~*~Future Teacher~*~

Dameris Kates                                                                                      July 30, 2007

Anticipatory Set

“How Many Of You Guys Listen To Music”

“What are some of the styles of music you guys listen to?!”

*Introduction*:

Classical Indian music can be found in Hindu, Vedas, and Samaveda; three of the many traditions in
India. Indian music {like Western music} is divides octave into semitones {12 to be exact}. Their music is metamorphic in nature and based around a single melody which is played over a fixed drone.

The range of musical phenomenon in India, and indeed the rest of
South Asia, extends from simple melodies, commonly encountered among hill tribes, to what is one of the most well- developed “systems” of classical music in the world. Indian music can be described as having been inaugurated with the chanting of Vedic hymns, though it is more than probable that the Indus Valley Civilization was not without its musical culture, of which almost nothing is known.

*All About Indain Pop*

Several Indians have gained popularity in mainstream popular Western music, especially rock, however Indian Pop as a genre remains relatively unknown in the West. Artists of Indian descent include Freddie Mercury of British band Queen, born in
Zanzibar, Tanzania, who started his first band in an Indian boarding school in Panchgani. During the ’90s in the
UK, the Asian Underground or Asian Massive scene gave rise to numerous Indo-Brit musicians and producers such as Talvin Singh, who in turn influenced mainstream pop music. Indie Indo-British band Cornershop also fuses Indian and Western music.

(Kind of differs from the kind of Pop we listen to}

*Classical Indian Music*

The two main traditions of classical music have been Carnatic music, found in the peninsular regions and Hindustani music, found in the northern and central parts. While both traditions claim Vedic origin, history indicates that the two traditions diverged from a common musical root since c. 13th century. For more, see Indian classical music, Hindustani music and Carnatic music.

*Raja Music*

The term raga, on which Indian music is based, was first discussed at any length in the Brhaddesi, a work from the 10th century attributed to Matanga. In the 13th century, the theorist Sarngadeva, who authored the large work Sangitaratnakara, listed 264 ragas; by this time, the Islamic presence was beginning to be felt in
India. Some date the advent of the system of classical Indian music as we now know it to Amir Khusro. Muslim rulers and noblemen freely extended their patronage to music. In the courts of the Mughal emperors, music is said to have flourished, and the composer-musician Tansen was one of the jewels of Akbar’s court. Though songs had traditionally been composed in Sanskrit, by the sixteenth century they were being composed in the various dialects of Hindi — Braj Bhasa and Bhojpuri among them — as well as Persian and Urdu. The great poet-saints who chose to communicate in the vernacular tongues brought forth a great upheaval in north
India and the bhakti or devotional movements they led gained many adherents. The lyrics of Surdas, Tulsidas, and most particularly Kabir and Mirabai would henceforth be set to music, and bhajans, or devotional songs, continue to be immensely popular.

Now Does Any One have Any Questions?!?!?