Midterm Flashcards
classical
art music of the courts and temples of India, when it came to urban centers in the 19th century
implies long history, sophisticated techniques, refined theory
term for music based on raga and tala
raga
melody
associated w/time of day, thought to have other connections to natural world (either connection to a season, or has healing powers etc)
tala
rhythm
Hindustani
classical system of North India, developed by about 15th century
Carnatic
classical system of south india, developed by about 15th century
sangita shastra
“music technical works”, written texts in Sanskrit that preserves long history of music theory
specialists study these to reconstruct history of musical thought and practices
oral tradition
has always interacted w/ written text
formal rules have been carried orally/transmitted thru memorization
Natyashastra
one of the earliest sanskrit theoretical texts on the arts
compiled before 400 CE, contains theory on theater, dance, and music
describes elaborate theory of musical pitch; outlines theory of aesthetics that’s foundational for Indian fine arts
composed in rhyming verses
Sangitaratnakara
14th century
premier text of the medieval period
7 chapters, basis for later texts written in Persian and Sanskrit: covers pitch, raga, techniques, tala, instruments, and dance
Paluskar
charismatic performer, attracted students w/ his focus on devotional sensibilities
standardized theory and notation
Bhatkhande
reinterpreted Sanskrit terms and presented classroom-friendly music curricula
standardized theory and notation
Purandara Dasa
15th century
his work was adopted for teaching pedagogy
Venkatamakhi
17th century
his work was adopted for raga classification
svara
Indian term for a pitch or musical tone
Sanskrit term for sound
saptaka
sequence of seven svaras
“consisting of 7”
shruti
interval b/w svara and the adjacent pitch
microtonal division
defined by Natyashastra as smallest interval the ear could discern; used shrutis in conjunction w/ ideas of consonance and dissonances
each svara consists of 2-4 shrutis
gamaka
profusion of slides, turns and flourishes
applied fluidly in the context of raga phrasings
learned orally from teacher
notation (syllabic)
not intended to convey all the nuances of the performed music
a tool to trigger a student’s memory for what has been orally learned/to record the basic outline of a piece
guru
from Sanskrit
master
a teacher, spiritual guide and model for the student’s life
shishya
from Sanskrit
disciple
“taught”
initiated w/formal ceremony, becomes representative of the guru’s artistic lineage for life
ustad
in Urdu
master/teacher
also refers to professional hereditary musician or other master of a traditional craft
commonly given to a senior master musician, usually a Muslim, by general consent
shagird
in Urdu, the disciple
Pandit
“scholar”
often given to senior Hindu musician, by general consent
Raga Yaman
raga of the early evening
thought to evoke delicate moods of love
uses all natural pitches, except for tivra ma
dhrupad
dhrupad singer most prestigious musicians in pre-modern court centers of north india
long, sustained notes and a strong voice
improv is methodical and systematic, first variations are slow and restrained, gradually gains speed
evokes dignified and refined musical environment, reminding audiences of great patrons and singers of past, and long legacy of Hindustan music in the courts
Tansen
legendary dhrupad singer
said to be able to light a fire when he sang Raga Dipak
sthai
1st line of the composition
antara
2nd and final line of pre-composed part of the performance
melody reaches higher octave
pakhavaj
premier drum of pre-modern North India court music
ancestor of modern tabla
barrel drum held horizontally and played by both hands
strong ringing sound, deep booming pitches
Chautal
tala cycle of 12 beats
theka
“support”
helps to express tala
specific set of strokes played on the tabla
khyal
predominant vocal genre of Hindustani classical
elaborate flourishes and flowing style
“imagination”
quick movements and free-flowing approach to improv
slow-tempo composition & variations, = bada khyal
fast composition = chota kyal
lyrics often speak of love, and allude to both human love and bhakti devotion
tabla
prevalent drum of Hindustani classical
bell-like tone, expressive intonation
keeps tala cycle, also ornaments and complements the singing
sam
1st beat of tala cycle
mukhra
this phrase is the “face” of the khyal
phrase you begin tal with
beginning of the sthai is used as the theme to which variations returns
vistar
“expansion”
flowing, melodious improvisations
float around and across beats of the tala as beautiful combos of raga’s pitches
singer sings long sustained notes and explores raga in winding, delicate phrases
tan
fast-running improvisations
sarod
plucked instrument held across the lap, played w/ triangular plectrum
meanas “music” in arabic
modification of the rabab, an instrument of similar shape from central asia
wide neck covered in chrome metal plate, has no frets
has distinctive punchy sound
sitar
developed out of long-necked fretted instruments
wide neck, has ringing for sustained notes
arched metal frets allow player to pull melody string to side and produce many pitches on a single fret
wooden face backed by a resonator made of a half-gourd
alap
free-rhythm section of performance
“conversation”
improvised, no drum accompaniment, instrumentalist explores phrases of the raga w/o rhythmic constraint
requires thorough knowledge of the raga and precise intonation
gat
composed section of an instrumental performance
short, consists of sthai and antara, and is followed by variations
tihai
“group of 3”
phrase repeated 3 times with a gap of equal duration b/w each repitition
ends precisely at intended point of the tala cycle
thumri
semi-classical genre
songs in poetic Hindi about love
sung in “light” ragas and in talas
talas can be improvised on more freely than pure classical ragas
sung in melodious style w/focus on interpreting words of the poem
some thumri specialists acted out lyrics using hand gestures and facial expressions
ghazal
type of rhyming poetry originating in Persian language
series of rhyming couplets
speaks in male voice about agony of love, celebrates irony that the suffering of a lover is the highest calling in life
2 short liens composed in specific poetic meter end in a rhyme, same end-rhyme is used in other couplets of sequence
sung in special mehfils or semi-classical music; the sung ghazal is one o the major song types of North India
appeals to audiences who savor the poetic content and appreciate refined history that ghazals represent
she’r
word for each 2-line couplet in a ghazal
mehfil
“gathering”
ghazal poetry is recited in special mehfils
tintal
most common tala in Hindustani music
medium tempo
7 Svaras
Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni
singing in sargam
when pitches are sung using their names
12 possible pitches in Hindustani system
Sa Komal Re, Shuddh Re Komal Ga, Shuddh Ga Shuddh Ma, Tivra Ma Pa Komal Dha, Shuddh Dha Komal Ni, Shuddh Ni
an octave has ___ shrutis
22
meend
slide
murki
knot
gamak
forceful approach to a svara
