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Songs for Instruction

by David Courtney working tools

Lakshan Geet is prob­ably the most typical fixed composition used for vocal instruction.  This is a style of sing­ing where the lyrics of the song ac­tually des­cribe the features of the rag.  If the lakshangit is memorised, one will never forget the rag.  Throughout one’s life, whenever the rag is heard the words keep coming back.

The instrumental accompaniment to lakshan geet tends to revolve around what is available in a typical instructional environment. Therefore, in a full student performance, this will usually consist of harmonium, tanpura, and tabla. However within an instructional setting, it will often be nothing more than a tabla peti/tabla app and a sur peti (shruti box)/drone app.



Selected Video

https://youtu.be/8w4tkmShr9Y?si=9r6I6UKK5iRlu_MI

Other Sites of Interest

Women as a Proposition to Explicit the Esthetic Values of North Indian Classical Vocal Music

Multiple Viewpoint Modeling of North Indian Classical Vocal Compositions

Sonic Performativity: Analysing Gender in North Indian Classical Vocal Music