INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC : -

Music is architecture of sounds. Any architecture needs space. Lao Tsu says by the presence of things we profit and by the absence of things we are able to use them. He gives example of a utensil. The material is there but the space in that material makes it usable. Thus in music the sounds follow silence and silence follows sound. There is also a suggestion that there is silence in sound and sound in silence. Indeed Indian Music recognizes a sound called “Anahat” which means unstruck sound. It is believed to be the primordial sound out of which the world evolved.

The Indian classical music is spontaneous. There is no sheet of paper before the performer and there is no conductor. The conductor is inside and the form of the melody is also inside. One cannot take liberty regarding the form of the melody. However within the given rules it is improvisation from beginning to end. This improvisation is regarding the arrangement of the templates of a given melody. These templates form the core of the melody. If the arrangement of the template is spontaneous the melody reaches heights in unknown dimensions. The listener is enraptured.

However the quality of silence between two sounds is what makes or mars the music. Indian Music is always accompanied by an instrument of rhythm which sets a kind of canvass on which to paint with the help of sounds. The sound of the playing instrument, the instrument of rhythm is tuned to an instrument which provides the drone. All the three sounds must merge within each other.

The tempo is determined by the cascade of sounds and this cascade is also pieces of silence interspersed with sound. The player is reaching the silence inside to bring out pieces of sound architecture. The silence produces the sound and the sound produces the silence.

The musician begins without the instrument of rhythm. Only accompaniment is the drone instrument. He or she produces unhurried sounds with lot of silent spaces for the listener to contemplate the nature of the melody. The listener is liable to get surprised by a sudden combination of sounds which is heard when least expected. This is called alaap and can last any length of time depending on the capacity of the performer to improvise.
Then enters the instrument of rhythm with a formation of slow beats. The performer then improvises with unending combinations of different sound templates from simple to complex to very complex. These combinations always end on the same note of the rhythmic instrument. This provides a kind of relief to the listener who appreciates by various exclamations. In live performances there is a kind of dialogue between the performer and the listener which is absent in Western concerts.

Then the performer increases the tempo on a cue and the rhythmic instrument follows. They can play with each other with various complicated sound structures to the great delight of the audience. The playing reaches a crescendo and the performer stops. After performances of great virtuosity there is a kind of pregnant silence for many seconds. The audience forgets to appreciate by clapping. Then suddenly everybody comes to senses and there is a great cacophony of clapping and exclamations.

Indian Music can be compared to a great and mighty river only the direction of flow is reversed. It begins where the river ends. To start with it is expansive slow and low. The river starts at a height and is turbulent. When the music ends it is in a fast tempo reaching a crescendo. When the river ends it is slow and low.

Musicians train to produce sounds but the training to develop perspective of silence between the sounds is seldom emphasized. In fact this is the quality which separates great and mediocre musicians. In fact one must learn to build castles of sounds around silence. Then only it is enjoyable.

Our breathing leads the way in understanding this Tai Chi of sound and silence. When we breathe in there is a sound. Then we stop for an instant. Then there is the sound of air which goes out. Then again we stop for an instant. These stops provide the silence. Musicians must therefore appreciate space between sounds. This helps them in improvising different structures of the same melody. There are infinite combinations of sounds and their templates in Indian Classical Music which makes it sound new every time you hear it.


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