Herbert Arthur Popley

“ Another difference that has a great deal to do with our appreciation or otherwise of music, is the matter of emphasis upon certain external qualities. Western music rightly has come to lay very great emphasis upon tone and timbre, whereas Indian music passes these by on the other side and gives all attention to execution and accuracy. The melody is not determined by canons of charm or pleasure, but by adherence to certain fixed standards ; and the quality of tone in which the melody is sung or played does not have the importance that it does in the west. ”

“ When people are too occupied with the sciences and arts which lead to worldly prosperity, devotion to the cultural arts finds no place. Maharaja Tagore, at a lecture in Calcutta, asked those who would do something for Indian music to give more attention to the grammar of music, to the proper theory of raga and tala, and not simply to churn out of their minds anything which appeared to them to be music, in accordance with notions derived from street singers or from tradition. ”

“ The beginnings of Indian music are lost in the beautiful and fanciful legends of gods and goddesses who were supposed to be its authors and patrons. The goddess Sarasvatī is always represented as the goddess of art and learning, and she is usually pictured as seated on a white lotus with a vīṇā, lute, in one hand, playing it with another, a book in the third hand and a necklace of pearls in the fourth. ”

“ There has been far more development in Indian music, than even many Indian musicians were aware of; as until recently there was no opportunity for the different lines of development to converge or to co-operate with each other, owing to the enormous distances, the absence of the habit of wide travel, and the lack of facilities for intercommunication. However, things are rapidly changing, and to-day we have a permanent all-India organisation, which will undoubtedly gather together the scattered lines of development and bring them to bear upon Indian music as a whole. ”

“ Distinguished as the Northern or Hindustani school and the Southern or Carnatic school, both are yet based on the principles stated in the ancient Sanskrit treatises on music.
The student of India will find in the same way one India which speaks again and again as he travels from North to South. The atmosphere of mystical devotion and of submission to what is looked upon as the divine will is found in all religious hearts; the one treasure-store of legend and story supplies both North and South with heroes and sages ”

“ The law is there of course to be obeyed as perfectly as possible. In South India the use of the term sruti for such a possible sharpening or flattening of particular notes recognizes the truth of this variability. Music after all is an art and not a mere mechanism. Nobody can sing like a machine, even if he tries, any more than a man can walk in a perfectly straight line or breathe as the clock ticks.
The correlation of the notes of the Saman chant with the notes of the secular or instrumental scale is another step in the process of this interrelationship of voice and instrument. ”

“ There are various practical ways in which enthusiasts can help in the progress and development of Indian music. The first thing to do is to study and practice it for oneself. There are books to-day, both in English and the vernaculars, which will help in this. Then it is good to make a habit of training the children in Indian music, and to see that they can play at least one Indian instrument. Every cultured family in the west aims at this, and in the large towns of India at any rate it is becoming quite possible to-day. ”

“ We know how difficult it is for people who have had no musical education at all to appreciate classical music in the west, and we know too that all classes can be educated to appreciate it. It is a fact that many musical artists of the west have revealed a very keen appreciation of Indian music, and some of them have learnt to use it with real distinction. ”

“ The instruments for amateurs in the north are the sitar and the esraj, or dilruba. The main strings of the Vina are played with the first three fingers, the fourth finger being used for the side strings, just striking them at intervals, in time with the tala used. The main strings are stopped between the frets, but the side strings are always open. The vIna lends itself to all the different graces which give so much beauty to Indian music, and in the hands of really capable performers it produces most wonderful and charming effects. It is an ideal instrument for an Indian girl to learn. ”

“ For this music, let us remember, daily gives pleasure to as many thousands as its more cultivated European sister gives to hundreds. There is hardly any festivity in India in which some part is not assigned to music, and for religious ceremonies its use is universal.'
In judging of Indian music one must enquire whether it contains those musical qualities which ensure an artistic appreciation from the cultured. ”

“ It was here that Tyagayya or Tyagaraja, the great singer and poet (c. 1800-1850) composed and sang his songs, and gathered around himself a band of disciples who have continued his tradition till the present day. His charming kritis and kirtanas are still sung all over the south. He was a creative musical genius and his compositions mark a definite advance in south Indian musical development. One who remembers him describes him as 'a tall lean man with a brown complexion.' He was revered as a perfectly sincere and selfless man. ”

“ The Academy of Music hopes, in co-operation with its sister organizations, to promote the development of a living musical culture, having its roots in the soil of India and expressing itself in nobler and more beautiful forms, so as to enrich the lives of both rich and poor. ”

“ It is only recently that musical associations have been formed in India, and that music lovers have had opportunity to get together and compare their work. All this must be remembered in judging the progress that has been made by Indian music. ”

“ North and South India differ largely in a multitude of things. The north is the land of the fighting races and has the large towns and cities of India with their keen intellectual and commercial life. The south is the land of peaceful villages, nestling among green fields and gardens, inhabited by a conservative and peace-loving people who are contented with a little. The south was far away from the battlefields of Empire until the time of the British ”

“ Apart from the drum the largest variety of musical instruments in India is found among the strings. The best and the most honourable instruments are also found here. The Vina occupies the first place among them all, and has done so from time immemorial. It is also the instrument par excellence for rendering Indian music; and no one who has not heard the masters of the vina has any right to give a final judgment on Indian music. In northern India the vina is often called Bin, the name vIna beings given to the tambur. ”

“ The Conference has been held annually since 1918, and has done a great deal of useful work in stimulating interest in and promoting the study of Indian music and in the systematization of Hindusthani ragas. It has made possible the discussion of musical problems by a gathering of artists and experts drawn from the whole of India, a free interchange of thought and opinion by musicians of all races and climes in India, the attempt to find an adequate notation to express the beauties and refinements of Indian ragas and melodies, and finally the establishment of this All-India Academy. ”

“ Indian melody is produced by the regulated succession of concordant notes, while western harmony arises from the agreeable concord of various related notes. As a result of this differentiation, Indian music has developed solely along the lines of melody, while the greatest development of western music has taken place in the region of harmony. Does the fact that western music has developed a second dimension, so to speak, make it more advanced than Indian music? Can we call Indian music thereby inferior or primitive? Indian music has taken one line of development, that of melody ”

“ One thing which often depresses the western listener is the harsh nasal tone of the Indian singer. It is interesting to find that, while many Indians are trying to get away from it, the nasal tone still has its defenders. Mrs. Mann says that it is a degraded form of a very fine tradition, to the effect that the yogi could obtain the power to go on singing without breathing, and it is the desire to attain to this power which is responsible for the cultivation of the habit of singing at the back of the nose. ”

“ The musical instruments of India present a wonderful variety. As might be expected they are meant mostly for individual use, and there is very little suggestion of an orchestra. The Indian Rajas maintain a number of fine musicians, but it is rare to hear orchestral music in India. It is not, however, unknown, and one may sometimes hear orchestral pieces at the concerts of the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya in Bombay and also in Baroda. In order to see all the different musical instruments of India one has to journey to many different places. ”

“ There are many reasons which prevent people from giving that appreciation to the music of the other people which it merits. There are some to whom the music of the other is simply a noise more or less disagreeable, or perhaps 'the least disagreeable of noises.' There are some who like Aurangzeb would have Indian music buried so deep that ' neither voice nor echo shall issue from the grave.' Various causes may conduce to this lack of appreciation. ”

“ In music, as in all other things in India, co-operation and real comradeship between East and West is needed, if the greatest possible progress is to be made. The words of Lord Ronaldshay, Governor of Bengal, apply to culture as well as to government in India. 'The future of the land we live in may be likened to a splendid edifice built up on a firm foundation of pillared arches. ”

“ The Indian rajahs and princes still have in their service many famous musicians, but unfortunately many of them depend almost entirely upon tradition in the rendering of ragas and melodies. There seems to be no generally accepted system for Hindusthani music, though efforts are being made to-day by many scholars to work one out. The southern system, as readers will have guessed, is far more carefully systematized, and perhaps errs on the side of rigidity.
During the last few decades the scientific study of music in India has made great advances. ”

“ It must, however, be remembered that a song or piece played on an instrument is a live thing and does not submit to mathematical precision. There is, it is true, only one form for each scale, and every singer and musician tries to get it right, though no one invariably manages to do so. ”

“ Then when we hear old slokas and ghazals, songs written hundreds of years a^o, sung with the same sweet dream/ cadences, the same wild melody, to the same soft beats of little hands, and the same soft timkle of the silver cymbals, we shall perhaps begin to feel that music of this kind can be as welcome and tasteful to ears accustomed to it as the music of the West, with its exaggerated sonorousness, is to ui ; and so our contempt will gradually give way to wonder, and upon acquaintance possibly to love. ”

“ The voice has a tendency to ascend by leaps and to descend by steps. Music recognizes the following consonant intervals : the third, the fourth, the fifth, and the octave. In making a leap to the next consonant note, the choice really lies between the third and the fourth, as the fifth is too far away. The fourth is the more audible and many nations have chosen this in preference to the third. The fourth then becomes the upward limit of the tetrachord. When it comes to creeping up or down by what may be called 'next-door' notes, the chosen interval may be one of many or quite undefined. ”

“ Haridas Swami was a great Hindu saint and musician who lived at Brindaban, the centre of the Krishna cult on the banks of the Jumna, in Akbar's reign. He was considered one of the greatest musicians of his time. Tan Sen, the celebrated singer of Akbar's court, was one of his pupils. Many interesting stories are told of Tan Sen, whose name is still fragrant throughout India and 'like whom there has been no singer for a thousand years.' One of these tells how the Emperor after one of his performances asked him if there was anyone in the world who could sing like him. ”

“ The Nagasara or Nagasuram is the common reed instrument of India. It is found from north to south, and no wedding procession is complete without it. This instrument is from two to two and a half feet long, and is conical in shape, enlarging downwards. It may be made either of wood or of metal. In the north wood is commonly used, and in the south the best instruments are made of silver. It is pierced with twelve boles, seven of which are used in fingering, the remainder regulating the pitch. Expert players can produce any intervals by only partially covering the available holes. ”

“ There is a constantly increasing demand for musical instruments, and a class of instrument-makers is arising. The centres of this industry are found in Calcutta, Miraj and Tanjore; and many of the makers are noted for their skill, and the resonant qualities of instruments are being looked to very much more. The public is also taking up with zest the question of musical education, and it is becoming frequent in the better-class families to arrange for their daughters to learn some Indian instrument. ”

“ Two parts of India, Madras and Nepal, are noted for their brass horns. Practically all those in the Indian Museum came from one or other of these provinces. The name in the north is Sringa, Komiki, Kalahay ; and in the south Kombu, which is the Tamil word for 'horn.' These horns are used for signals, processions and festivals. In the south it is often made of several brass pieces, fitting into one another for the sake of portability. ”

“ A good nagasara player is in great request and makes a very good living.
The Niiikairna is a kind of small nagasara. It is similar in shape and has the same number of holes. It is a very shrill instrument. The Drone or Pongi is an instrument shaped very much like the nagasara, and about the same size, except that the conical arrangement is a little larger. Only one note is produced which is called the Sruti, that is the key-note or drone to the melody. The instrument has four or five holes, so that the performer can vary the pitch of the note. ”

“ A projecting ledge of ivory separates the body from the stem. The neck is attached to the body also with ivory, and is usually curved downward into some weird figure. This also is hollow. Into the body just beyond the neck is fixed a hollow gourd on the under side, which forms a kind of rest for the vina and is useful also to increase the volume of the sound. This gourd is easily detachable. The frets of the instrument are made of brass or silver, and are secured to two ledges running along each side of the stem of the instrument. ”