The document provides an overview of Indian music, including its history and origins, major elements and styles, and important musical instruments. Some key points: - Indian music has origins in ancient Hindu scriptures and Vedic chants from over 3,000 years ago. - There are two main styles - Carnatic music from the south and Hindustani music from the north. - Key elements include tala (rhythm), raga (melody), and drone (harmony). - Instruments include percussion like tabla and mridangam, wind instruments like bansuri flute, and stringed instruments like sitar and sarod.

1. Karen Ongcol John Ricky Jubay
Erwin Cinco Jane Doroteo
Michelle Muslimen

3. India is one of the oldest
countries in the world
having at least fifty
centuries of history. Along
with Egypt and China, it is
also considered as one of
the cradles of civilization.

4. Music of India

5. According to ancient Hindu scriptures, it was
believed that music was a gift from heaven. They
thought that sound is God and everything is a
manifestation of God.
Shiva (the destroyer)
Brahma (the creator)
Vishnu (the preserver)

6. In India, music is call “Sangeet,” which means
the art of playing musical instruments, singing
and dancing.
Indian music is a sacred form of artistic
expression that dates back to the ancient
times.
Vedas – religious chant where Indian music
began and without accompaniment.
Indian music is the oldest unbroken musical
tradition in the world.
It is considered the most intricate musical
system that contains highly developed
polyrhythms, delicate nuances, ornamentation,
and microtones.

7. There are important aspects that form the
“heart” of the musical tradition of India.
1. Guru – teaches the Vedas through oral
tradition.
2. Vinaya – teaches students to be humble
towards elders, or those who are in
authority.
3. Sadhana – teaches practice and discipline.
The art of Indian music has been constantly
called guided improvisation.

8. The music of India can be divided into two unique
traditions:
1. Carnatic (folk)
- with its main musical center located in Chennai
(previously named Madras)
- a more pure form of Indian music with less influence
from the migrating people
Purandara Dasa is considered the father of Carnatic
music
2. Hindustani Vedic (religious)
-dominates the northern half of the Indian
subcontinent largely developed in the courts of the
major centers for Indian music

9. Elements of Indian
Music

10. Tala (Rhythm)
-Known to be the rhythmic time cycle of Indian
music.
- Composed of long and short beats that are
accented and unaccented.
Sam – the first beat of tala/ accented beat
Khali – the empty beat/ unaccented beat
- Marked by hand claps, hand waves and
movement of the fingers.

11. Angas – smaller rhythmic patterns of tala.
Kinds of Tala
1. Dadra – the shortest kind of tala with 6 beats.
- accented on 1 and unaccented on 4.
X – accented
O - unaccented
1 2 3 4 5 6
x o
LEGEND: X – tap the drum
O – wave hand for
silence
- clap hands for
unmarked beats

12. 2. Tintal - 16 beats, accents on 1,5,13 except 9.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
x x o x
3. Ektal – 12 beats, accents on 1,5,9 except 3 and
7.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
x o x o x
4. Jhaptal – 10 beats, accents on 1,3,8 except 6.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
x x o x

13. Raga (Melody)
- Indian word for scale or melody
- It is a specific arrangement of tones.
- Compositions are based on 72 types of scales,
many of them similar.
- The literal translation of the word Raga is "that
which colors the mind."
SA RE GA MA DA DHA TI
Do re mi fa sol la ti
1 2 3 4 5 6 7

14. Most important tone of Raga:
a. Vadi - the principal tone and most sonant or
most important note of a Raga.
b. Samvadi – the second principal tone
Shruti – Indian melody which uses 22
microtones and an ornamentation of raga.
- this add texture to the melody of the
music.
Microtone – a musical interval smaller than a
halftone.

15. Moods of Raga:
Happiness Sorrow Devotion etc.
Tranquility Heroism
Examples of Raga:
1. Desh – evening and seasonal (rainy)
- principal mood: romantic & sad
2. Sarang – early afternoon raga
- principal mood: heroic
3. Raga Bharian

16. Drone (Harmony)
- A low monotonous sound that is continously
played throughout the composition.
- in Indian musical tradition, tambura (string
instrument) is used to play the drone.
What is the importance of drone in Indian
music? It provides the tonal anchor of the
melody and it gives unity to the composition.

17. Indian Vocal Music

18. • Vocal music is considered very important and
the most ancient of all its musical traditions.
• It is also well regarded and well appreciated by
its people.
• Samaveda – the old musical texts in India
which have crude musical notations.
• The performance of vocal music is a form of
prayer and communication to the Supreme
Being.
• For them, a song is a vehicle or medium for
communication and interaction process
between the worshipper and the deity.

19. • Vocal music in India is a way to express deep
devotion to God.
• It is manifested through the art of
vocalization, which becomes more than just a
vocal warm-up but an act of worship.
• It is accompanied by long hours of physical
practice and yoga.
Most notable songs of North India:
• Dhun or Kirtan for Hindus
• Bhajan
• Shabad for Sikho
• Kawali for Muslims

20. Gangal – one style known for its rich romantic
and poetic content.
Lakshan Geet – a style oriented toward musical
education.
Swarmalika – used for pedagogic purposes and
sargam is used instead of words.
Tamil Nad – songs to describe the scenic beauty
of a particular region in the country.
Vijaya – song used to bid a person farewell.

21. Musical Instruments

22. a. Non-membranous Percussion (Ghan)
1. Ghatam – a percussion
instrument that is made out of
clay.
- actually a clay pot and played
by striking with the hands.

23. 2. Chimpta – fire tong with
small brass jingles.
- it is played by clicking the
tongs with the hand following a
rhythmic pattern.

24. b. Membranous Percussion (Avanadoh)
1. Tabla – a pair of drums most common and
popular in Northern India.
- it is made of wood and has head made
of stretched animal skin.
- both drums have a black spot at the
center that is made of manganese and iron dust.
- it is made by tapping the fingers on the
surface of the drums.

25. 2. Mridangam – a classical drum of Southern
India.
- it literally means clay-body and was
originally made of clay.
- it is a double-headed drum that is
barrel shaped and is played between
the thighs of the drum players.

26. c. Blown or Wind Instrument (Sushir)
1. Venu – flute found in the
Southern part of India.
- it has 8 holes.
2. Bansuri – flute from the
Northern part of India and has
six holes.

27. 3. Nagaswaran – a double-reed instrument with a
conical bore that enlarges towards the end.
- it has 7 finger-holes with 5 additional holes
drilled at the bottom that are used as controllers.
- it is played in temples, procession, festivals,
and wedding ceremonies.

28. d. Plucked Stringed Instruments (Tat)
1. Veena – most distinctive instrument in Southern India.
- it is carved from a single block of jackwood which
continues as a long fretted neck from which another
resonator is attached.
- 4 strings are used to play the melody while the
remaining 3 strings are used to play drone.

29. 2. Sarod – a musical instrument that is smaller
than the sitar.
- it has a metal finger board with no frets.
- the strings are plucked or played with a pick
made of coconut shell.

30. 3. Tambura – a drone instrument
that is made of jackwood.
- it has a long unfretted neck
which has 4-6 tuning pegs inserted
into the upper end resonator.
4. Sitar – most popular string
instrument in Northern India.
- it is made of a teakwood and
seasoned gourds.
- it has a long neck with 20 metal
frets and 6-7 main strings.
- it is used for solo parts in a
composition.

31. e. Bowed-Stringed Instruments (Vitat)
1. Sarangi – the most popular stringed instrument
that is used to accompany vocal music.
- it is shaped like a squashed guitar and is made
from a block of hollowed-out wood that is covered
with parchment.
- this instrument has no frets and is played with a
bow.

32. 2. Saringda – a bowed fiddle similar to sarangi. It
has either a round or pointed head, unlike the
sarangi that has a square head.
- it is usually one to two feet in length.
- it is played with a bow made from horse hair.