The Music of India

The music of India is a mosaic of different genres and levels of sophistication. At one extreme, classical music is performed in the urban concert halls for purely artistic reasons, and at the other, many kinds of functional rural music accompany life-cycle and agricultural rites. In between are many other musical genres of different regions of the country, reflecting the diversity of its peoples. The origins of classical music can be traced to the Natya …

…ctices, particular festivals, and work. In most regions specialist musicians perform for ritual, devotional, didactic, and entertainment purposes. These specialists include priests, religious mendicants, entertainers, storytellers, and theatrical troupes. The role of the village entertainer has died off in many parts of India by the spread of films, which have developed their own forms of music influenced both by traditional Indian and Western music. Classical music, however, remains largely free of these influences. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ **Bibliography**