Review 1 |
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Vedas |
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Arrives with the Aryans from Central Asia ca. 1500 BCE |
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Traditional responsibility of bhraman males who memorize and recite the verses |
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Three core "books": Rg, Yajur, and Sama Vedas |
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Rg |
core verses |
Yajur |
ceremonial organization of verses from the Rg Veda (Krsna and Sukla) |
Sama |
sung version of the verses for ritual purposes sometimes using a heptatonic scale |
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Atharva Veda: myths and ritual material of a separate tradition from the Rg, Yajur, and Sama Vedas. |
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Forms of presentation: samhita patha and pada patha |
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Pada patha includes vikriti presentation in which the order of the words changes in order to preserve the identity of the words. |
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The Vedas are in the Vedic language, which is accented. Thus, the verses of the Rg Veda had three "Pitches": anudatta (unaccented), udatta (accented), and svarita (raised) |
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Natyasastra |
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original
portions written by Bharata (B.C. 200 - 400 C.E.) |
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treatise
on the varied aspects of drama, including sections on dance and on music |
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jati, murcchana, sadjagrama, madhyamagrama, sruti |
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Naradiya Siksa |
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Written by Narada ca. 5th century CE |
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Connects musical scales with the notes of Vedic recitation |
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Svara and sruti different: Svara = note; sruti = intonation (change from NS) |
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Brhaddesi |
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Matanga (c.
8th to 9th century C.E. probably in southern India) |
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terms, raga and bhasa are introduced and defined |
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marga and desi traditions distinguished |
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Sangitaratnakara |
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Sarngadeva
(first half of the 13th century C.E.; 1210-47) |
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discussions
of raga and tala written before arrival of Muslims |
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After the 16th century
theoretical treatises reflect a split in the classical traditions (paddhati): |
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Hindustani
(Indo-Aryan) and Karnatak/Carnatic (Dravidian) |
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kacceri: a concert
of south Indian classical music. |
Svara-mela-kalanidhi |
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Ramamatya
(1550) |
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treatise
shows relatively little influence from Islamic north |
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description
and grouping of ragas according to scale types |
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ragas
in practice at that time |
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Ragavibodha |
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Somanatha
(1609) |
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has some
Muslim raga names |
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Caturdandi-prakasika |
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Venkatamakhi
(1660) |
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classification
of ragas according to 72 basic scales (melas) |
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melakarta system still prevails in south India |
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Karnatak "Trinity"
Tyagaraja (1767-1847), Muttusvami Diksitar (1762-1827) and Syama Sastri
(1775-1835)
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raga:
abstract musical parameter involving scale and melody |
svara:
musical pitch, note |
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sadja, risabha, gandhara, madhyama, pancama, dhaivata,
& nisada |
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mela:
scale |
svarasthana:
note placement |
sampurna raga:
complete |
sadava raga:
hexatonic |
audava raga:
pentatonic |
janya raga:
derivative |
arohana:
ascending scalar movement. |
avarohana:
descending scalar movement |
vakra:
crooked scalar movement |
jiva-svara:
most important note |
pitippu:
characteristic melodic phrase |
raga-chaya-sañcara:
characteristic melodic phrase
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tala:
time cycle |
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cyclic and
additive (i.e., not linear and divisive) measure of musical time |
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avarta/avarttanam:
the time-span of one cycle of the tala |
anga:
a subsection of one avarta of a tala |
matra:
a subsection of an anga, the unit of measure of tala |
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gati/natai:
single count pulse division |
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tisra
natai: triple submetric pulse division |
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caturasra
gati/caturasra natai: quadratic submetric pulse
division |
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khanda
natai: quintuplet submetric pulse division |
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misra
natai: septuplet submetric pulse division |
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laya:
tempo |
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vilambita-laya:
slow tempo |
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madhyama-laya:
medium tempo |
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druta-laya:
fast tempo |
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gati/gata:
rhythmic movement |
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also described
as vilambita, madhyama, and druta |
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tattu:
"beat" "clap" |
viccu:
"wave" |
drutam:
a two-matra anga marked by a clap (tattu) and a wave
(viccu) and symbolically indicated as a circle (O). |
anudrutam:
a one-matra anga marked by a clap (tattu) and symbolically
indicated as an upwardly opening circle (U). |
laghu:
a multiple-matra anga marked by a clap (tattu) and
an additional number of silent beats to complete an anga and is
symbolically indicated by a vertical bar and a number indicating its duration
(|n) |
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tisra:
a laghu of 3 matras |
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caturasra:
a laghu of 4 matras |
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misra:
a laghu of 7 matras |
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khanda:
a laghu of 5 matras |
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sankirna:
a laghu of 9 matras |
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suladi talas:
A set of seven formal talas established by the devotional singer
Purandara Dasa (1480-1564) and used in the most formal compositions. |
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created by
combining the laghu, drutam, and anudrutam |
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caturasra
triputa tala = adi tala |
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capu talas:
most often rendered in fast laya |
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divided into
two parts |
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the second
part one beat longer than the first part |
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misra
capu (3 + 4; sometimes known only as "capu") |
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khanda
capu (2 + 3) |
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tisra
capu (1 + 2) |
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sankirna
capu (4 + 5) |
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kirtana:
devotional song in both north and south India sung by soloists and groups. |
kirtanam |
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composed
for group devotional singing |
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consists
of a refrain (pallavi) | sung by the group | alternating with
a number of stanzas (caranam) | sung by a soloist |
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pallavi and caranam commonly in contrasting registers with the former
lower than the latter |
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kriti |
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kirtanam when performed in a kacceri is called kriti |
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pallavi:
refrain, purvanga |
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anupallavi: uttaranga and rhyming with the pallavi |
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caranam:
begins in the purvanga and moves into the uttaranga |
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ragam/alapana |
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indicates
an extensive development of the melodic materials of the raga in free time |
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ragavardhani |
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sthayi / makarini / vartani |
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tanam |
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distinguished
by a pulsing sensation achieved through the rhythmic use of non-lexical
syllables |
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pallavi |
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that part
of the performance governed by tala |
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theme drawn
from a kriti |
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accompanied
by several pre-composed variations (sangati) |
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the basis
of two types of improvisation |
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niraval |
1. |
improvisatory-elaborative
technique in which the original text of the pallavi or a portion
of it and much of its rhythmic structure remain the same while the melody
is changed. |
2 |
a section of the pallavi in which the original pallavi theme is performed
at double, quadruple, and (sometimes) triple speed |
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svara
kalpana |
1. |
focus on the melodic
expansion of the raga using the pallavi theme as its starting
point. |
2. |
gradual increases
in the length of the phrases with gradual diminishment of the rhythmic
subdivision of the beat |
3. |
etuppu/graha:
the consistent prescribed point in a pallavi theme to which svara
kalpana phrases arrive. |
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mora: a three-fold cadential sequence often closing particularly important
sections |
tani
avartam (also known as tani): a mrdangam solo
or a percussion ensemble improvisation which often concludes a performance
of ragam-tanam-pallavi |
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natya:
dance-drama |
nrtya:
sentiment and mood (mime) |
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abhinaya is the set of gestures used by the dancer to symbolize story elements |
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nrtta:
pure dance, abstract patterns of movement |
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adavu:
rhythmic feet patterns |
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devadasi ("god-servants"): bharata-natyam dancers traditionally associated
with temples and courts |
alarippu:
a short dance-invocation to the deity and audience which emphasizes basic
dance positions (nrtta) |
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little or
no melodic accompaniment |
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jatisvaram:
a musical composition without text which becomes progressively more rhythmically
dense and which emphasizes rhythm and interaction between drummer and
dancer. |
sabda:
a short repeated four-line text which is treated with niraval improvisations. |
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begins with
a tirmanam: a rhythmically dense piece of pure dance (nrtta) |
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continues
with an interpretation of the literary content (nrtya) |
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(pada) varnam: an advanced study piece characterized by alternations
between nrtta and nrtya |
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the most
complex item in the performance. |
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padam:
devotional texts in the madhurya ("erotic") ras sung in
a slow tempo to allow the dancer time for elaborate abhinaya |
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presented
as a slow contrast to the varnam |
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deals with
love from the perspective of the nayika (the female) who yearns
for the nayaka (the male beloved). |
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tillana:
a rhythmic exhibition of svara and drum mnemonics to which the
dancer presents a series of poses combining movements of the waist, shoulders,
fingers, hands, feet, neck, and eyes |
sloka:
a short Sanskrit verse rendered in free time with an emphasis on abhinaya which sometimes concludes a performance |
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INSTRUMENTAL
AND VOCAL MUSIC |
ragamala: raga modulation |
pañcaragam / ghana raga pañcakam |
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"five ragas"
/ "group of five serious ragas" |
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instrumental ragamala improvisations in the five ghana ragas |
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(tana) varnam |
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a set study
piece with which instrumentalists commonly begin a program. |
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javali |
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a "small-scale
and lightly erotic genre" |
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derived from bharata-natyam |
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traditionally
sung in a rakti raga at a very fast tempo |
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tillana |
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derived from
the bharata-natyam repertoire and includes drum and pitch
syllables |
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one of the
last pieces on a program |
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Return
to Outline |
14-Feb-2011
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