I am new to sitar/icm and this forum. This is a ? I have been meen(d)ing to ask. If playing a basic composition,when do you meend and when do you play on the fret?
Stefan Mirer
Really need to use your judgement. Depends on how many notes can you go forward taking mind - which is a function of quality of your sitar and your skills. For me, I do this - From re I go to ga,ma . From ga upto pa , from pa upto ni etc. Also look into the composition to see where there is a scope for a nice meend. Usually I will meend on ga if I am playing some thing like ga ma pa ma ga re sa. Likewise meend on Pa if I have to play ga ma pa dha pa ma ga re sa. In short you should be able to reach the next note easily after you do your meend. Actually singing the gat before and while you play is the key.
My teacher Pandit Habib Khan told me to sing even while I am playing my paltas etc- and it really helped me a lot.
-
Sangeeta
