About ITC SRA

Little is known of the musical culture of the Indus Valley civilization of the 3rd and 2nd millennia BC. Some musical instruments, such as the arched or bow-shaped harp and several varieties of drums, have been identified from the small terracotta figures and from the pictographs on the seals that were probably used by merchants. Further, the famous bronze statuette of a dancing girl, probably representing a class of temple dancers, clearly indicates the presence of music.

Evidence of Rudra-worship during this period has also been found. Rudra was later to become popular as Shiva- the supreme deity of dance, drama and music.

The Indus Valley civilization declined around the the first half of the 2nd millennium BC, giving way to Vedic civilization. An important aspect of Vedic religious life was the bard-priest who composed hymns, in praise of the gods, to be sung or chanted at sacrifices. This tradition continued until a sizable body of oral religious poetry had been composed.

This body of chanted poetry grew to massive proportions, and the best of the poems were compiled as an anthology called Rigveda, which was then canonized. The hymns of the Rigveda, the oldest Veda, are addressed to the elements of nature personified as deities, and are prayers for protection from calamities and for attainment of prosperity - material as well as spiritual.

The Rigveda came into being between 1500 BC and 500 BC. It was not committed to writing, but the text and the chanting formula were carefully handed down by word of mouth from one generation to the next, up to the present period. The poems in the Rigveda are arranged according to the priestly families who chanted and, presumably, had composed the hymns.

The Yajurveda and the Samaveda were composed after the Rigveda The Yajurveda, with portions in prose, is a manual, describing the procedures to be followed in the sacrifice. The Samaveda contains hymns to be sung by those who did the chanting. It is this Veda which is specifically connected with music in India. A fourth Veda, the Atharvaveda, replete with magical chants and incantations, was accepted as a Veda considerably later and is quite unrelated to the other three.

The Vedas are considered to be revealed literature. Sages and seers (rishis) with extraordinary powers directly 'saw and received them' - hence their unique authority and influence. In order to ensure the purity of the Vedas, the slightest change was forbidden, and there has been virtually no change in these texts for about 3,000 years. Each Veda has two parts: texts of the mantras and Brahmanas, which consist of rituals and related examples. Moreover, to each Brahmana is attached an Upanishad as well as an Aranyaka, both having a philosophical content.

The rishis, to whom the hymns of the Vedas appeared as revelations, are the authors of those hymns. The seven Rishis (saptarshis) are referred to in the Shatapatha Brahmana as Goutama, Bharadwaja, Vishwamitra, Jamadagni, Vashistha, Kashyapa and Atri. The seven Rishis are represented in the sky by the seven stars of the Great Bear. The richas or the hymns were often composed on the spur of the moment.

The first Indian epic, Ramayana, was composed by the sage Valmiki. It was written in shloka form. The word shloka refers to a particular kind of metrical composition known for its brevity, easy tempo and lilting rhyme.

From the lavish use of musical metaphors in the epic, it is evident that the precise concept of music or sangeet had been adequately established and appreciated. For example, when Rama describes Kishkindha, Sugreeva's kingdom, to Laxmana, he refers to the lute-like resonance of the bees, the rhythmic croaking of frogs and the mridang-like sounds of clouds. Rama was an expert in gandharva, the 'classical' music of the time.

The term Marga sangeet is also used in the epic to denote the accepted and prestigious mode of music. There were three important features of Marga Sangeet. It was created and propagated by Brahma and other deities. It was not meant for entertainment. It was presented before the Gods to please them.

The epic tells us that musical instruments were collectively mentioned as atodya. Four major types of instruments were identified. A wide variety of instruments were used such as the Veena, Venu, Vansha, Shankha, Dundubhi, Bheri, Mridang, Panav and Pataha.

The knowledge of music was widespread. Ravana the demon-leader was proficient in music. So was Sugreeva, the monkey-leader. Occasions of festival music were known as samaj. There were professional classes of musicians such as Bandi, Soota, Magadha and others, whose repertoire included songs in praise of heroes, their deeds, their clans or dynasties.

Ramayana, as an oral epic, was also propagated according to the musical norms perfected in the oral tradition. This was the pathya mode of music making, ideal for narration. This was the form employed by Rama's sons Kush and Lava, when they sang a narrative song in Rama's praise at his court accompanied by only a lute. Even today, the story of Rama, when traditionally narrated in India in different languages and regions, follows the norms laid down by the ancient Sage.

The use of technical terms in popular literature signifies that knowledge in the concerned field of study is widespread in society. Musical terms such as pramana, laya, tala, samatala , kala , matra and shamya regularly feature in the epic.

Harivamsha is a volume of 16,374 shlokas appended to the great epic Mahabharata between 200 BC and 500 AD to complete the epic. Harivamsha is important because it describes two forms that may have inspired many composite genres in Indian cultural expression - the Chhalikya, a genre of songs in the ancient Gandharva mode of music making, and the Hallisaka dance..

The period of the Gupta kings shone in literary excellence. It is often described as the Golden Age of culture, arts and learning in ancient India. Kalidasa, who was in the court of Vikramditya (380-413 AD), epitomises the artistic accomplishments of the Gupta period. He was a lyrical poet and a writer of epics and plays. The poem 'Meghadoot', the epic 'Raghuvamsha' and the play 'Shakuntala' are some of his creative masterpieces that adorn the Indian literary tradition. The numerous references to music and dance in Kalidasa's works show the importance accorded to music in man's life during his period.

Kalidasa's works mention musical instruments like the Parivadini vina, Vipanchi vina, Pushkar, Mridang, Vamshi and Shankha, different types of songs like the Kakaligeet, Streegeet and Apsarogeeti, technical terms like Murchana, Swarasaptaka and Tana and qualities of voice like Kinnarkanthi and Valguvagam.

Vatsyayana wrote his famous manual, Kamasutra (400 AD) during this period. In it, he lists 64 'Kala's or arts essential to refined living, which include singing, playing musical instruments and dancing.

The Buddhist monk, Fa-Hien, travelled far and wide in the country for several years during the Gupta period. He noted his impressions about the remarkable prevalence of music in social life.

The Gupta king Harshavardhan (606-648 AD), was himself a singer. There are references to music making in his plays, 'Nagananda', 'Ratnavali' and 'Priyadarshika'. A story in the 'Panchatantra' (fifth century), one of the most celebrated compilations of fables ever produced by mankind, also refers to music.

The tradition of Indian art music flourished in four kinds of performing spaces: sacrificial areas, temple precincts, stages and platforms and princely courts. The character of each of these spaces determined the pitch, volume and timbre of music.

The music associated with the sacrificial hall was mainly the mantras, which were recited as well as sung. The words, their enunciation and their appropriateness for the ritual were the supreme considerations. Musical instruments were employed, but their role was secondary.

In the closed or semi-closed structures of temple-spaces, the effects of echo and reverberation were felt. The effect of instrumental and vocal timbres was more pronounced. Hence these were developed. This comes through in the number of instruments used, and the individual capacity of each to produce a greater variety of sounds. From the Gupta age onwards varied musical genres were practised within the temples.

The courtyard of the temple allowed another kind of music-making called the samaj. Visiting artists were also allowed to perform in these soirees. Yet another format that evolved in the temple space was the ghata-nibandhan, which was collective dance and music. Temple-spaces have thus fostered art, folk, religious and popular music.

The stage or the platform was a space, which was a necessary and important part of an auditorium or a theatre. Natyashastra elaborately described three kinds of theatre, differing in their size and shape. Music from the stage had to be heard as well as seen; hence the skilful used of stage space was necessary. Bharata's detailed instructions about the kutapa or the orchestra bring out the close relationship between the kind of music performed and the quality of stage space.

The princely court was the most organised performing space. All kinds of music were rendered from the princely court as all the external conditions could be controlled. Delicate effects and subtle nuances could be conveyed. There was also a much better interaction between the stage performer and the audience.

Brihaddeshi (The Great Treatise on the Regional), by Matanga was the first work to describe music in the period after Bharata, before the advent of Islam began to influence music. Matanga probably hailed from south India. Brihaddeshi is the first major and available text to describe the raga, which has been the central concept in Indian art music for centuries. It also introduced the sargam, or notation in the names of notes. In Matanga's discussion of musical scales and micro-tonal intervals he clarifies what Bharata had said in the Natyashastra.

One of Matanga's major contributions is his scholarly focus on the regional element in music. 'Deshi' has to be understood in contrast to 'Margi' music, which is sacred and pan-Indian in its scope. According to Matanga, "Deshi is that which is sung voluntarily and with delight and pleasure by women, children, cowherds and kings in their respective regions". Deshi music captured the flavour of a range of human emotions from different regions. Through notes it was formalised into ascending and descending scales.

In 1262, when he was nine years old, Amir Khusro began to compose poetry. He composed almost half a million verses in Persian, Turkish, Arabic, Braj Bhasha, Hindawi and Khadi Boli. He is supposed to have enriched or invented qawali, qasida, qalbana, naqsh and many others forms of music. Varying degrees of secularity permeated these musical forms. The zeelaph and sarparda ragas are also associated with Amir.

Khusro lived for 70 years. During 60 of those years, that is, between 1265 and 1325, Khusro spent time in the courts of as many as ten different Muslim rulers. Each court he stayed in was culturally active and different from the others. Khusro's stay in Multan brought him in contact with Persian music, while his visit to Bengal exposed him to the music of the Vaishnavite tradition.

During his time at the ruler Kaikubad's court, Avadh-based music and musicians secured a firm footing in Delhi. Three Khilji monarchs became his patrons successively. Each signalled a musico-cul-tural change. Jalaluddin, the first Khilji, was enthusiastic about secular music. Allauddin Khilji worked with Sufi saints through Khusro, and was instrumental in introducing diverse musical elements in Delhi.

The number of different patrons that Khusro had, and the places he worked in, enabled him to get exposed to and assimilate diverse musical influences. Khusro is said to have created a new system of musicology, called 'Indraprastha Mata' or 'Chaturdandi Sampradaya' . He also brought into circulation the two specific musical genres of 'tarana' and 'kaul', which complemented the prevalent array of musical forms. Neither, however, was novel to the Indian musical scene. This only reinforced the fact that Khusro's Indianisation of the Islamic musical tradition complemented the Hindu tradition.

Music in India, and especially art music, went through a metamorphosis for four centuries from the sixteenth, to result in the Hindustani music of today. This modern period saw an increasing number of musicological works in Persian, Urdu, Hindi and other regional languages, instead of Sanskrit. All these tell us the story of how Hindustani Art Music, as we know it today, evolved and took shape.

From the beginning of the nineteenth century many Indian scholars began to publish material on Hindustani music in English as well as in regional languages. This was a welcome addition to the works of the early British Indologists.

The modern period saw the birth of many of the musical forms dominant today, like Khayal and thumri. With the central Mughal power in Delhi weakening after Aurangzeb's death, there was a quick succession of emperors. One of them was the legendary Muhammadshah Rangile (1716-1748 AD). He was a loving and generous patron to many musicians. It was in his court that Nyamatkhan, popularly known as Sadarang, invented a new genre, the Khayal.

The nineteenth century saw the birth of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah's pageants, jogia jashan. In these pageants the king, his palace maids and his subjects paraded as yogis. These presentations of Krishna-lore sowed the seeds of Modern Hindustani Theatre. The thumri form of romantic and devotional music also became popular in the 19th century. The prototype of the thumri is traced to the 'Chhalikya' presentation in the Harivamsha (400 AD). The Chhalikya genre combined song and dance with dramatic gestures.

Ramnidhi Gupta, or Nidhubabu (1741-1839 AD), gave us the Bengali tappa, a new genre. This assimilated the features of the Tappa in Hindustani music and the lilting rhythm of Bengali music. Nidhubabu's compositions were in Bengali and were secular in content. They were different from the usual devotional model of singing about love through mythological pairs, usually Radha and Krishna.

Another musical stalwart of the 19th century was Sourendramohan Tagore, (1840-1915 AD). The mission of his life was to make Hindustani music international in its appeal and reach.

In the early 20th century, two people revolutionised Indian music: Pandit Vishnu Digambar Paluskar and Pandit Vishnu Narayana Bhatkhande V. D. Paluskar (1872-1931 AD) introduced the first music colleges. He gave an entirely new perspective to the education and propagation of music. It was his efforts that elevated music and musicians in the social hierarchy!

V.N.Bhatkhande (1860-1937 AD) pioneered the introduction of an organised musical system reflecting current performance practices. The historical tradition of music in India was completely disrupted during the medieval times. Since then, music in India has changed so considerably that no correlation or correspondence was possible between Sanskrit musicological texts and the music practised in modern times. It was Bhatkhande who bridged this enormous gulf. He successfully undertook the arduous task of restating the musicological framework underlying contemporary musical performance.

He did extensive musicological fieldwork across the length and breadth of the country. He meticulously collected data on music, and documented and analysed performing traditions. His literature on music remains unparallelled even today and is essential for a systematic study of Hindustani Art Music. It elucidates his views on grammatical structures, historical evolution, performance norms and aesthetic criteria relevant to Hindustani music. He classified a total number of 1800 compositions from the major gharanas accessible to him, dividing them in ten thaats according to his codification.