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Indian music 101

To the uninitiated, the complex and elastic structure of Indian classical music can be baffling--for most people, just grappling with the idea of a 22-microtone scale (instead of a relatively boring 8-note octave) is enough of a challenge in itself. If you're interested in gaining a more comprehensive understanding of this ancient and gorgeous art form, you'd do well to spend some time reading All India's articles describing the three major types of classical music: Carnatic, Hindustani, and light classical. There's a lot of ground to cover in just a few web pages, so attention must be paid--it won't hurt to have a pad and pen so you can keep track of the many new vocab words you'll learn along the way. While this may not be your idea of a little light reading, it certainly brings up a lot of interesting ideas about the extent of freedom--both spiritual and technical--available to the performer.

Mon, 24 Jan 2000 08:55:11 -0800