Why Indian ranks at the top charts of classical music?
India in itself is diverse and divided into various religions which promise unity and variety in all fields. Indian classical music is also a birth for many other country music industries. According to Vedas, the perfect reason for the durability of the Indian classical music is the spirituality which relates it to the gods and goddesses of the religion. We can divide the Indian classic musical genre into two types
- Carnatic music
- Hindustani music
The importance of Carnatic music in the classic field
Carnatic music is one of the prominent ancient forms that originated in the southern part of the country. The states like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra, and Karnataka follow and practice the Carnatic style of the music. This style of music is purely classic and free from plagues and interventions of Persian and Islamic tones. Let us discuss about the styles of Carnatic music.
Shruti:
One can probably consider Shruti as the base of producing a sound or tone for creating exceptional music. The Shruti can also be called as the powerhouse or pitch of creating sound while learning Carnatic music.
Swara:
The Swara is a combination of seven sounds like Sa, ri, ga, ma, pa, da, ni, which are acronyms of Shadia, Rishabha, Gandhara, madhyama, panchama, dhaivata, and Nishida. The seven forms of Swara are extracted from the sounds of animals and birds.
Raga and Tala:
The raga is a thread that is made using the mixture of Swara to produce music. Almost all the musical tones possess seven forms of Swara and are called Sampoorna raga which in English means a complete raga.
Tala is a form of hand gesture used by the singers just like the opera in western culture.
The Hindustani music and its diversity
The Hindustani music is from the contrary northern part of India and is widely influenced by the Persian and Islamic styles. The Raga and Tala hold a strong bond between the Hindustani and Carnatic style of the music. Some of the prominent types of Hindustani music include:
- khayl (Imagination)
- Dhrupad (poem)
- Tarana ( fast-paced songs)
- Tappa ( pride of Punjab)
- Thumri and ( Uttar Pradesh signature)
- Ghazal (Urdu poetry)
All the above words have an Islamic origination which shapes the tone and structure of the music.
