Kashmiri music
Encyclopedia
Kashmiri music reflects the rich musical heritage and cultural legacy of Kashmir
. Traditionally the music composed by ethnic Kashmiris has a wide range of musical influences in composition. Kashmiri music use traditional Central Asian instruments and musical scales.
, rabab, sarangi
and nout. Chakri was also used to tell stories like fairy tales or famous love stories "Yousuf-Zulaikha", "Laila-Majnun" etc. Chakri ends with the Rouf, though Rouf is a dance form but few ending notes of Chakri which are played differently and on fast notes is also called Rouf.
s (known as maqam
), and is accompanied by a hundred-stringed instrument called the santoor
, along with the Kashmiri saz
, wasool, tabala and sitar
. Sufiana Kalam has been popular in Kashmir since arriving from Iran
in the 15th century and has been the music of choice for Kashmiri Sufi mystics. The dance based on the sofiyiana kalam is the hafiz nagma.
. Sarangadeva
who wrote the famous Sangeet Ratnakara was a Kashmiri
. Music and musical instruments find mentioned in the earliest texts like the Nilmatapurana and Rajatarangini
by Kalhana
. The very fact that a Kashmir
i - Abhinavagupta
(the great philosopher) who has written a commentary called Abhinavabharati
on Bharata's Natyashatra shows how much of importance was given to music in the ancient times. The most popular folk instrument is Santoor (Shat-tantri-veena), a hundred string percussion instrument which is played by Goddess Sharada
(the Goddess of learning and art in ancient Kashmir).
Henzae is a music form sung by Kashmiri Pandits on religious and cultural festivals.
is the recitation of lengthy narrative
s by singers in unusual costumes.
Popular dances in Ladakh include the Khatok Chenmo (only when headed by an aristocratic family member), Kompa Tsum-tsak (meaning three successive steps), Jabro (dance steps from Western Ladakh), Chaams (Sacred dance by Lamas), Chabs-Skyan Tses (Dance carrying a Pot), Raldi Tses (Sqordsmanship Dance) and alley yaato (Zanskari Dance and Song Sequence) etc.
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
. Traditionally the music composed by ethnic Kashmiris has a wide range of musical influences in composition. Kashmiri music use traditional Central Asian instruments and musical scales.
Chakri
Chakri is one of the most popular folk music played in Kashmir. Chakri is played with the musical instruments like harmoniumHarmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
, rabab, sarangi
Sarangi
The Sārangī is a bowed, short-necked string instrument of India which is originated from Rajasthani folk instruments. It plays an important role in India's Hindustani classical music tradition...
and nout. Chakri was also used to tell stories like fairy tales or famous love stories "Yousuf-Zulaikha", "Laila-Majnun" etc. Chakri ends with the Rouf, though Rouf is a dance form but few ending notes of Chakri which are played differently and on fast notes is also called Rouf.
Famous Chakri Players
- Gulam Hassan Sofi
- Abdur Rasheed Hafiz
- Gulam Nabi Sheikh
- Gulam Mohammad Dar
Rouf or Wanwun
Rouf is a traditional dance form usually performed by girls on certain important occasions like Eid, Marriage and other functions. Rouf includes dancing and singing simultaneously. No musical instrument is required in this. Girls arrange themselves in two or three rows, each row has 5-6 girls. Each row of girls then move one step forward and then back in swaying motion while singing the Rouf song or Wanwun. Usually Rouf is called Wanwun when played in marriages.Ladishah
Ladishah is one of the most important part of Kashmiri music tradition. Ladishah is a sarcastical form of singing. The songs are sung resonating the present social and political conditions and are utterly humorous. The singers move from village to village performing generally during the harvesting period. The songs are composed on the spot on issues relating to that village, be it cultural, social or political. The songs reflect the truth and that sometimes makes the song a bit hard to digest, but they are totally entertaining.Sufiana Kalam
Sufiana Kalam is the classical music of Kashmir, which uses its own ragaRaga
A raga is one of the melodic modes used in Indian classical music.It is a series of five or more musical notes upon which a melody is made...
s (known as maqam
Maqam
- Musical structures :* Arabic maqam, melodic modes* Mugam genre of Azeri-speaking cultures* Maqam al-iraqi genre of Iraq* Weekly Maqam prayer services of Sephardic Jewish culture* Makam, melody types of Turkey* Muqam, melody type of Uyghur culture...
), and is accompanied by a hundred-stringed instrument called the santoor
Santoor
The santoor is an ancient stringed musical instrument, native to Kashmir and Iran. It is a trapezoid-shaped hammered dulcimer often made of walnut, with seventy two strings. The special-shaped mallets are lightweight and are held between the index and middle fingers...
, along with the Kashmiri saz
Baglama
thumb|180px|Cura and bağlamaThe bağlama is a stringed musical instrument shared by various cultures in the Eastern Mediterranean, Near East, and Central Asia....
, wasool, tabala and sitar
Sitar
The 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
. Sufiana Kalam has been popular in Kashmir since arriving from Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
in the 15th century and has been the music of choice for Kashmiri Sufi mystics. The dance based on the sofiyiana kalam is the hafiz nagma.
Classical
Music in Kashmir performed by Hindus is mainly influenced by Indian classical music, using instruments such as the SitarSitar
The 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
. Sarangadeva
Sarangadeva
Sarangadeva was the author of the Sangita Ratnakara, which is considered by many to be the most important work on music, after Bharata's Natya Shastra...
who wrote the famous Sangeet Ratnakara was a Kashmiri
Kashmiri people
The Kashmiri people are a Dardic linguistic group living in Kashmir Valley in Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir and parts of the Pakistani territory of Azad Kashmir who speak the Kashmiri language...
. Music and musical instruments find mentioned in the earliest texts like the Nilmatapurana and Rajatarangini
Rajatarangini
The Rājatarangiṇī is a metrical chronicle of North west of the Indian subcontinent particularly the kings of Kashmir from earliest time written in Sanskrit by Kalhaṇa. The Rājatarangiṇī often has been erroneously referred to as the River of the Kings. In reality what Kalhana means by Rājatarangiṇī...
by Kalhana
Kalhana
Kalhana , a Kashmiri, was the author of Rajatarangini , an account of the history of Kashmir. He wrote the work in Sanskrit between 1148 and 1149. All information regarding his life has to be deduced from his own writing, a major scholar of which is Mark Aurel Stein...
. The very fact that a Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
i - Abhinavagupta
Abhinavagupta
Abhinavagupta was one of India's greatest philosophers, mystics and aestheticians. He was also considered an important musician, poet, dramatist, exegete, theologian, and logician - a polymathic personality who exercised strong influences on Indian culture.He was born in the Valley of Kashmir in...
(the great philosopher) who has written a commentary called Abhinavabharati
Abhinavabharati
Abhinavabharati is a commentary on ancient Indian author Bharata Muni's work of dramatic theory, the Natyasastra. It is the only old commentary available on this work...
on Bharata's Natyashatra shows how much of importance was given to music in the ancient times. The most popular folk instrument is Santoor (Shat-tantri-veena), a hundred string percussion instrument which is played by Goddess Sharada
Sharada
Sarada or Sharada may refer to:* Another name for the Hindu goddess Saraswati* Sharada script, abugida writing system-Film:* Sharada , Bollywood film* Sharada , Telugu film...
(the Goddess of learning and art in ancient Kashmir).
Henzae is a music form sung by Kashmiri Pandits on religious and cultural festivals.
Ladakh
One of the main features of a Ladakh marriageMarriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
is the recitation of lengthy narrative
Narrative
A narrative is a constructive format that describes a sequence of non-fictional or fictional events. The word derives from the Latin verb narrare, "to recount", and is related to the adjective gnarus, "knowing" or "skilled"...
s by singers in unusual costumes.
Popular dances in Ladakh include the Khatok Chenmo (only when headed by an aristocratic family member), Kompa Tsum-tsak (meaning three successive steps), Jabro (dance steps from Western Ladakh), Chaams (Sacred dance by Lamas), Chabs-Skyan Tses (Dance carrying a Pot), Raldi Tses (Sqordsmanship Dance) and alley yaato (Zanskari Dance and Song Sequence) etc.
See also
- List of topics on the land and the people of "Jammu and Kashmir"
- Kashmir (song)Kashmir (song)"Kashmir" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin from their sixth album Physical Graffiti, released in 1975. It was written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant over a period of three years, with the lyrics dating back to 1973.-Overview:The song centres around a signature chord progression...