varieties in music

GAT

                        A set Musical composition consisting of the syllables or boles like,  “Dir  Da  Dir  Da  Ra  Da  Da  Ra” or  “Da  Dir  Dir  Dir  Dar  Dar  da  Da”  ect, and having Sthai and Antara as Two parts and which is played on Sitar and Sarod, is called “Gat’. Gats are of Two kind,

                                      a )  Mazeetkhani Gat, and

                                      b )  Razakhani Gat.

                        Mazeetkhani Gat is also known as wilambith Gat or Delhi-Baj-Gat and Razakhani Gat is also known as Poorab-Baj-Gat or Dhrut Gat or Lucknavi-Baj-Gat.

                                                                               KHYAL

                        Khyal is a persian word which means a thought or imagination. Adhering to the basic rules of the Raga when a song is adornedwith various techniques, and sung creating diverse melodic patterns, it is called a Khyal. In comparison to Dhrupad, Khyal has greater freedom. A Musician can use his creative ability to the best of his knowledge, training and practice in Khyal. Khyals are of Two types;

                                     1 .  Wilambith or Badakhyal

                                     2 .  Dhrut or chotakhyal  

                                                                   Wilambith Khyal

                       It is said that this style was invented in the 15^th century by the king Jounapur, Sultan Hussain Sharkee. Sadarang and Adarang the twin Musician brothers composed many Khyals and taught their disciples, but they themselves never sang Khyals, as Khyal singing was considered inferior. Later three brothers from Gwalior Haddu, Hassu and Natthu Khan made this style very popular.

                       Wilambith Khyal is sung in a slow tempo. The composition has two parts, Sthai and Antara. Techniques such as Meend, Khatka, Kan, Gamak ect; are liberally used for ornamenting the composition. Different melodic figures and Boltaans, woven in intricate, rhythmic patterns, from an integral part of Khyal singing. Languages used in the old traditional compositions are Persian, Urdu, Brij and Avadhee, the last two are the dialect of Hindi. Lyrics of the Khyals mostly describe various playful acts of Lord-Krishna, the beauty of nature ect; and express diversified emotions. Wilambith Khyals are set to Tilawada, Jhoomra, Adachoutaal, ektaal ect.

                                                                     Dhrut Khyal

                       Dhrut Khyal is  medium or fast tempo composition.It’s origin is dated back to the time of Ameer Khusro the celebrated persian scholar and Soofee saint musician  (14^th century A. D. ) He is supposed to be the inventor of this style of singing. The composition of Dhrut Khyal is short. Like wilambith Khyal the compositions are adorned with various techniques. The man difference between the two Khyals is that of tempo. Dhrut Khyals are set to Teentaal, Jhaptaal ect. Khyal is the most popular form of classical Music in contemporary times.

                                                                                 GAMAK

                       When a note is pronounced or played with some shake or quiver, it is called Gamak. This is swining notes, to please the listner. But varna of the Raga to be kept in fact. There are as many as 15 Gamak kinds mentioned in books, but only 10 Gamakas are being used practically. Sitar is an ideal instrument to play Gamak Beautifully.

                                                                                VARNA

                       Melodic form and it’s vibrations which help in developing the Raga ormode is called Varna.

Melodic movements are of four types; Sthai, Arohi, Avarohi and Sanchari.

                             

Sthai    -   When a note is repeated many times, it is called Sthai Varna; For example-  Sa  Sa  Sa  Sa, 

                 Ga  Ga  Ga  Ga  ect.

Arohi   -    The ascending movenent of the note is Arohi Varna; For example-  Sa  Re  Ga  Ma  Pa  Dha  Ni

Avarohi -  Descending melodic movenent is called Avarohi Varna;

                   For example -  Ni  Dha  Pa  Ma  Ga  Ri  Sa

      

Sanchari – It is the mixture of Sthai, Arohi and Avarohi Varnas. In other words, when the above three 

                 Varnas are sung together it becomes Sanchari Varna. For instance -  R G M,  P P P P,  G G G,

                 M G R S.