A performance unfolds

As I learn more and more about Hindustani music, I understand more from my own point of view the way a concert, baithak, workshop, or performance unfolds chronologically.

After listening and learning the basics of Hindustani music over the past two-and-a-half years, I enjoy thinking back to when my interest was first piqued by the nuances of the khayal gayaki– the style of singing Hindustani music. I remember, though, that my first love was not the aalaap, the lengthy vilambit, or the nebulous madhyalay portions of it. I was first drawn to the fast flourishes of artists like D. V. Paluskar and other Gwalior-gharana-based musicians.

Now that I comprehend the value of each part of any given performance, I want to share my insights about understanding the worth of listening to a full khayal, by analyzing Padmashri Pt. Ulhas Kashalkar’s recording of Raga Multani, available by clicking on this link.

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The Aalaap

What is an aalaap? If I were to describe it in one word, I ‘d use the word “free.” The aalaap is defined as being unbound by any rhythmic cycle (taal) and can be as short as a few brief phrases to longer than the compositional portion of the performance. The aalaap is used to elaborate on the key phrases of the raga. 

    Why say phrases and not notes? The aalaap is not usually a long segment because it is not usually used to describe the entire picture of the raga. In dhrupad, the aalaap is just that (spanning 30 to 45 minutes). However, in Hindustani classical music, it’s no more than a few minutes – it is simply used to introduce the raga. I enjoy thinking of the aalaap as a warm-up for the audience and the vocalist or performing artist. If the artist started the vilambit (a slow, cycle-based composition) straight away, it would seem awkward and premature. The aalaap gives the artist a place to freely improvise without being forced into the lyrics and general tune of a khayal composition (which, while just as important, merits its own section). 

    When listening to Ulhasji’s recording, we notice that the phrases that he uses to establish the raga particularly point out the nyaas points, such as the mandra nishad (N’), shadaj (S), and teevra madhyam (M). He stops slightly short of the pancham, which is something that any listener will notice is common; the performer will stop generally around the area in which the khayal’s tune begins. His choice, laadee thaadee babanu in taal Tilwada, begins on the teevra madhyam, which warrants his sojourn up till there and no further. Once again, the aalaap is used to develop the key phrases of the raga, not to explore each note. 

    The Vilambit Khayal

    This section is, without a doubt, the most important part of a performance and of any artist’s repertoire. The khayal takes up ¾ of the performance because of its badhat (growth) of the raga and its parts. Usually, the khayal is set to beat cycles such as Roopak (7), Jhaptaal (10) Ektaal (12), Jhoomra (14), Teen taal (16), and Tilwada (16). The general formula for the badhat in a khayal is to take each note of the raga and elaborate on it, in relation to the other notes in the raga. A key part of khayal is not to mistake this elaboration for nyaas (hold), as not every note in a khayal deserves the same scrutiny. Should a performer stay too long on a certain note, they risk losing the feeling and mahaul of the raga that they have created.

    Another way of delivering the khayal is when artists give shorter performances to elaborate certain phrases in the raga. In smaller ragas (e.g. Desh, Desi, Hindol, Kalavati, and others) that have less scope for lengthy badhat, the artist will often play with patterns in the raga within certain ranges of notes. 

    In Ulhasji’s khayal, he uses a mix of the former and latter approaches. He carefully places greater emphasis on the madhyam and pancham in Multani but barely spends time on the rishabh or dhaivat, both being rendered durbal. 

    Khayal: Faster Sections

    Most artists take time aside from the vilambit portions of the khayal to switch from focus on the raga to focusing on the technical aspects of the singing or performance itself. In the normal badhat, the laya aspect is considered only when keeping the lyrics of the khayal within the beat cycle chosen by the artist. However, in later sections of the khayal, laya, the attention to rhythm, is showcased through a few different methods:

    1. Layakari – the aligning of melodic patterns (while using sargam of the raga with which to play around) with specific beats in the cycle, matras.
    2. Bol-baant – Similar to layakari, but often constitutes the more skillful art of splitting and reforming words of the composition and is taken at faster speeds than layakari.
    3. Taankari – fast flourishes, typically in aakaar, of phrases in the raga to display prowess in one’s ideas and vocal control.

    In Ulhasji’s khayal performance, this segment begins about 27 minutes in. We notice that layakari is missing, but he fills the space plentifully with bolbaant and taankari. To hear better representations that include layakari, I recommend recordings by Pt. Vijay Koparkar, Ustad Amir Khansaheb, and Pt. Venkatesh Kumar. 

    The Drut Bandish

    This presents the concluding portion of the performance or raga. Drut compositions are most often in Ektaal, Ada Chautaal (14), or Teen Taal. Typically, drut compositions are 2 lines for the asthayi and 2 to 3 lines for the antaraa. The artist will typically take the general contours outlined below in the sequence of the drut presentation:

    1. Notation-based, basic rendering of the bandish
    2. Slight alteration on the basic rendering of the bandish
    3. More free and loosely-structured rendering of the bandish
    4. Layakari, bol-baant, and taankari.

    Many parts of the end of the khayal are also present in the drut composition. Using Ulhasji’s recording as an example, you’ll note that the first and second parts of the bandish presentation are rather quick, while he is more considered in the third and fourth parts. His gayaki is strongly pulled from the Agra gharana, which places a heavy emphasis on bol-kaam and bol-baant, and his taankari is the main part of his drut presentation.

    Some artists will end with a short tarana, which warrants its own full dissection, but in essence, is a collection of meaningless words based on the tabla’s own solfege to displace the melodies of the raga without the sometimes-tedious nature of having to work around the carefully placed words of another composition. 

    In my journey through the presentation of Hindustani classical music, whether slow or fast, long or short, I’ve experienced a newfound clarity on its nuance while discovering a simultaneous simplicity in the khayal performance.

    Glossary of terms

    Solfège terms (The first definition is the Hindustani solfège equivalent, and the second is the equivalent in the western classical scale.)

    • Shadaj: ‘Sa’ or ‘Do’
    • Rishabh: ‘Re’
    • Gandhar: ‘Ga’ or ‘Mi’
    • Madhyam: ‘Ma’ or ‘Fa’
    • Pancham: ‘Pa’ or ‘So’
    • Dhaivat: ‘Dha’ or ‘La’
    • Nishad: ‘Ni’ or ‘Ti’
    • Mandra: refers to a note in the lower range, below the central shadaj.

    Other terms

    • Mahaul: atmosphere, environment
    • Gayaki: style of singing
    • Tarana: composition of Hindustani music wherein the words are abandoned and substituted for syllables of the language of the tabla. I recommend listening to one to understand. 
    • Asthayi: initial stanza, repeated
    • Antaraa: the following stanza, usually sung once or twice before returning to the Asthayi. 

    Rohit Upamaka is a rising Junior at Mission San Jose High School. He began learning Hindustani classical music when he was 11 years old with Manojji and Archanaji Tamhankar in Fremont. He continued his...