Carnatic music or Karnataka Sangita is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and portions of east and south Telangana and southern Odisha.
The Pancharatna kritis are a set of five kritis (songs) in Carnatic classical music, composed by the 18th-century Indian composer Tyagaraja. The first kriti is penned in Sanskrit while the other four kritis are penned in Telugu. The songs are: "Jagadananda karaka", "Dudukugala Nanne", "Sadhinchene", "Kanakana Ruchira" and "Endaro Mahanubhavulu".
Hanumatodi, more popularly known as Todi, is a rāgam in Carnatic music. It is the 8th melakarta rāgam in the 72 melakarta rāgam system. This is sung very often in concerts. It is a difficult rāgam to perform in owing to its complexity in prayoga. It is called Janatodi in Muthuswami Dikshitar school of Carnatic music. Its Western equivalent is the Phrygian mode. Todi in Carnatic music is different from Todi (thaat) of Hindustani music. The equivalent of the Hindustani raga Todi in Carnatic music is Shubhapantuvarali. The equivalent of Carnatic Todi in Hindustani is Bhairavi thaat in terms of notes, but the two sound very different due to differing uses of gamakas.
In Carnatic classical music, alapana is a form of manodharmam, or improvisation, that introduces and develops a raga. It communicates the permitted notes and phrases of the raga, setting the mood for the composition that follows. As a term that is Sanskrit in language, alapana means "to speak, address, discourse, communicate". It is the first part of Ragam Tanam Pallavi (RTP), which showcases a Carnatic musician's ability to understand a raga and improvise music set to it.
Varṇam is a type of composition in the Carnatic music system that encapsulates the key features of a raga, and considered as a foundational element in the learning path. Varnams capture the essence of the ragam in terms of typical swara patterns used, vishesha prayogas, highlighting the main notes, etc. This forms the basis for creative presentation (manodharma) of the raga in the form of raga aalapana, kalpana swarams and neraval.
Anandabhairavi or Ananda Bhairavi is a very old melodious ragam of Carnatic music. This rāgam also used in Indian traditional and regional musics. Ānandam (Sanskrit) means happiness and the rāgam brings a happy mood to the listener.
Arabhi or Aarabhi is a ragam in Carnatic music. It is a Janya raga, whose Melakarta raga is Shankarabharanam, 29th in the 72 Melakarta raga system. It is a combination of the pentatonic scale Shuddha Saveri and the sampurna raga scale Shankarabharanam.
Madras Lalithangi Vasanthakumari was a Carnatic musician and playback singer for film songs in many Indian languages. MLV and her contemporaries, D. K. Pattammal and M. S. Subbulakshmi, are popularly referred to as the female trinity of Carnatic music. A prime disciple of G. N. Balasubramaniam, she was the youngest among the established musicians of that era and was the youngest female to receive the Sangita Kalanidhi award. In 1967, she was honored with the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award, by the government of India. Her daughter, the late K. Srividya, was an actress in Tamil and Malayalam.
Ragam Tanam Pallavi (RTP) is a form of singing in Carnatic music which allows the musicians to improvise to a great extent. It is one of the most complete aspects of Indian classical music, demonstrating the entire gamut of talents and the depth of knowledge of the musician. It incorporates raga alapana, tanam, niraval, and kalpanaswara. In more elaborate ragam tanam pallavis, a tani avartanam may follow.
Tanam or Taanam is one of the methods of raga improvisation (manodharma) in the Carnatic classical music tradition, suited mainly for vocal, violin and veena.
A kacheri is an assembly of musicians and audience in the context of Carnatic music. It is presented in the concert format. The music fraternity of connoisseurs and common people assemble at the katcheri venues to listen to classical music concerts of vidwans. Etymologically the word "katcheri" is derived from Urdu language and in Hindi to mean a court of law.
Madurai Pushpavanam Iyer was a Carnatic Musician, who was born around 1885 and died around 1920. He was known for his melodious voice and was very popular as a musician. He was the father of Rajam Pushpavanam, the paternal uncle of Madurai Mani Iyer, and grand uncle of T. V. Sankaranarayanan.
In Carnatic music, Neraval also known as Niraval or Sahitya Vinyasa is the elaboration and improvisation of melody for a particular line. Usually, just one or two lines of text from the song are sung repeatedly, but with improvised elaborations. The part of lyrics is chosen which is self-contained in terms of its meaning and context and has an elegant structure amenable for repetition with variations. In general, such elaboration follow the rhythmic patterns in the original lyrics (talam), and each word in the lines of text stay set within their original place (idam) in the tala cycle, though minor variations that remain faithful to the syllabic patterns of the sahityam are considered fine. The lines are then also played at different levels of speed which can include double speed, triple speed, quadruple speed and even sextuple speed. The neraval is one of the features in the extempore improvisation aspect of Carnatic music, and is intended to highlight the Raga bhava effectively. It is usually performed by the more advanced performers.
In Carnatic Music, Kalpanaswaram, is melo-rhythmic raga improvisation in a specific tala. As part of swarakalpana, the musician delivers increasingly complex, improvised sequences in the Indian music solfege within or towards the end of a composition. Swarakalpana is integral to the Pallavi portion of a Ragam Thanam Pallavi and typically follows the neraval. It is also common for seasoned artists to perform swarakalpana during recitals of various other kritis.
Kalyani is a melakarta raga in the Carnatic music. It was called Kalyan but is now more popularly called Yaman in Hindustani Music. Its Western equivalent is the Lydian mode.
Carnatic music is usually performed by a small ensemble of musicians, who sit on an elevated stage. This usually consists of at least; a principal performer, a melodic accompaniment, a rhythm accompaniment, and a drone.
Carnatic music terms are briefly described in this page. Major terms have their own separate article pages, while minor terms are defined / described here.
A Carnatic raga refers to ragas used in Carnatic music. It has several components: a primordial sound (nāda), tonal system (swara), pitch (śruti), scale, ornaments (gamaka), and important tones.
Charulatha Mani is a celebrated Indian-born Australian Carnatic and playback singer. She has been performing Carnatic concerts since 1999. She has also sung chartbusters for Tamil, Telugu and Hindi movies. Charulatha has appeared in numerous TV shows and radio programmes, in India, and overseas. She has recorded many, CD and DVD albums. Her Isai Payanam TV show, aired on Jaya TV, deals with Ragas in Carnatic and film music and has completed more than 80 episodes. She recently received her PhD from the prestigious Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia, on Hybridising carnatic Music and Early Opera. Charu's music is known for its impeccable adherence to the Karnatik principles. It is also known for being courageous and highly creative. It is this ongoing interplay, of newness and the vintage, that has become the hallmark of her unique performance philosophy and signature style. This interesting interweave derives from her strong belief that Karnatik music must embrace innovation, inclusivity and diversity in contemporary society.
Kudamaloor Janardanan[കുടമാളൂര് ജനാര്ദ്ദനന്] is an Indian flautist of the Carnatic music tradition.
