing has been made. It bears little resemblance to concert dhrupad: there is very little or no alap; percussion such as bells and finger cymbals, which are n ot used in the north Indian classical setting, are used, and the pakhawaj used i s a smaller, older variant called mrdang, quite similar to south Indian classica l mrdangam. Compositions exist in time-cycles (talas) as tivratala (7 beats), sultala (10 be ats) or chautala (12 beats). A composition set to the 10-beat jhaptala is called Sadra, and one set to the 14-beat dhamar tala is called a Dhamar. The latter in particular is seen as a lighter musical form, and associated with the Holi spri ng festival of colours. ================================= It was a cold winter s evening in Delhi. A dense cloud of mist enveloped the land. The human warmth of the large gathering dissipated the mist ensuring better vis ibility. The tanpura, (a four stringed instrument) droned in the background. The musician s voice cut across the cold, mist filled air, giving it a surrealistic t one. This was Dhrupad, the mother of all Indian music. The music which reverbera

ted in the courts of the Mughal empror, Akbar, lost for over four centuries and recovered less than two decades ago. And the main architects who gave it another lease of life, the Dagar brothers, were on stage. In Indian tradition, music was equated with truth and truth with god. From this rich lore originated Dhrupad, whose roots can be traced to the vedic scriptures in Sama Veda. It is also said that the chant of the epics, the Mahabharata and t he Ramayana by the rishis, ascetics of yore, gave the intonation and colour to D hrupad. Consequently, Dhrupad was devotional in nature, an invocation to the god s, sung exclusively in places of worship. Over 15 centuries ago, Jainism and Buddhism held sway over India. Hindusim began to lose ground. But, Dhrupad sung to the Hindu gods, Shiva and Parvathi and som etimes even venerating the art of music itself, still held sway. It soon assumed the position of a yoga nad (sound) yoga. A yogic meditation was pursued by the rishis to attain purity of sound. Sound in Indian tradition is equated with Brahma (supreme cosmic spirit). Music therefore is interwoven with religion and Dhrupad still retains this relationshi p. All sound is not music. Only sound pleasing to the ear is music (madhur nad). Na d has been further classified into seven swaras (notes) and twenty two srutis (m icro notes). Notes are arranged into ragas are which melodious in structure. Rag a actually means to evoke a mood. Sruti musically points to the interval between notes. At the time of its origin Dhrupad had only three notes. Earlier music wa s referred to as chanda and prabandha metre and arrangement respectively. The me tric arrangement of musical notes prepared the ground for Dhrupad. Like the previous stormy periods of political instability, the days when Muslim rulers overran the country also could not extinguish the flame of Indian music. In fact, Dhrupad blossomed in all its glory and splendour in the courts of Akbar , as it had never before or ever after. The Bhakti (devotion) period was the pha se when amalgamation of religions occurred and dhrupad found great patronage in the courts of kings. The music of the dhrupadiya (dhrupad singer) Tansen, reverb erated in the court of Akbar, appeasing the gods and providing tranquility to hu man minds. Many musicians including the ancestors of the Dagar brothers were con verted from Hindusim to Islam. Yet, they never lost sight of their music. But, Dhrupad which had withstood many stormy periods in history withered away du ring the period when the British conquered the subcontinent. In the ensuing peri od when patrongs were not forthcoming, dhrupad whittled away. So much so that, b y beginning of the 19th century this form of music had all but died in the sub-c ontinent. Other forms of music, a lot more lyrical than dhrupad obliterated the very vestiges of the mother of Indian music. Dhamar, a parallel form of music sh orter in composition yet with the same style, sung to Lord Krishna, held sway ov er the land. Khayal, which was more lyrical and emotional won over many of the m usicians of the country. Soon thumri and ghazal held audiences spell-bound, as D hrupad had at one time. In turn, dhrupad, which is a very difficult form of sing ing, became more iconoclastic and orthodox. Dhrupad means a steadfast song. True to this the singer remained steadfast to the style. And not a whimper of this m usic was heard during the time. Its patrons, those who were still affluent, swit ched to other lyrical forms of music.

Yet Dhrupad survived. It survived in the minds of musicians, in their homes. It survived as it had survived for over 20 centuries, pining for the day of its rev ival. In the 1970 s Dhrupad recouped its lost glory and splendour. The renaissance of dhrupad regenerated four vanis (the family tradition in music an equivalent of gharanas in Hindustani classical music), the Dagar vani, Khandhar vani, Navah ar vani and Gobarar vani. It has kindled such immense enthusiasm in India and ab road that people flock not only to listen to the dhrupadiyas but to learn from t hem. Dhrupad is performed in three parts alap, vedang and dhrupad proper. Most wester ners refer to alap as prelude. In fact alap is yoga, pure and free. It is a deli neation of raga exhibiting each note so as to shed light on the different angles . Great emphasis is laid on arousing a feeling appropriate to the raga by the si ngers. Hence alap helps to create the right atmosphere. It presents the essentia l features of the raga. During the time of Mohammed Shah Rangila, an avid patron of Dhrupad, the music m oved from the temple to the court. In his court, the ancestor of the Dagar broth ers, Baba Gopal Das Dagar was converted to Islam and took up the name of Imam Kh an Dagar. The untimely death of their father in 1936, deprived the Dagar brother s of not only one of the greatest exponents of Dhrupad, but also of financial he lp. Yet, they strived on under the guidance of their elder brothers, Moinuddin a nd Aminuddin dagar. Shelter and succour came from their uncle, Rizauddin Dagar. The Dagar family has set up dhrupad societies in Jaipur, Delhi and Paris. A Dhru pad centre was opened in Bhopal which trained students from 1981 to 1985. The re vival of the international interest in Dhrupad is evident from the number of lon g playing records of Zia Fariddudin Dagar produced form Sweden, France and the U SA. In 1972, the centenary year of the dhrupadiya Behram Khan who adorned the courts of Bahadur Shah Zafar and Ranjit Singh, his great grand children, the Dagar bro thers organized the first Dhrupad Samaroh, (festival) in Jaipur. Ten years later , the samaroh took root in Delhi and became the homecoming of dhrupadiyas of exc eptional ability. Dhrupad had come to stay. It was February 14, 1988. the fourth Dhrupad Samaroh was in progress. Abhay Nara yan Mallick had entraptured the crowds with his singing. Mallick was a song of t he Senia gharana (tradition), who claim their ancestry to Tansen, who sang in th e court of Akbar. His family has kept up the tradition in music for well over tw o centuries. Fascinatingly Dhrupad still retains the unadulterated verses first written by Tansen, Swami Haridass and Baiju Bawara over five centuries ago. It i s a music with roots and music with a future. The long alap rhythmically unstruc tured on a tala beat sung by the Dagar brothers rendered the air. ================================= Dhrupad is the most pristine form of Indian Classical Music alive today. It owes its origin to the Saamveda, an epic of the Vedic age of India. The word 'Dhrupa d' derived from the euphoric combination of two words - Dhruva (the steadfast ev ening star which denotes the direction ) and Pada (the song text/poetry). Concep t of Dhrupad evolved from chanting 'OM' - a sacred syllable chanted for self - p urification and experiencing the glory of all creations. Later, the tradition of chanting Vedic verses transformed into rhythmic form of Sanskrit song texts (th e first form of song text - known as Pravadha) paved the way of Dhrupad culture, which became popular under the spiritual and royal patronage in medieval India.

Dhrupad is performed in four parts being, Aalap, Jod, Jhala (slow, medium-fast and fast elaboration of the melody) and the composition. Each of this part is fu rther divided into four different sections; Sthayi, Antara, Abhog and Sanchari, which elaborately improvise on the smaller nuances and mood of the melody (Raag) . Subtle nuances of applying augmented and diminished notes in course of improvi sations proves the scope of experiencing unlimited micro-tone, which is an uniqu e process of this specific genre. Rendition of composition is the last part of t he process which is played with the percussion instrument - Pakhawaj, emerging t he flow of unlimited improvisations on melodic, phonetic and rhythmic structures . The song texts are in Braj language, which is regarded as the origin of Hindi language. The context of the song-texts, include the praises of different deitie s, describing the beauty all creations, values of human life, depicting the prin ciples of music, etc. ================================= The erudite former Guru with ITC Sangeet Research Academy discussed the characte ristics of his Bettiah gharana . It was so intriguing that one could not help re questing more. Some excerpts: How did Bettiah get associated with all four banis? In the late 18th Century, Pandit Shiv Dayal Mishra, a disciple of the Seniya mus icians Karim Sen and Rahim Sen of the Nepal Durbar, was an expert in the four ba nis of Dhrupad. He came to the court of Bettiah and introduced a unique style. H e trained the prolific composer-kings of Bettiah, Maharaja Anand Kishore Singh a nd Naval Kishore Singh. Apart from this, the Mullick families, who settled in Be ttiah in the 17th Century, specialised in Gaurhar and Khandar banis. During this time a unique outburst of intense compositional activity happened and the Betti ah court gained a singular place in Dhrupad history. Different lineages of music ians attached to the court were also inspired to augment a vast repertoire of ol d dhrupads from their ancestors in the different banis. Thus the four banis were crystallised by the early 19th Century by the composers and musicians of Bettia h. This knowledge has been carried forward by the surviving lineages of the Bett iah gharana. The Mishras of Benares carried the four-bani tradition, whereas the Mullicks of Bettiah carried the Gaurhar and Khandar banis. I belong to the Shiv Dayal Mishra lineage and, therefore, can handle all the banis with all their un ique features. Is the word bani (literally, language) synonymous with gayaki (style of singing) ? The literal meanings are self-explanatory. The bani of Dhrupad, also known as ba n, could be explained as stylistic idioms with definite lakshana or musical char acteristics. While the word bani has multiple usages in Indian music that overla p with style, as well as gayaki, Dhrupad bani is neither style nor gayaki; it ac tually categorises distinctive stylistic idioms. Different sections of the alap portion can also display the lakshanas of different banis but the banis are most clearly captured within the well-defined and bounded framework of a bandish. Th e composers of the Bettiah gharana were remarkably successful in establishing ea ch bani as a distinctive and glorious musical form. What are the salient features of these forms? Each bani has very definite lakshanas. For instance, Gaurhar Bani is meend pradh an. The compositions are set to slower pace with spaced out lyrics. Khandar bani is gamak pradhan and as a result exudes power. Dagur bani is comparatively more madhur or pleasing and saral or uncomplicated. Nauhar Bani is characterised by its complex gait, with unexpected movements and leaps. Musicians employ differen t alankars or ornamental techniques and embellishments in their practice to expr

ess the lakshanas. These alankars may vary from person to person or lineage to l ineage; but the overall effect of each bani must conform to its definitive chara cter. The composition of one bani cannot be fitted in another due to this reason . You have modernised your style. How? I treat lyrics with utmost care. Clear enunciation of each word, without twistin g and breaking them during the bol-baant (rhythmic play with divided lyrics) are the most treasured characteristics of my singing. I have incorporated sargam si nging and my layakari simply floats over the chosen tala without the power-packe d jerks or unnecessary stresses. Besides I choose my compositions to suit a give n occasion. ======================================= Dhrupad is the oldest surviving genre of classical singing in northern India; it s name, from dhruva-pada, seems to mean "fixed verse". Its foremost characterist ics are a somber, dignified, devotional mood, its very slow tempo and slow melod ic development. Like all Indian classical music, dhrupad is modal, with a single melodic line and no harmonic parts. The modes are called raga, and each raga is a complicated framework of melodic rules. From what we know, dhrupad originated as devotional singing in Hindu temples. Un der the Islamic Mughal ("Mogul") rule, it was appropriated as court music. Dhrupad, as we know it today, has a repertoire of short songs (two to sixteen li nes) which are performed by a solo singer, or a small number of singers in uniso n, to the beat of a double-headed barrel drum, the pakhawaj. The songs are mostl y in praise of Hindu deities, but in recent centuries, Islamic or simply regalis t lyrics have been written and added to the repertoire. The song itself, which i s known as the dhrupad, is preceded in performance by a wholly improvised sectio n, the alap, without accompaniment of the drum. The alap in dhrupad is sung with out words, using instead a set of syllables (most commonly om, num, re, ri, na, ta, tom) popularly thought to be derived from a sacred mantra. Today, alap comprises the greater part of most dhrupad performance. It can easil y last an hour, with a slow tempo and gradual, controlled development of melody. The last part of the alap is called the nomtom; here, the syllables are sung at a very rapid pace, sometimes incorporating very special-sounding ornamentation techniques (gamaka), and the nomtom has become one of the most popular parts of dhrupad concerts. Dhrupad is primarily a vocal music, performed by men. (In recent years, a few wo men have sung dhrupad.) Traditionally, the only instrument that played dhrupad w as the been, which is technically a fretted stick zither with strings set along a bamboo or wooden neck with a large gourd mounted at each end. The word "been" is a Bengali form of the Sanskrit "veena", the generic word used for plucked-str ing instruments all over India. To differentiate the been from the different sou th Indian veena, the latter is often called Saraswati Veena and the former Rudra Veena. Some players have used other instruments for dhrupad. Preferably, such instrumen ts should have a deep bass register and long sustain. As in all Indian classical playing, the instruments must support bending of the note. Recent History The 18th Century saw the beginning of a great decline of dhrupad singing. A new genre, khyal, gained popularity at dhrupad's expense. It placed fewer constraint s on the singers and allowed for displays of virtuosity that were rare in dhrupa

d. In addition, the basically Hindu dhrupad was somewhat out of context in a Mus lim setting; here, khyal offered something less devotional and more entertaining . Also, new instruments were being developed - the sitar and the sarod - that we re not suited to the slow tempo and low register favoured by dhrupad, so that dh rupad instrumental also began to lose ground. As a consequence, in the first half of the 20th Century khyal was all-pervasive, along with the new instrumental style of classical music, and dhrupad was becom ing all but extinct. Only a few families carried on the tradition. Almost single-handedly, one of these families, the Dagars, brought about the dhr upad revival. Dagar singers toured widely and were beginning to be recorded. Soo n, this was to co-incide with the growing foreign interest in Indian music. Star ting in the 1960s, dhrupad was to become almost more popular outside India than at home. Perhaps it is the stylistically easier style on the Western ear, but, a s it is the older style, it was also seen as the most "genuine" and traditional. The Dagar revival also helped breathe new life into a few other families of dhr upad singers. Today, dhrupad enjoys a place as a well-known, respected but not very popular ge nre on the north Indian classical scene. It is no longer on the brink of extinct ion. Styles of Dhrupad There are said to be four broad stylistic variants of dhrupad - the vanis (or ba nis): Gauri (Gohar), Khandar, Nauhar, and Dagar. These are tentatively linked to the five singing styles (geetis) known from the 7th Century: Shuddha, Bhinna, G auri, Vegswara, and Sadharani - but more importantly, there are a number of dhru pad gharanas: "houses", or family styles. How the gharanas relate to the vanis is a debated question. At any rate, the mos t well-known gharana is that of the Dagar family, who of course sing in the Daga r vani. The Dagar style puts great emphasis on alap, and for several generations , their singers have been known to perform in pairs (often pairs of brothers). P erhaps a bit peculiarly, the Dagars are Muslims, but sing Hindu texts. Dagar fam ily lore speaks of twenty generations of dhrupad singers in an unbroken line. From Bihar state come two another gharanas, the Malliks and the Mishras. The Mal liks are linked to the Khandar vani, and emphasize the composed song over improv ised alap. The Mishras practice Nauhar and Khandar vani, with some unique techni ques for nomtom alap. In Pakistan, dhrupad is represented by the little-known Ta lwandi gharana (Khandar vani). Alongside the classical performance tradition, the practice of singing dhrupad i n temples continues to this day. Only a very small number of recordings of this singing has been made. This dhrupad bears little resemblance to the style we oth erwise know: there is very little or no alap; percussion such as bells and finge r cymbals, which are not permitted in the north Indian classical setting, are us ed, and the pakhawaj used is a smaller, older variant called mrdang, quite simil ar to south Indian classical mrdangam. A dhrupad set to the 14-beat time signature dhamar tal is called a dhamar. It is seen as a lighter musical form, and associated with the festive holi (hori) spr ing festival of colours. =============================== http://www.syncrat.com/3jb Dhrupad is the oldest surviving genre of classical singing in India. Its name, f rom dhruva-pada, seems to mean "the eternal verse", and its foremost characteris tics are a somber, dignified, devotional mood, its very slow tempo and slow melo

dic development. Like all Indian classical music, Dhrupad is modal, with a singl e melodic line and no harmonic parts. The modes are called raga, and each raga i s a complicated framework of melodic rules. From what we know, Dhrupad originated as devotional can be traced as far back as the Vedas themselves. Udatt" and "Anudatt" forms of music, which later on ly around two thousand years ago. Under the Islamic s appropriated as court music. singing in Hindu temples and From the Vedas evolved the " evolved into Dhrupad, possib Mughal ("Mogul") rule, it wa

Dhrupad, as we know it today, hasa repertoire of short songs (two to sixteen lin es) which are performed by a solo singer, or a small number of singers in unison , to the beat of a double-headed barrel drum, the pakhawaj. The songs are mostly in praise of Hindu deities, but in recent centuries, Islamic or simply regalist lyrics have been written and added to the repertoire. The song itself, which is known as the Dhrupad, is preceded in performance by a wholly improvised section , the alap, without accompaniment of the drum. The alap in Dhrupad is sung witho ut words, using instead a set of syllables in a recurrent, set pattern: a re ne na, t te re ne na, ri re re ne na, te ne toom ne (this last group is used in cade nces to reach the tonic or the end of a long phrase). The syllables are like var ious colours on the palette of the painter and are popularly thought to be deriv ed from a sacred mantra. Today, alap comprises the greater part of most Dhrupad performance. It can easil y last an hour, with a slow tempo and gradual, controlled development of melody (raga). It is broadly subdivided into alap (unmetered), jor (with steady rhythm) and jhalla (speeding up) or nomtom. In this last part, the syllables are sung a t a very rapid pace, sometimes incorporating very special-sounding ornamentation techniques (gamaka), and the nomtom has become one of the most popular parts of Dhrupad concerts. Traditionally, the only instrument used for playing Dhrupad was the been, which is technically a fretted stick zither with strings set along a bamboo or wooden neck with a large gourd mounted at each end. The word "been" is a colloquial for m of the Sanskrit "veena", the generic word used for plucked-string instruments all over India. To differentiate the been from the different south Indian veena, the latter is often called Saraswati Veena and the former Rudra Veena. Some players have used other instruments for Dhrupad. Preferably, such instrumen ts should have a deep bass register and long sustain. As in all Indian classical playing, the instruments must support bending of the note. Recent history The 18th century saw the beginning of a great decline of Dhrupad singing. A new genre, khyal, gained popularity at Dhrupad's expense. It placed fewer constraint s on the singers and allowed for displays of virtuosity that were rare in Dhrupa d. In addition, the basically Hindu Dhrupad was somewhat out of context in a Mus lim setting; here, khyal offered something less devotional and more entertaining . Also, new instruments were being developed the sitar and the sarod that were n ot suited to the slow tempo and low register favoured by Dhrupad, so that Dhrupa d instrumental also began to lose ground. As a consequence, in the first half of the 20th century khyal was all-pervasive, along with the new instrumental style of classical music, and Dhrupad was becom ing all but extinct. Only a few families carried on the tradition. Almost single-handedly, one of these families, the Dagars, brought about the Dhr upad revival. Dagar singers toured widely and were beginning to be recorded. Soo n, this was to co-incide with the growing foreign interest in Indian music. Star ting in the 1960s, Dhrupad was to become almost more popular outside India than

at home. Perhaps it is the stylistically easier style on the Western ear, but, a s it is the older style, it was also seen as the most "genuine" and traditional. The Dagar revival also helped breathe new life into a few other families of Dhr upad singers. Today, Dhrupad enjoys a place as a well-known, respected but not very popular ge nre on the north Indian classical scene. It is no longer on the brink of extinct ion. Styles of Dhrupad There are said to be four broad stylistic variants of Dhrupad the vanis (or bani s): Gauri (Gohar), Khandar, Nauhar, and Dagar. These are tentatively linked to t he five singing styles (geetis) known from the 7th Century: Shuddha, Bhinna, Gau ri, Vegswara, and Sadharani but more importantly, there are a number of Dhrupad gharanas: "houses", or family styles. How the gharanas relate to the vanis is a debated question. At any rate, the mos t well-known gharana is that of the Dagar family, who of course sing in the Daga r vani. The Dagar style puts great emphasis on alap, and for several generations , their singers have been known to perform in pairs (often pairs of brothers). P erhaps a bit peculiarly, the Dagars are Muslims, but sing Hindu texts. Dagar fam ily lore speaks of twenty generations of Dhrupad singers in an unbroken line. So me of the best Dhrupad singers outside the Dagar family, such as Uday Bhawalkar and Dr. Ritwik Sanyal belong to Dagar vani. From Bihar state come two another gharanas, the Malliks and the Mishras. The Mal liks are linked to the Khandar vani, and emphasize the composed song over improv ised alap. The Mishras practice Nauhar and Khandar vani, with some unique techni ques for nomtom alap. In Pakistan, Dhrupad is represented by the little-known Ta lwandi gharana (Khandar vani). Alongside the classical performance tradition, the practice of singing Dhrupad i n temples continues to this day. Only a very small number of recordings of this singing has been made. It bears little resemblance to the style we otherwise kno w: there is very little or no alap; percussion such as bells and finger cymbals, which are not permitted in the north Indian classical setting, are used, and th e pakhawaj used is a smaller, older variant called mrdang, quite similar to sout h Indian classical mrdangam. Compositions exist in time-cycles (talas) as sultala (7 beats), tivratala (10 be ats) or chautala (12beats). A composition set to the 14-beat time signature is h owever called a dhamar. It is seen as a lighter musical form, and associated wit h the Holi spring festival of colours. ============================================== yclopedia/Dhrupad Origins Abul Fazl, courtier and chronicler at the court of the Emperor Akbar, in his Ain e Akbari defines dhrupad as "Four rhyming lines, each of indefinite prosodial l ength of words or syllables." The four lines, in serial order, are sthayi, antar a, sanchari and aabhog. Thematic matter ranges from the religious to spiritual, to royal panegyric, musicology, romance; indeed, the usual range of subjects for which poetry is written. From what we know, dhrupad originated as devotional singing in Hindu temples and is commonly thought to have a very long history, traceable back to the Vedas th emselves. From the Vedas evolved the "Udatt" and "Anudatt" forms of music, which http://www.nationmaster.com/enc

later on evolved into Dhrupad, possibly around two thousand years ago. Under th e Islamic Mughal ("Mogul") rule, it was appropriated as court music. However, dhrupad may also be no older than the 15th Century. There is no referen ce to Dhrupad in Bharat's Natya Shastra, commonly dated to the 1st Century AD, n or even in Sangit Ratnakar, a 13th Century text, taken as authoritative. Contemporary performance practice Dhrupad, as we know it today, has a repertoire of short songs (dhrupads) which a re performed by a solo singer, or a small number of singers in unison, to the be at of a double-headed barrel drum, the pakhawaj. The songs are mostly in praise of Hindu deities, but in recent centuries, Islamic or simply regalist lyrics hav e been written and added to the repertoire. The text is preceded in performance by a wholly improvised section, the alap, without accompaniment of the drum. The alap in dhrupad is sung without words, using instead a set of syllables in a re current, set pattern: a re ne na, t te re ne na, ri re re ne na, te ne toom ne (t his last group is used in cadences to reach the tonic or the end of a long phras e). They are popularly thought to be derived from a sacred mantra. The singer us es the syllables like the colours on a painter's palette. In most styles of dhrupad singing today, alap comprises the greater part of the performance. It can easily last an hour, with a slow tempo and gradual, controll ed development of melody (raga). It is broadly subdivided into alap (unmetered), jor (with steady rhythm) and jhalla (speeding up) or nomtom. In this last part, the syllables are sung at a very rapid pace, sometimes incorporating very speci al-sounding ornamentation techniques (gamaka), and the nomtom has become one of the most popular parts of dhrupad concerts. Traditionally, the only instrument used for playing dhrupad was the been, which is technically a fretted stick zither with strings set along a bamboo or wooden neck with a large gourd mounted at each end. The word "been" is a colloquial for m of the Sanskrit "veena", the generic word used for plucked-string instruments all over India. To differentiate the been from the different south Indian veena, the latter is often called Saraswati Veena and the former Rudra Veena. Some players have used other instruments for dhrupad. Preferably, such instrumen ts should have a deep bass register and long sustain. As in all Indian classical playing, the instruments must support bending of the note. Recent history The 18th Century saw the beginning of a great decline of dhrupad singing. A new genre, khyal, gained popularity at dhrupad's expense. It placed fewer constraint s on the singers and allowed for displays of virtuosity that were rare in dhrupa d. In addition, the basically Hindu dhrupad was somewhat out of context in a Mus lim setting; here, khyal offered something less devotional and more entertaining the sitar and the sarod that were n . Also, new instruments were being developed ot suited to the slow tempo and low register favoured by dhrupad, so that dhrupa d instrumental also began to lose ground. As a consequence, in the first half of the 20th Century khyal was all-pervasive, along with the new instrumental style of classical music, and dhrupad was becom

ing all but extinct. Only a few families carried on the tradition. Almost single-handedly, one of these families, the Dagars, brought about the dhr upad revival. Dagar singers toured widely and were beginning to be recorded. Soo n, this was to coincide with the growing foreign interest in Indian music. Start ing in the 1960s, dhrupad was to become almost more popular outside India than a t home. Perhaps it is the stylistically easier style on the Western ear, but, as it is the older style, it was also seen as the most "genuine" and traditional. The Dagar revival also helped breathe new life into a few other families of dhru pad singers. Today, dhrupad enjoys a place as a well-known, respected but not widely popular genre on the north Indian classical scene. It is no longer on the brink of extin ction. Styles of dhrupad There are said to be four broad stylistic variants of dhrupad the vanis (or bani s): Gauri (Gohar), Khandar, Nauhar, and Dagar. These are tentatively linked to t he five singing styles (geetis) known from the 7th Century: Shuddha, Bhinna, Gau ri, Vegswara, and Sadharani but more importantly, there are a number of dhrupad gharanas: "houses", or family styles. How the gharanas relate to the vanis is a debated question. At any rate, the mos t well-known gharana is that of the Dagar family, who of course sing in the Daga r vani. The Dagar style puts great emphasis on alap, and for several generations , their singers have been known to perform in pairs (often pairs of brothers). P erhaps a bit peculiarly, the Dagars are Muslims, but sing Hindu texts. Dagar fam ily lore speaks of twenty generations of dhrupad singers in an unbroken line. So me of the best dhrupad singers outside the Dagar family, such as Uday Bhawalkar, Pt Ritwik Sanyal and the Gundecha Brothers, belong to the Dagar vani. From Bihar state come two another gharanas, the Malliks (Darbhanga Gharana) and the Mishras (Bettiah Gharana). The Malliks are linked to the Khandar vani, and e mphasize the composed song over improvised alap. Pt. Ram Chatur Mallik aws famou s exponent of Darbhanga Gharana in last century. The Mishras practice Nauhar and Khandar vani, with some unique techniques for nomtom alap. The form of Dhrupad prevalent in Darbhanga and Bettiah is also known as Haveli Style of Dhrupad. In Pakistan, dhrupad is represented by the Talwandi gharana, who sing in the Kha ndar vani. Alongside the classical performance tradition, the practice of singing dhrupad i n temples continues to this day. Only a very small number of recordings of this singing has been made. It bears little resemblance to concert dhrupad: there is very little or no alap; percussion such as bells and finger cymbals, which are n ot used in the north Indian classical setting, are used, and the pakhawaj used i s a smaller, older variant called mrdang, quite similar to south Indian classica l mrdangam. Compositions exist in time-cycles (talas) as sultala (7 beats), tivratala (10 be ats) or chautala (12 beats). A composition set to the 14-beat time dhamar tala i

s called a dhamar. It is seen as a lighter musical form, and associated with the Holi spring festival of colours. ======================================= hrupad_alapa.htm http://www.indianetzone.com/55/d

Dhrupad Alapa Dhrupad Alapa is considered as the soul of the genre which involves many techniq ues like Minda, Suta and Gamaka. The alapa in the dhrupad genre is considered as the soul of the genre. It has o ften been portrayed as a "journey into pure sound." Alap is an account of the ge nre`s substantial dependence on the individual svara, rather than a phrase. Dhru pad alapa reflects an inclination for single intervallic transitions, and relati onships between two svaras. In contrast, post-dhrupad genres support greater mel odic liveliness, and rely more on phrasing that involves two or more intervallic transitions. It is a relationship between three or more svaras at a time. As an approach to musical expression, the practice of this science is associated with each intonation being backed by the controlled power of exhalation, resulting i n a sense of introspection and serenity. Dhrupad thus rejects the more nimble and ornate melodic expressions typical of t he vocal genres that succeeded it. An important manifestation of this distinctio n is its elephantine gait. The pedagogy of dhrupad contains a large inventory of melodic expressions. However there are four basic techniques that are mentioned here: For convenience of comprehension, these expressions may be classified into: [a] melodic continuity, and [b] melodic discontinuity. The melodic continuity expres sions consist of the minda, suta, and gamaka, while the discontinuous expression is limited primarily to the khataka. Minda: minda is a continuous intervallic transition from one svara to another. I ts melodic contour can be concave or convex; but never angular. Generally, the w ord minda is employed for a short-to-medium span intervallic transition. Suta: Suta is a broad-span continuous intervallic transition that is free from a ny concavity or convexity. The suta generally navigates tonal distances more bri skly than a minda does. This vocal expression has evolved from the ghasita. Gamaka: Gamaka creates a vivacious effect by repeatedly attacking a svara from a lower svara. The melodic contour of a gamaka is concave. The gamaka is generall y used for distances of up to two, and occasionally three svaras. The gamaka is ideally suited for medium-to-high density melodic execution. ===================================== /music/h-v-dr.htm http://indiaheritage.org/perform

Dhrupad as we understand it is the darbari dhrupad that evolved in the courts, a s opposed to haveli dhrupad that is performed in temples. The sacred Prabandha m usic of the twelfth and fourteenth centuries passed on as an oral tradition, and sourced the dhrupad genre. Prabandha was a nibaddha sangeet (i.e. of the closed category of music) neatly divided into four sections - the initial or opening p art called udagraha, the exposition part called the melapaka, the fixed portion called the dhruvapada (that gave rise to the term dhrupad), and the concluding p art called abhog. The texts of dhrupad are concerned with matters of philosophy and religion. Poem s herein celebrate deities, festivals and the seasons. Only one style of singing (i.e. the dagari style) remains, of the four - Gaurahari, Nauhari, Khandari, an

d Dagari - that constituted dhrupad. The term itself refers to both the vocal fo rm as well the fixed composition section of the performance. The free-floating alap is followed by the dhrupad or bandish (as the fixed secti on is referred to). The alap itself is sung in four parts without words or rhyth mic accompaniment. The intonation and pitch provide the musical range: The vilam bit section that is sung in the low register and can be considered an exploratio n of the raga; the madhya section sung in the middle register with an increase i n the pulsation and broader embellishment of the notes; the drut and nom-tom (an alap whose rhythm repeats the vocables nom & tom or na re de na) sections sung in a high register with an alternating pace of notes and regular repetition of n otes and sounds like de, ne, ri. The singer begins each part with the shadja. The fixed (dhrupad/bandish) section is in four parts of which only the first two are performed regularly: Sthayi (pallavi in Carnatic music) - the first line of the sthayi serves as a cadence, while the section itself serves as a base for t he singer returns to the sthayi time and again after each part; Antara (anupalla vi in Carnatic music) - the intermediate part sung in a high register focusing o n the tar shadja, with a good deal of text manipulation and repeated forays into sthayi; the third section Sanchari (caranam in Carnatic music) - created by the division of the abhoga and it remains a free-moving section; the fourth and con cluding section abhoga (pallavi in Carnatic music because this section is often replaced by the sthayi) includes notes from all three registers, and in presentday performances, may well be sung with the sanchari, if these two sections are included. In a dhrupad composition, the text, the rhythm and the melody are determined and each aspect receives equal attention. The constant improvisation and manipulati on of the text in careful synchronization with the rhythms is an important featu re of dhrupad, and is known as Bol-banth (bol means words, banth means divisions ). ............... Dhamar A lilting music forms similar to dhrupad, and often regarded as a variation of t he latter. Both have an elaborate alap, and clearly defined sthayi and antara se ctions; differences arise in the greater freedom of the dhamar form and the unev enly - distributed dhamar t?l of fourteen beats. The t?l (rhythmic pattern) can be summarized as 3+2+2+3+2+2. Dhamar is associated with the festival of Holi and the life of Lord Krishna. Rel igious undertones, albeit present, are not nearly as compelling as in dhrupad. ................ ================================= arn-indian-classical-music http://www.squidoo.com/how-to-le

A brief history of Indian Classical Music If you are new to this kind of music, then it is obvious that either you were me smerized by a concert performance of some great artist or you heard a recording of some stalwart of Indian Music. Indian Classical Music is a generic term. It c onsists of the hardcore Khayal, the light classical Thumri and Dadra and also an other hardcore style of performance, Dhrupad. It is often said that this music s tarted way too long ago in the time of the vedas. The Brahman Pandits used to re cite Shlokas from the Vedas and other sacred texts in the temples. But then, the re was no melody or rhythm to them. Gradually, there was a lot of research put i nto it. People started reciting the shlokas with an inbuilt beat to them. But th ere was no melody to that recitation. The music came much later when pandits act ually tried to sing the shlokas. This singing brought in various patterns and st ructures. It is mentioned in various articles, interviews and debates that there

are only six basic Raagas. Well, it is absolutely correct that there are six ba sic raagas and those Raagas were listed in the Vedas. Anyways, after the melody part was incorporated into the recitations, the practice of reciting the shlokas gradually became a more common practice. Melodies with several constraints to s tructure and movement, were created. These melodies were called the Raagas. This doesn't contradict the statement that there existed six Raagas in the vedas. We should not forget that the Vedas were written over a long period of time. The Dhrupad form of music has a very different style from the other ones. The co mpositions are usually written in Hindi, Sanskrit and Urdu. The compositions are then recited by the vocalist to its full extent. In fact, it is said that Dhrup ad can also be called the perfect rendition of a sacred text. The word Dhrupad i s derived from two words of Sanskrit, 'Dhruv', which means 'Pole Star' and 'Pad' , which means sacred text. The Pole Star here indicates that the text is always in the praise of the Almighty. And so, it is a perfect rendition of the text. Th is form of music was extremely popular till the end of 12th century A.D. But aft er the invasion of India by the mughals, the mid-eastern influences came in. Slo wly enough, the style was infused with various other styles and it was made into something very new. It is said that Hazrat Amir Khusrau Rehmatullah Aleh laid the foundations of Kha yal. He infused the persian music with Dhrupad and called it Khayal. Dhrupad, wh ich was quite limited in its universe was fused with other styles and Khayal was formed. Khayal literally tranlates to 'Imagination'. As it suggests, Khayal mus ic had much more scope of improvisation than Dhrupad had. Khayal music was not a s popular as Dhrupad music up until the 18th century when two musicians in the c ourt of a mughal emperor popularized it. The music that we hear in today's time is the same music 'Sadarang' and 'Adarang' had popularized about 2 and a half ce nturies ago. What is Dhrupad? Dhrupad is probably the oldest of all musical traditions in India; also in the W orld. Dhrupad includes Asthayi, Antara, Sanchari and Abhogi stanzas. Lyrics to D hrupad are invariably in praise of the almighty, and nature. There are four diff erent styles in Dhrupad itself. These styles are said to have been introduced by Miyan Tansen. Each style is called a 'Baani' - Gauhar, Khandar, Dagar, Nauhar. Dhrupad is always accompanied by Pakhawaj. Dhrupad is considered to be the pures t form of Indian Classical Music as the purity of the Raag is perfectly maintain ed in it. Dhamaar is a subtype of Dhrupad singing. It is called Dhamaar because it is usually sung in Dhamaar Taal. Lyrics of Dhamaar usually are related to a H indu festival called 'Holi' - the festival of colors. There are a number of Ghar anas of Dhrupad Gayaki. The major Gharana in Dhrupad is the Dagar Family of Raja sthan. Apart from those of the immediate famlily, singers like Gunecha Bandhu al so belong to the Dagar tradition. The Dagar tradition is a several hundred years old. What is Khayal ? Khayal is imagination. It is limitless. Every artist has his own interpretation of a Raaga. The fundamentals have to be the same. The compositions are different , but the compositions strictly adhere to the basic rules of a Raaga. This form of music was created by Hazrat Amir Khusrau Rehmatullah Aleh in the 13th century . Hazrat Amir Khusrau lived in and around the present states of Uttar Pradesh, U ttarakhand, Delhi, Haryana and Punjab. The geographical effect of Khayal music w as not limited to these states. It went all across up to the far east in West Be ngal and to the far west up to Gujarat. Later, when Khayal music started to be r ecognized, it was also taken up by a lot of Central and South Indian musicians. Khayal can be both, vocal or instrumental. Of course, vocal music is considered more sacred and more difficult than instrumental music. A few artists define the ir throat as a wind instrument, and rightly so. After having various influences

from people in the 13th century to the 17th century, Khayal music got the popula rity in the 18th century. The patrons were called Sadarang-Adarang. They were co urt musicians in a Mughal Emperors' court. Many argue that the present face of K hayal music is the one that was preached and practiced by Sadarang-Adarang in th e 18th century, and not the one that was created by Hazrat Amir Khusrau in the 1 3th century. There are thousands of compositions written in books under the name of Sadarang and Adarang. Compositions of these both composers are fondly sung by all the mus icians across the country and abroad. These compositions are in different Raagas and Taalas. Khayal, the form of music which was invented by Hazrat Amir Khusrau Dehalvi(1253 -1325 A.D.), a court poet in the Darbar, of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi. T he golden time of Hazrat Amir Khusrau's life was during which he was a disciple of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya. It was then, he invented various forms of Qawwali l ike Qaul, Qalbana, Naqsh-O-Gul. It is true that Hazrat Amir Khusrau didn't write anything on music, but in the third chapter of his book Nur Siphr, Hazrat Amir Khusrau says " Indian music, the fire that burns heart and soul, is superior to music of any other country. Foreigners, even after a stay of 30 or 40 years in I ndia, cannot play a single tune correctly. Indian music charms not only men but beasts also. Deer have been hypnotized and hunted simply by music." ; Some of th e most popular Raagas in Hindustani music were, in fact, created by Hazrat Amir Khusrau such as Sarparda, Saazgiri, Yaman, Zeelaf, Shahana and so on. The mystic style of Tarana was also created by Hazrat Amir Khusrau. Tarana in persian mean s 'a song'. Hazrat Amir Khusrau is also credited to the creation of numerous taa las, Chapaka, Farodast, Qawwali, and Pashto being a few of them. Bonnie. C. Wade, a Professor of Music at the University of California, Berkeley says that Khayal's origins may have been attributed to Khusrau because there was a rapid fusion of the Perso-Arabic, Turki-Iranian, and Indic musical systems du ring his lifetime. Wade adds and says that the name Khayal was given to a partic ular mannerism and a particular song form in Khusrau's time. It wasn't a very po pular form of music in Khusrau's time though. Most of the rulers and ministers w ere fond of listening to Dhrupad, which was then in the form of Chhanda, Prabhan da, Dhruv-Maata in that era. Thakur Jaidev Singh stated that in the fifteenth ce ntury Jaunpur, Khayal was ornate and romantic, and it was popular with musicians other than who performed in Hindu temples. What is a Raaga ? This form of music consists of improvising within a set of notes bound by ascend ing and descending movements, and also characterized by phrases. This whole arra ngement is known as a Raaga. It is more than just melody, or a harmony. It is no t even a tune. A Raaga has a personality, it has a face. A Raaga cannot be just defined in a notebook or in print. It can only be rendered. What is a Bandish? A Bandish is a composition. A Bandish is all inclusive of the text of the compos ition, the Raaga it is sung in, the Taal and the Laya it has been set to! For ex ample, there is a bandish in Raag Puriya Dhanashree which goes like 'Paayaliya J hankaar Mori' set to Madhyalaya Teen Taal. This bandish is also sung in Drut Lay a by many artists. So, essentially, a bandish is a composition. It is quite know n to frequent listeners of Hindustani Classical Music that the shape and treatme nt of a Raaga changes slightly with every composition. When I say that the treat ment of the Raaga changes, I mean that the pattern and intensity of Taans, the l ength of Alaap, the depth in voice, the stretching of words and so on - all of t hese things are changed slightly. And sometimes, there might also be drastic cha nges in a few bandishes when a few composers use a 'Vivaadi'/'Varjit' swar just to enhance the beauty of the composition. Like in Madhuwanti, there is no Komal Nishad - neither while ascending, nor while descending but there is a bandish wh

ere in Madhuwani, Aarti Ankalikar-Tilekar uses both Nishads - Shuddh Nishad whil e ascending and Komal Nishad while descending - the bandish goes like 'Jhoothi P reet Keeni, Tune Mo Saun Kaisi Jhoothi Preet Keeni' which is set to Drut Teen Ta al. In an interview, Veena Sahasrabuddhe said that you only get to know a Raaga prop erly when you know at least 25-30 bandishes in that particular Raaga in differen t Taal and Laya. Then only one can ably understand the structure, the do's and t he don't of the Raaga. Another renowned artist, whose name I am forgetting, said that he knew more than hundred bandishes in Raag Yaman - which is a Raag that i s considered to be one of the most basic Raagas in Indian Classical Music. Every beginner in Classical Vocal is taught either Bhairav or Yaman at first. Sur, Laya and Taal ! Sur, Laya and Taal are the three basic constituents of Indian Classical Music. S ur corresponds to a musical note. As there are 12 universal notes, Indian Classi cal Music is no different. But what is special about Indian Classical Music is t hat quarter tones and quarter of quarter of tones are also used. A musical note may have up to eight different interpretations called Shruti. Taal is the beat o r the rhythm which binds a composition in a time scale. There are various Taalas which are used to bind text and compositions such as Ek Taal, Teen Taal, Sool T aal, Keherwa Taal, Sawari Taal, Deepchandi Taal and so on. Each taala has its ow n time cycle for e.g., roopak has a seven beat time cycle, ek taal has an twelve beat time cycle. Similar to the Raagas, the Taalas are also subject to improvis ation. But the important thing is that the structure shouldn't change. Laya is t he tempo of a composition or a taal. Usually the tempo denotes the number of bea t cycles complete in one minute. This is better known as beats per minute. There are several Layas in Indian Music such as Vilambit Laya, Madhyala Laya and Drut Laya. ==============================