Educational Galaxy

Chapter 7: Indian Classical Music — EG's own notes, in simple words

Book: Kriti (CBSE, Class 8)  |  Chapter 7  |  Section: Music  |  Medium: English

Diagram (labels are printed on the image): A tala chart: the seven Carnatic talas with their angas — laghu, drutam and anudrutam — and their beat counts.

A Carnatic vocalist and a Hindustani musician performing, showing two classical traditions of India.

What the chapter is about

India has two great classical music systems, Carnatic and Hindustani, and this chapter studies both. It begins with Carnatic music: there are seven main talas — Dhruva, Mattya, Rupaka, Jhampa, Triputa, Ata and Eka. Three of the sapta-tala alankaras, the vocal exercises that build vocal strength and understanding of talas, were introduced in Grade 7; Grade 8 learns to sing and keep tala for the remaining four.

A tala is built from three main parts or angas: laghu (clap and finger counts, notated I), drutam (clap and wave, notated O) and anudrutam (a single beat, notated U). The number of beats in a laghu is called its jathi, and not all talas have all angas. Two alankaras are worked out in full: the Mishra Jathi Jhampa Talam alankaram, I7 U 0 = 7 + 1 + 2 = 10 beats, and the Thrisra Jathi Triputa Talam alankaram, I3 0 0 = 3 + 2 + 2 = 7 beats, each sung through ascending and descending swara patterns.

Two compositions: a kriti and Raag Asavari

The Carnatic composition is 'Sri Gananatham Bhajare', a kriti by Muthuswami Dikshitar in Ragam Ishamanohari and Rupaka tala, a rhythm cycle of 6 beats. Its arohanam is S R2 G3 M1 P D2 N2 Ṡ and its avarohanam Ṡ N2 D2 P M1 G3 M1 R2 S. A kriti has three main parts — pallavi, anupallavi and charanam — and after singing the anupallavi and after the charanam, the singer returns to the pallavi line. This kriti has an additional portion in madhyama kala, sung twice as fast as the rest.

The Hindustani composition is Raag Asavari. Its thaat is Bhairavi; komal swaras are Gandhar, Dhaivat and Nishad, the rest shudh; vadi is Dhaivat and samvadi Gandhar; Gandhar and Nishad are missing in aroh, so its jathi is audav-sampoorna; its singing time is the second quarter of the day, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; a similar raga is Jaunpuri. Aroh is S, R, M P, D, Ṡ and avroh Ṡ N D, P, M G, R, S; pakad is R, M, P, N D P. The chapter gives a Lakshan Geet in Teentaal (16 matras) — 'Kanha mohe Asavari raga sunaye' — and a Sargam Geet in Jhaptal (10 matras). Activity 7.1 asks students to accompany a composition on an instrument they know, and to sing a piece at lower and then higher tempo to feel how tempo changes mood.

Bhakti sangeet and Sufi qawwali

Devotional music in India has roots in the Bhakti movement, a religious, social and literary movement beginning from the 6th century CE and peaking in the 15th–17th centuries, which emphasised devotion and created new forms like kirtanas and bhajans. Prominent bhakti poets include Mirabai and Tulsidas in the north and Haridasa saints like Purandara Dasa and Kanakadasa in the south. The chapter gives Tulsidas's bhajan 'Thumak Chalat Ram Chandra'.

Sufism, the mystical dimension of Islam, emerged in medieval India; saints like Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti and Baba Farid focused on inner devotion, and the Sufi qawwali genre arose from this philosophy, widely practised especially in Punjab and western India. The chapter gives a traditional qawwali alongside the bhajan, so students can hear two devotional traditions side by side.

Chart / Table: Carnatic talas and Raag Asavari

Point	Detail
Sapta talas	Dhruva, Mattya, Rupaka, Jhampa, Triputa, Ata, Eka
Laghu / Drutam / Anudrutam	I: clap + finger counts / O: clap + wave / U: one beat
Mishra Jathi Jhampa	I7 U 0 = 7 + 1 + 2 = 10 beats
Thrisra Jathi Triputa	I3 0 0 = 3 + 2 + 2 = 7 beats
Kriti	Sri Gananatham Bhajare — Dikshitar, Ishamanohari, Rupaka (6 beats)
Asavari thaat / komal	Bhairavi / Gandhar, Dhaivat, Nishad
Asavari vadi / samvadi	Dhaivat / Gandhar; jathi audav-sampoorna
Asavari aroh / avroh	S, R, M P, D, Ṡ / Ṡ N D, P, M G, R, S
Asavari time / similar raga	11 a.m.–1 p.m. / Jaunpuri

Practice set — try it yourself

1. Name the seven Carnatic talas.
   Hint: Dhruva, Mattya, Rupaka, Jhampa, Triputa, Ata, Eka.
2. What are the three tala angas and their notations?
   Hint: Laghu I, drutam O, anudrutam U.
3. Calculate: Mishra Jathi Jhampa, I7 U 0. How many beats?
   Hint: 7 + 1 + 2 = 10.
4. Raag Asavari: which swaras are komal?
   Hint: Gandhar, Dhaivat, Nishad.
5. Name one bhakti poet of the north and one of the south.
   Hint: Mirabai or Tulsidas; Purandara Dasa or Kanakadasa.

Questions with Answers

1. What are the sapta talas, and what are tala angas?
   The seven main Carnatic talas are Dhruva, Mattya, Rupaka, Jhampa, Triputa, Ata and Eka. Their building blocks are laghu (clap and finger counts, I), drutam (clap and wave, O) and anudrutam (a single beat, U); the beat count of a laghu is its jathi.
2. Work out the beat counts of the two alankaras in the chapter.
   Mishra Jathi Jhampa: I7 U 0 = 7 + 1 + 2 = 10 beats. Thrisra Jathi Triputa: I3 0 0 = 3 + 2 + 2 = 7 beats.
3. Describe the kriti 'Sri Gananatham Bhajare'.
   A kriti by Muthuswami Dikshitar in Ragam Ishamanohari and Rupaka tala (6 beats), with arohanam S R2 G3 M1 P D2 N2 Ṡ and avarohanam Ṡ N2 D2 P M1 G3 M1 R2 S, plus a madhyama kala portion sung twice as fast.
4. Give the full lakshan of Raag Asavari.
   Thaat Bhairavi; komal Gandhar, Dhaivat, Nishad; vadi Dhaivat, samvadi Gandhar; Gandhar and Nishad absent in aroh, so jathi audav-sampoorna; aroh S, R, M P, D, Ṡ; avroh Ṡ N D, P, M G, R, S; pakad R, M, P, N D P; singing time 11 a.m.–1 p.m.; similar raga Jaunpuri.
5. How did the Bhakti movement and Sufism shape Indian devotional music?
   The Bhakti movement (from 6th century CE, peak 15th–17th) created kirtanas and bhajans through poets like Mirabai, Tulsidas, Purandara Dasa and Kanakadasa. Sufism's inner devotion, through saints like Moinuddin Chishti and Baba Farid, gave rise to qawwali, strong in Punjab and western India.

Extension questions — go deeper

1. A tala pattern is written I5 0. How many beats is it, and which jathi is the laghu?
   5 + 2 = 7 beats; the laghu has 5 beats, which is Khanda jathi (5) — applying the chapter's rule that jathi is the laghu's beat count.
2. Why does a singer return to the pallavi after the anupallavi and after the charanam?
   The pallavi is the kriti's home line and theme; returning to it frames each new section and gives the listener a familiar anchor — the same reason a chorus returns in a song.
3. Asavari's Gandhar is missing in aroh but present in avroh. Why does that make the jathi audav-sampoorna rather than sampoorna?
   Audav means five notes in ascent (S, R, M, P, D) and sampoorna means all seven in descent (Ṡ, N, D, P, M, G, R, S) — the jathi names both directions, so it is audav-sampoorna.
4. Sing or clap the difference between Teentaal (16 matras) and Jhaptal (10 matras) for Asavari. How does the same raga feel in each?
   Teentaal's longer, even 16-beat cycle feels steady and broad; Jhaptal's 10-beat cycle feels more lilting and uneven — the same notes, a different walk.
5. Compare a bhajan and a qawwali from the chapter: what is similar in purpose, and what differs in style?
   Both are devotional, aiming at inner connection with the divine; the bhajan is a saint-poet's song of devotion, while qawwali is a Sufi ensemble form with rhythmic clapping, call-and-response and ecstatic build-up.

How to use this page: Read the summary, say the Key Terms in your own words, then try the practice set without looking. Use the Questions with Answers to check yourself afterwards. Ask your teacher or parent to check your answers.