AMOGH RAO
Understanding
INDIAN
Rhythmic
concepts in
Indian music
have been
hailed as the
some of the
most complex
and intricate
across
world music
styles. Most
attribute
this to the
ages over
which it has evolved, developing a rich vocabulary
and language of its own. Yet it continued to remain
niche due to the lack of compatibility with most foreign
music styles. Today, however, champions of diversity
have been bringing these languages together to create
vastly colourful and deeply textured compositions.
very cycle, a
framework
that might
seem highly
constrained,
but is actually
flexible and
spacious
enough to
accommodate
immense
improvisation
if the
musician is
Rhythmic Concepts IN A
Western CONTEXT
The strength of Indian concepts lies in their fundamentals
that have stayed unfettered through the millennia.
Unfortunately, this also causes the very problem of
seclusion, due to the difficulty in translating them
effectively for musicians who have not studied
them in depth. My goal here is not to translate these
concepts for you, since that would take far more
than a few paragraphs, but to inspire you to discover
them for yourself by showing you their merits.
Looking simply at rhythms, the very first thing anyone
would notice is the length, or the number of notes in a cycle
(Taal). In western music the most common and popular
time signature is the 4/4, usually with emphases on the
first and third beat, or the second and fourth, creating a
simple but effective symmetry. In taals, the most popular
counterpart to the 4/4 would be the teentaal, which consists
of 16 individual notes, with an asymmetric emphasis on
the first, second and fourth grouping (each grouping being
4 notes long). What this creates is a framework inside the
conscious of the length and time.
Unlike anything occurred in western rhythms, almost
every taal consists of a kind of Ying-Yang, where every
time signature is played in two parts with bass-heavy notes
in one half and light/shallow notes in the second. This
is also why most taals regardless of time signature, will
come in multiples of two. This symmetry also has many
exceptions, but the principle of creating dynamics within
the framework of the groove itself, remains the same.
Another popular aspect of Indian compositions is the
‘tihai’, a concept where a phrase of fixed length is repeated
thrice at the end of a composition such that the last note
of the third phrase falls on the ‘One’ or ‘Sum’. This makes
for a very exciting, challenging and satisfying task of
creating complex phrases with all kinds of groupings and
subdivisions, and yet landing the last note on the one.
The first step to understanding these principles is to
listen intently and consciously to classical compositions.
Applying them to western music then becomes less of
a challenge, since the fundamental purpose is clearly
understood. Recreating the vocabulary in the most
accurate way is not as essential as recreating the
effect that these concepts have on the listener. That
is where the true challenge of unification lies, and
that is also where the most satisfaction is gained.
The
Score Magazine
highonscore.com
19