Asian and
Middle Eastern
Music
Classical Indian Music
• Ragas- A raga, very basically, is the
equivalent to what Western music would
call a scale or mode. However, in ragas,
the actual tonal distance between the
notes may be completely different than
"Do, Re, Mi".
Classical Indian Music
• Talas- A tala is a rhythmic pattern,
generally kept on the Indian drums known
as the tabla. Some talas are very simple,
some are extremely complex. Talas are
all cyclical, and hold down the rhythm of
the piece while the melodic instruments
improvise.
Classical Indian Music
• The Sitar- Perhaps the best-known Indian
classical instrument is the Sitar, which is
a stringed instrument with moveable
frets (allowing for tuning to different
ragas). Ravi Shankar is the best-known
sitar player in the West, and his student,
Beatle George Harrison, certainly helped
the popularity of the instrument spread.
Sitar
It derives its
resonance
from sympathetic
strings, a long
hollow neck and a
gourd resonating
chamber.
Filmi/Bollywood
• Bollywood Films- These movies, often
called masala films, are three hours long,
containing multiple melodramatic
plotlines, glitzy costumes and scenery,
and over-the-top song and dance
numbers. They are primarily produced
in Mumbai, India, and have become one
of the most popular film genres around
the world.
Bollywood
Bollywood Films
• Quite melodramatic
• Lyrics are beautiful and literary
• Draws from classic and modern poetry
Gamelan
• Gamelans are tuned to specific scales,
and can be played only in that scale. The
musicians each play a specific
instrument, and they play in an almost
cyclical rhythm, giving the gamelan an
intense and highly active sound that can
be difficult for a casual listener.
Gamelan Instruments
• Xylophones
• Gongs
• Bells
• Drums
• Primarily percussion only. Using mostly
metal sounds, except drumheads. Seldom
use wooden or bamboo instruments or
choral and strings sections.
Gamelan
Bhangra
• Bhangra is believed to date back to the
14th or 15th century, though it may be
even older, and "bhangra" eventually
referred not only to the dance itself, but
also the music, characterized by the
intense beating of a drum called adhol.
Tuvan Throat Singing
• Tuvan throat singers are able to,
through shaping their throat, lips and
mouth, produce a number of tones
at once. This ability to create a
range of notes, including a melody
and several harmonic overtones, is
used to imitate sounds of nature.
Tuvan Throat Singing
• Comes from small region in Central Asian
• Traditionally use soloist
• Some use percussion section and jaw harp