Carnatic Vocals
Carnatic music is originally intended for vocal performance, where the human voice serves as a unique instrument, evoking the resonance and tonality of the veena, a stringed instrument commonly utilized in Indian classical music. This effect is somewhat akin to the sound produced by a slide guitar.
Composed within the framework of a 12-note chromatic scale, Carnatic music is structured around subsets of notes known as ‘rāgas.’ These rāgas are challenging to notate due to their intricate scale variations and note oscillations, resulting in a tradition that has primarily been transmitted orally.
Hindustani Vocals
Hindustani classical music, also known as North Indian classical music or ‘shastriya sangeet’ in Hindustani, is the classical music tradition originating from the northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. The term ‘shastriya sangeet’ literally translates to classical music and can encompass Indian classical music in a broader sense. Instruments like the veena, sitar, and sarod are commonly used in this genre.
Its roots trace back to the 12th century CE when it branched off from Carnatic music, the classical tradition of South India. Hindustani classical music evolved during the Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb period, characterized by a significant influence of Perso-Arabic arts on the Indian subcontinent, particularly in the northern regions. This musical tradition blends elements of Indian classical music with Perso-Arabic musical knowledge, giving rise to the unique gharana system of music education.
Keyboard / Piano
The sound produced by the piano is created by the vibration of its strings, which are conveyed to a soundboard via a bridge over which the strings are stretched. The soundboard serves to amplify the sound and influence its tonal quality. The hammers responsible for striking the strings are attached to a mechanism located at the far end of the keys. This hammer and mechanism together constitute the ‘action’ of the piano. The primary function of this mechanism is to accelerate the hammer’s movement, capture it as it rebounds from the strings, and hold it in position for the subsequent strike. In modern pianos, the hammers are covered with felt, whereas leather was used in earlier versions.
Harmonium
The harmonium is a musical instrument crafted from wood, metal, brass, and cloth, known for its portability. It originated in West Bengal and has since become an integral part of Indian music. The harmonium finds extensive use in accompanying various genres, including folk, classical, Sufi, and ghazal compositions, both for music and dance performances.
This instrument is played by depressing the keys and simultaneously compressing the bellows. When the bellows are compressed, air flows through the reed, causing it to vibrate and produce sound. The reed controls the tone and pitch, while the bellows govern the airflow and volume. The harmonium is capable of producing up to 12 surs and 22 shrutis, adding depth to its musical range.
Violin
The violin, also known colloquially as the fiddle, is a bowed stringed musical instrument that underwent development during the Renaissance, evolving from earlier bowed instruments including the medieval fiddle, its 16th-century Italian variant called the lira da braccio, and the rebec. The violin is arguably one of the most recognizable and widely played musical instruments globally.
In contrast to its relatives, such as the viol, the violin features a fretless fingerboard. Its strings are fastened to tuning pegs and a tailpiece, which passes over a bridge firmly supported by the tension of the strings. The bridge serves as a conduit for the vibrations produced by the strings, transmitting them to the violin’s soundboard, typically made of pine, to amplify the sound. Inside the instrument, positioned beneath the treble side of the bridge and nestled between the pine soundboard and the maple back, is the sound post—a slender piece of pine responsible for further transmitting the vibrations of the strings.
Tabala
The tabla is a pair of small drums that hold a pivotal role, particularly since the 18th century, in Hindustani music, prevalent in northern India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. The higher-pitched drum of the pair, played with the right hand, is often referred to individually as the tabla or as the ‘daya’ (also known as ‘dahina’ or ‘dayan,’ signifying ‘right’). This drum is a single-headed instrument, typically constructed from wood, featuring a distinctive profile resembling two truncated cones bulging at the center, with the lower section being shorter in height. It typically measures about 25 cm (10 inches) in height and 15 cm (6 inches) in diameter.
Mridangam
The mridangam, also spelled as mrdangam, mridanga, or mrdanga, is a two-headed drum integral to Karnatak music, a form of classical music prevalent in southern India. Crafted from wood, the mridangam takes on an angular barrel shape, resembling an elongated hexagon in its outline. Skin tension on the drum is regulated by thong hoops encircling each end, leather thong lacing, and small wooden dowels that are inserted beneath the lacings.
Distinctive to the mridangam, a removable patch of tuning paste is applied to each end, imparting a specific pitch to the drum. Typically, the left head is tuned an octave lower than the right head. Musicians hold the drum across their lap and play it with their hands and fingers on both ends.
Pakhawaj
The percussion instrument known as the mridang had various names in its historical evolution. It was initially referred to as the muraj and later adopted the name maddalam in the thirteenth century. During the medieval period, particularly after the fifteenth century, it acquired yet another name, the pakhavaj or pakhvaj. This renaming of the instrument resulted in the emergence of a significant percussion instrument in North Indian classical music.
The term ‘pakhavaj’ is believed to be a derivative of ‘pakh+ouj’ or ‘paksh+vadya,’ giving rise to ‘pakhavaj’ or ‘pakhvaj.’ In contrast, an instrument with distinct regional characteristics retained the name ‘mridangam’ and developed within the Carnatic music tradition. While the term ‘mridang’ is occasionally used as a synonym for ‘pakhavaj,’ the latter is the more prevalent and widely recognized name for this instrument in North India.
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked stringed musical instrument believed to have originated in Spain during the early 16th century. It can be traced back to the guitarra latina, which was a late-medieval instrument featuring a waisted body and four strings. In its early form, the guitar was narrower and deeper compared to the modern guitar, with a less pronounced waist. It shared close ties with the vihuela, another guitar-shaped instrument that was commonly played in Spain instead of the lute during that period.
The original guitar featured four courses of strings, with three courses being double strings and the top course consisting of single strings. These strings extended from a pegbox resembling that of a violin to a tension bridge affixed to the soundboard or belly. The bridge played a crucial role in supporting the direct tension of the strings.
Drums
The drum belongs to the percussion family of musical instruments and is classified as a membranophone in the Hornbostel-Sachs system.[1] Drums typically consist of a shell with at least one membrane, known as a drumhead or drum skin, stretched over it. These membranes are struck to produce sound, either directly using the player’s hands or with a percussion mallet. Most drums also feature a resonant head on the underside. Various techniques, such as the thumb roll, have been employed to create sound from drums.
Drums hold the distinction of being the world’s oldest and most widespread musical instruments, and their fundamental design has remained largely unchanged for millennia.
