![]() ![]() There is a lot of emphasis on the ear, but we are also pretty liberal about not letting the technicalities weigh us down. Carnatic music is taught in a way that’s similar to teaching blues, rock, or jazz. While Western classical musicians start with notation, many rock players don’t read music and jazz players learn primarily by playing. People learn Indian music through aural tradition rather than notation. After a while, they all came together for me. I grew up playing Carnatic music, popular Indian film music, and rock. Similarly, the gamaka (ornaments), talas (rhythmic cycles), and ragas (modes and melodic formulas) of Carnatic music (the classical music of Southern India) can be codified so that people of any culture playing any instrument can enjoy it. Western notation contains a lot of information that makes it universal, rather than culturally specific, to play Western music. Musicians from China who aren’t culturally attuned to the music of Ravel can read a piece of his music and play it because of the unifying language of the Western notation system. If you want to learn about Indian music, you don’t have to travel to India. ![]()
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