Carnatic music is based in South India (the red region).
Carnatic music, known as Karnāṭaka saṃgīta or Karnāṭaka saṅgītam in the South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. It is one of two main subgenres of Indian classical music that evolved from ancient Hindu texts and traditions, particularly the Samaveda.[1] The other subgenre is Hindustani music, which emerged as a distinct form because of Persian or Islamic influences from Northern India. The main emphasis in Carnatic music is on vocal music; most compositions are written to be sung, and even when played on instruments, they are meant to be performed in gāyaki (singing) style.
Although there are stylistic differences, the basic elements of śruti (the relative musical pitch), svara (the musical sound of a single note), rāga (the mode or melodic formulæ), and tala (the rhythmic cycles) form the foundation of improvisation and composition in both Carnatic and Hindustani music. Although improvisation plays an important role, Carnatic music is mainly sung through compositions, especially the kriti (or kirtanam) – a form developed between the 14th and 20th centuries by composers such as Purandara Dasa, and the Trinity of Carnatic music. Carnatic music is also usually taught and learned through compositions.[2][3] Kannada language predominates in the evolution of Carnatic music.[4][5] Most Carnatic compositions are in Kannada, Telugu, Tamil and Sanskrit.[6]
Carnatic music is usually performed by a small ensemble of musicians, consisting of a principal performer (usually a vocalist), a melodic accompaniment (usually a violin), a rhythm accompaniment (usually a mridangam), and a tambura, which acts as a drone throughout the performance. Other typical instruments used in performances may include the ghatam, kanjira, morsing, venu flute, veena, and chitraveena. The greatest concentration of Carnatic musicians is to be found in the city of Chennai.[7] Various Carnatic music festivals are held throughout India and abroad, including the Madras Music Season, which has been considered to be one of the world's largest cultural events.[8][9]
^Sriram, Parthasarathy. "A Karnatic Music Primer" (PDF).
^Ramaswamy, Vijaya (25 August 2017). Historical Dictionary of the Tamils. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 88. ISBN 978-1-5381-0686-0. In precolonial or early-modern South India, Telugu became the cultural language of the south, including the Tamil country, somewhat similar to the overwhelming dominance of French as the cultural language of modern Europe during roughly the same era. Therefore, Telugu predominates in the evolution of Carnatic music, and it is the practice to teach Telugu language in music colleges to those aspiring to become singers.
^Arnold, Alison, ed. (1998). The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music. Vol. 5: South Asia: The Indian Subcontinent. Taylor & Francis. pp. 231, 232, 269. ISBN 978-0-8240-4946-1.
^Ramaswamy, Vijaya (25 August 2017). Historical Dictionary of the Tamils. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 88. ISBN 978-1-5381-0686-0. In precolonial or early-modern South India, Telugu became the cultural language of the south, including the Tamil country, somewhat similar to the overwhelming dominance of French as the cultural language of modern Europe during roughly the same era. Therefore, Telugu predominates in the evolution of Carnatic music, and it is the practice to teach Telugu language in music colleges to those aspiring to become singers.
^Arnold, Alison, ed. (1998). The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music. Vol. 5: South Asia: The Indian Subcontinent. Taylor & Francis. pp. 231, 232, 269. ISBN 978-0-8240-4946-1.
^Fuller, C. J.; Narasimhan, Haripriya (11 November 2014). Tamil Brahmans: The Making of a Middle-Class Caste. University of Chicago Press. p. 201. ISBN 978-0-226-15288-2. Most songs were in Telugu or Sanskrit, though some were in Tamil, but even Telugu and Tamil were strongly inflected by Sanskrit.
^Carnatic music. (2007). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 12 April 2007, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online
^The Music Academy Archived 26 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine Written by Malathi Rangaswamy, Secretary of Music Academy
Carnaticmusic, known as Karnāṭaka saṃgīta or Karnāṭaka saṅgītam in the South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India...
Trinity of CarnaticMusic, also known as the Three Jewels of CarnaticMusic, refers to the outstanding trio of composer-musicians of Carnaticmusic in the...
with a long tradition of innovation in the fields of both Carnatic and Hindustani classical music. Basaveshwara, King of Kalyana, leader of the Bhakti movement...
Carnaticmusic terms are briefly described in this page. Major terms have their own separate article pages, while minor terms are defined / described here...
traditions: the North Indian classical music known as Hindustani and the South Indian expression known as Carnatic. These traditions were not distinct until...
Carnaticmusic is usually performed by a small ensemble of musicians, who sit on an elevated stage. This usually consists of at least; a principal performer...
major systems. North Indian Hindustani music has fixed name of a relative pitch, but South Indian Carnaticmusic keeps on making interchanges of the names...
up Carnatic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Carnatic most often refers to: Carnatic region, Southern India Carnaticmusic, the classical music of...
Carnatic raga refers to ragas used in Carnaticmusic. It has several components - primordial sound (nāda), tonal system (swara), pitch (śruti), scale,...
The Carnatic region is the peninsular South Indian region between the Eastern Ghats and the Bay of Bengal, in the erstwhile Madras Presidency and in the...
12th century CE, when it diverged from Carnaticmusic, the classical tradition in South India. While Carnaticmusic largely uses compositions written in...
of women's liberation and education. Vedanayagam's contribution to carnaticmusic is immense. His songs are still a popular choice among singers in concerts...
regarded as the definitive text in both Hindustani music and Carnaticmusic traditions of Indian classical music. Assamese poet Madhava Kandali, writer of Saptakanda...
proponents of Carnaticmusic. In honor of his contributions to Carnaticmusic, he is referred to as the Pitamaha (lit. "grandsire") of Carnaticmusic. According...
Karnataka is predominantly famous for Hindustani music and South Karnataka is well known for Carnaticmusic. With the rise of Vaishnavism and the Haridasa...
of composers of Carnatic and Hindustani music, subgenres of Indian classical music, who have created ragas. "Indian classical music: Different kinds...
classical music. There are two scales, one in Hindustani music and one in Carnaticmusic. The Hindustani rāga is a pentatonic scale, as is the Carnatic scale...
amateur musicians . The traditional role of the Music Season is to allow aficionados of Carnaticmusic to appreciate performances by renowned artists,...
Kanada, or simply Raga Darbari (pronounced darbāri kānada), is a raga in Carnaticmusic. It is a janya ragam (derived scale) of 20th Melakarta raga Natabhairavi...
melodic personality". There are two main classical music traditions, Hindustani (North Indian) and Carnatic (South Indian), and the concept of rāga is shared...
used in Indian classical music. It is a Hindustani music raga, which is reported to have been borrowed into Carnaticmusic, and is structurally similar...
Yesudas S. Janaki Carnaticmusic Tiruchi S. Swaminatha Iyer Music Composer Ilaiyaraaja Actor Sukumari Music P. Leela Actor Revathi Music V. V. Subrahmanyam...
"the cry of the swan"), is a rāga in Carnaticmusic (musical scale of Carnatic tradition of Indian classical music). It is an audava rāgam (or owdava rāga...
India portal Music portal Carnaticmusic is the classical music of South India. The following lists provide links to concert artists who have been widely...
Global Information
