Khayal Style of Hindustani Vocal Music
By: thisindianlife
Category: classical music, music
| Aperture: | f/2.5 |
|---|---|
| Focal Length: | 85mm |
| Shutter: | 1/80 sec |
Dr. Sarita Pathak Yajurvedi performs a khayal vocal recital. She heads a department of music at Delhi University and is a disciple of Sulochana Brahaspati of the Rampur Gharana tradition.
The word khayal means “thought” and comes from the Arabic word for “imagination”. The khayal vocal style draws from Persian and Indian influences. Its popularity began during the Mughal era in the 16th century and continues to today.
Click and listen to a sample of khayal singing:
The human voice is at the heart of hindustani classical music. Instruments used, like the sarangi, sitar, bansuri and sarod, are prized by how well they reflect vocal qualities.
Khayal is the most popular of all the vocal styles of hindustani music. In a khayal performance, a singer uses the lyrics of a brief song (bandish) and a set series of notes (raga) to express emotions with improvisation.
Here is an example of a bandish’s lyrics:
May the day and the hour be auspicious
May all efforts be crowned with success
May the learned and servant
Live one hundred years
May he prosper evermore
Leave a Reply
Blog at WordPress.com. Theme: Duotone by Automattic.
