Classical Music of India

Music in India had a very rich history. Music in India have many important as functions and certain ceremonies are incomplete without music. There are some classifications of Indian music like; classical music, folk music, fusion of classical and folk, and modern music. Classical music of India is further divided into two distinct school; Hindustani music (practiced in northern parts of India) and Carnatic music (practiced in southern parts of India).

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Hindustani Music

The roots of Hindustani music can be traced back to Bharata’s Natyashastra, they diverged in 14^th century. This branch of music focused on musical structure and possibilities of improvisation. Dhrupad is one of the oldest forms of Hindustani music which even mentioned in Natyashastra. It was reached to its zenith during the reign of Akbar. Raja Man Singh Tomar mastered the art of Dhrupad music in his Gwalior court.

Dhrupad is a poetic form music which is marked by precise and overt elaboration of a raga. There are number of Gharana under the Dhrupad style of music; Dagari Gharana, Darbhanga Gharana, Bettiah Gharana and Talwandi Gharana. Khyal is another prominent form of Hindustani music and the word ‘Khyal’ means ‘idea or imagination’. The origin of Khyal generally attributed to Amir Khusrau.

The theme of Khyal bandish is romantic in nature and some Khyal are composed in the praise of Lord Krishna. There are also number of Gharana of Khyal; Gwalior Gharana, Kirana Gharana, Gharana, Bhendibazaar Gharana and Patiala Gharana. Tarana style is another popular form of Hindustani music. Rhythm plays a crucial role in this style and usually sang in fast tempo. Pandit Rattan Mohan Sharma is the world fastest Tarana singer, belonged to Mewati Gharana.

Semi-Classical Styles of Hindustani Music

This style is mainly based on swara (note) and this employ lighter version of ragas and talas. Thumri is a prominent form of semi-classical music which is based on the mixed ragas and generally romantic or devotional in nature. They used Hindi or Braj or Awadhi language for the composition and usually sang in female voice. Banaras and Lucknow are major Gharanas of Thumri.

Tappa is another form of semi-classical music is a rhythmic style. This style is originated from the folk songs of camel riders of North-west India. it brought to Mughal court by Emperor Muhammad Shah. Due to lack of patronization this style almost got extinct today. Ghazal is another prominent and most popular semi-classical Hindustani music. It generally consists of rhyming couplets and each Ghazal never exceeds the 12 couplets.

It was believed that Ghazal originated in Iran but Amir Khusrau also considered as one of the first expounders of making of this art. It has no specific form but traditionally deals with just one subject: love. Muhammad Iqbal, Mirza Ghalib, Rumi, Hafez etc. are famous artists were part of Ghazal form of art.

Carnatic Music

The Carnatic music is Kriti (highly evolved song set to a certain raga and fixed tala) based and focuses more on the saahitya or the lyric quality of the musical piece. Carnatic music has several parts; Pallavi (repeated portion in each stanza), Anu Pallavi (followed the Pallavi or first line), Varnam (sing at the beginning of a recital) and Ragamalika (the concluding part of performance).

There is other component of Carnatic music as well like Swara-Kalpana which is improvised section played with drummer in medium and fast paces. Carnatic music is usually played with mridangam.

Thus, with time several styles and forms of classical Indian music developed in India.