Indian Classical Music

Indian Classical Music is based on scales called ragas (single = raag or raga). There are hundreds of
different ragas – different to classical music where there are only 12 major scales and 12 minor scales.
Many ragas are performed at a certain time of day or during a particular season.

Indian Classical music is also based on rhythm patterns, called talas (single = taal or tala). Usually one
piece of music is based on a single raga and a single tala.

A lot of Indian Classical music is based on improvisation (making it up on the spot) using the notes and
rhythms patterns of ragas and talas. Musicians (especially singers) use lots of slides between notes.
They also ornament their improvisations. The more the music builds up the more heavily ornamented
the improvisations become. Notice that lyrics are in Punjabi or another Indian language.

Indian Classical musicians do not learn from notated (written out) music. They learn by copying a
teacher or ‘master.’ Music passed from generation to generation in this way is called an oral tradition. All
the hundreds of ragas and talas have to be learnt off by heart.

Spirituality is an important part of almost all Indian Classical music.

The structure of a typical raag performance:

The structure is made up of 4 sections performed in the following order:

1. The Alap – free improvisation; no beat / pulse; only a drone backing

2. The Jhor the music speeds up; it gets a more steady beat
3. The Jhala

4. The Gat (instruments only)

or Bandish (song) – the tabla (drums) player comes in; the group plays a pre-composed
piece; players add improvisations to the piece.

The texture and instrumentation of a typical raag performance:

There are three basic layers to the texture of Indian Classical Music.

Layer Possible instrument

1. Melody - voice; sitar (long necked 7 string ‘guitar’); sarangi (violin-ish); bansuri
(flute-ish); shenhai (oboe-ish)
2. Drone (long sustained note) tanpura (4 string guitar); harmonium (keyboard instrument pumped by
foot pedals & sounds a bit like an accordion).
3. Rhythm section tabla (a pair of drums, one is slightly bigger than the other, like the
bongo drums).