Carnatic Music Continued 3 Functioning Layers Melodic Layer

Carnatic Music Continued

3 Functioning Layers • Melodic Layer • Drone • Rhythm – Associated with particular instruments

Melodic Layer • Two Parts: • Principal melodic soloist that dominates the ensemble – Usually voice. Can be violin, bamboo flute, veena. . • Melodic Accompanist who aids the soloist – Plays with vocalist – Echoes and supports improvisations – Plays solo improvisations

Veena http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=g. LA 58 v. TFI 0&feature=results_main&playnext=1&list=PL 91 F 824 B 8 ECE 3 D 33 C

Drone • Holds one or two notes throughout a piece • Specialized drone instruments – Tambura: four-stringed plucked instrument tuned to tonal center and fifth • Purposeful Buzzing timbre – Sruti (shruti) Box: Played with bellows – Today electronic synthesizer

Tambura (Tambur) http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=Kx. Pw. J 93 a Wc. I

• Sruti Box http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=l. Bw. AV 8 ur kvw Shruti Box

Rhythm/Percussion • Bedrock of the ensemble • Mridangam: principal percussion instrument • Ghatam: large clay pot • Kanjira: tambourine • Morsang: jaw’s harp

Mridangam

Drummer’s Art • Improvisatory style • Based on hundreds of memorized rhythm patterns and drum strokes • Art centers on drum strokes • Sollukattu – spoken syllables • Drummer is crucial!

Concert Song Forms • • Start: Varnam Continues: String of Kritis Main Item: Often a Kriti End: More relaxed atmosphere – Devotional music bhajan • Slokam: chanted religious verses • Songs from bharatanatyam

Kriti • Made up of numerous sections • i. e. – Alapana – Tanam – Kriti “Sarasiruha” – Kalpana svaras 1 & 2 – Tani avartanam – Kriti (return and close)

Alapana • First section of a performance • Free-flowing exposition and exploration of the raga of the kriti • Voice/instrument and drone background • Nonmetrical (no regular beat/tala) • Has general plan – Slow, low high, fast slow, low

More on Alapana • Raga is derived from the kriti • Natai Raga – associated with Siva in the form of Nataraja “The Lord of Dance” – Oscillation on second note of scale in descent – Musical personality: • The Dance of Shiva shakes the universe with its power and fury

Tanam • • Highly-rhythmic exposition of the raga Improvised patterns and drone on veena No tala cycles but strong sense of beat Like Alapana trace from low to high in graduated steps and back down again.

Kriti • The major song form of the concert • May be short or very long • Very flexible structure but compositions remain recognizable • Sung or not, the words influence the performance

Kalpana Svaras • • Improvised section At the end of or after a kriti Singer sings names of notes! Returns to phrase from kriti as home base (idam) • First short simple improvisations • Then longer and more complex

Tani Avartanam • • • Improvised and precomposed rhythmic solo By mridangam Conclusion of the main item in a concert Can be 10/15 minutes or more Displays his skills and imagination • Ends on korvai – big pattern repeated three times • Leads back into kriti phrase

Bharatanatyam • South Indian Classical Dance • Accompanied by Carnatic Music • Dates back to 1000 B. C. • “Fire Dance” • Celebrating spiritual universe

Dance • Very similar to classical music is music for South India’s dance traditions • Particularly bharata natyam • Nattavangam – chanted rhythmic syllables (with dance) • Lyrics often repeated many times

Aspects of Dance • Karanas: 108 transitional movements • Hastas: Expressive hand gestures • Adavus: Basic rhythmic dance unit (108 -150)- Most use around 60 (syllables) • Bhedas – head, neck, eye movements • http: //www. ehow. com/video_2382623_basicbharatanatyam-dance-hand-gestures. html • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=pr. QOd. Tm. F 8 u 0 • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=96 AGc 1 q. RWDI&featur e=relmfu (group) • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=wa. EXlvat 5 GA Bollywood

Psychedelic Rock • Late 1960 s – West • Counterculture • Attempts to replicate and enhance mindaltering experiences • Draws on ragas and drones of Indian music • The Beatles, The Byrds, The Yardbirds, Grateful Dead

Fusion • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=dtzrbb. J 6 N 2 g Yehudin Menhuin and Ravi Shankar • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=f 1 g 2 o 7 n. V y-g&feature=related George Harrison and Ravi Shankar • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=ljnv 3 KGtc y. I&feature=related Within You Without You

• http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=AI 9 RJblj. B Lw Rohan Krishnamurthy video • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=g. LA 58 v. TFI 0&feature=results_main&playnext=1&list=P L 91 F 824 B 8 ECE 3 D 33 C Veena Master • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=l. Bw. AV 8 ur kvw Shruti Box • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=Kx. Pw. J 93 a Wc. I With Tampura