Introducing Yourself to Indian Classical Music 2-Voices
The first part of this series can be found here: Introducing yourself to Indian Classical Music 1-Voices
There are many famous voices in Indian classical music, and it would be impossible to cover them all here. However, the next few posts are going to contain a random sampling of quite a few famous voices from the major classical traditions of India.
The major classical traditions are the North Indian Khayal and Dhrupad forms and the South Indian Carnatic form. The North Indian forms are collectively sometimes referred to as “Hindustani music” or “shastriya sangit.” When people refer to “Hindustani” music they may just be referring to the Khayal form as Dhrupad is less well known.
Other “lighter” forms belonging to both the North and the South will come up as well. Within each tradition there are numerous different styles and compositional forms, which will feature here, but there is no need to worry about recognising them now. I will do separate posts dedicated to the different styles and compositional forms as we go along, with accompanying clips.
We have already heard clips of the late Mallikarjun Mansur in the previous post.
In this post and the next few forthcoming posts I am going to include more samples of famous voices, including those of singers that people have sometimes found difficult, but which can be very enjoyable, either immediately, or if you give them time.
Even if you do not like anything at first, keep listening and always listen to the end of a piece. The music samples will be accompanied by information as to how long they are, so listening sessions can be scheduled if need be.
While reference will be made to the names of ragas, there is no need to be bothered about what “raga” (known as ragam in the South) means at this stage.
If you like, you can make a note of the name of a raga that goes along with a piece you particularly like, and use that to help you when you are purchasing Indian music cds and mp3s. It should be noted though, that the same ragas can sound very different when handled by different singers. This is also because of the nature of ragas themselves.
The next voice is one you have probably heard of before.
MS
MS belonged to the South Indian Carnatic tradition, but was at ease singing North Indian forms of music. Hers is a voice over which many Indians go into raptures. There are those I have come across however, especially those who are not used to Indian music, who wonder what the fuss is all about. The fuss is about not just the sound of her voice, but what people consider to be her perfect shruti alignment or fidelity to pitch, or sur. More about pitch in Indian music later.
MS was well known not just for her classical pieces, but for her chanting of slokas and her rendition of Meera bhajans (she acted as the poet-saint in the eponymous film).
One of the most famous pieces by MS (and there are many) is Bhavayami Gopalabalam in the ragam Yamuna Kalyani. This is a ragam that often has instant appeal, especially for beginners.
Listen to Bhavayami here (4:36 mins).
And here is an example of MS chanting. She is chanting the Vishnu Sahasranamam, i.e. the thousand names of Vishnu (29:56 mins). This is often listened to first thing in the morning.
The above have all been relatively short pieces and focussed on “lighter” devotional styles. More on MS in the next post along with some longer listening, as the same voice can deploy itself quite differently.
A website about MS-Tribute to MS.
M S Subbulakshmi – Bhajan (MUSIC CD)
Bhaja Govindam and Vishnu Sahasranamam (Krishna Namavalis by M.S. Subbulakshmi) (Indian Devotional
Sri venkatesa suprabhatam-morning shlokas by m.s.subbulakshmi
Related posts:
- Introducing yourself to Indian Classical Music 1-Voices If you know nothing about Indian classical music, but have...
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Visiting here after long. Loved these posts on Indian classical music.
Waiting for the next post.
Hi Praveen,
Thanks for the links you left previously, they were very nice. Next post is coming soon.
I didn’t know MS Subbulakshmi has sung a shabad! Thanks for that information, will try finding the CD and also the one with Bhavayami.
Hi
I’ve updated the links in the useful links section to include links to the mp3s you want. Amazona llows you to buy single mp3s, but can you buy them from India?
Don’t know! Will check.
Hi. Dropping by after a while. Thanks for this series of posts, I’m going to make sure I read them all.
I’ve always been an illiterate listener, enjoying Carnatic and Hindustani music while completely clueless about ragas, taalams and such.Then over a year ago, my daughter started learning Carnatic music, and the slow decoding of its machinery has been wonderful.
Hi WJ,
This is all probably still too elementary for you, but feel free to ask questions as we go along. “Illiterate” listening is the best way to start I think-proceeding from sound to grammar!
So melodious, the young MS…I will check out the links…esp interested in Vishnu Sahasranam.
Starry, you/kids might like Bhavayami as Yamuna Kalyani is often a ragam that appeals to beginners.