Learn Carnatic Music

Carnatic Music is a form of Indian Classical Music that has its origins in the southern states of India that include Tamil Nadu, Andra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala. The music is founded on the seven notes Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Da, Ne and is structured into Ragas and Thalams. A ragam is a combination of certain notes that have a certain pitch which produce a unique melody and strike a certain mood. A thalam on the other hand is a beat or a frequency in which the notes need to be sung. Breath control as in any form of music helps to sustain a note in Carnatic Music as well. Carnatic Music is taught in progressive stages starting from Salai Varisai, Janta Varisai, Alankara Varisai, Geetham, Varnam and Keerthanam.

Varisai means a sequence or a series. Sarali Varisai brings the basics of Carnatic Music to life with its simple combination of notes that ascend, descend, loop, branch and repeat. Janta Varisai creates pairing of notes that increases the challenge of singing the note combination leaving the singer breathless sometimes which opens up the need for effective breath control. The more breath a singer can hold in her belly, the better she will be able to sustain the length of the notes. Both Sarali and Janta Varisai are based on simple eight count beats called the Adi Thalam. Alankara Vairsai introduces the concept of different thalams or beats. In this series the singer needs to render the notes to different beats. The challenge increases but so does the sense of accomplishment. Geethams are short songs that give the singer an opportunity to combine the techniques she learned in Sarali, Janta and Alankara Varisais, and take the next step which is to sing songs based on a certain raga and set to a specific thalam. The point to note here is that most Geethams are based on a single raga and are short songs which keep this step simple and enjoyable.

Start from Sarali Varisai and progress to Janta Varisai, Alankara Varisai and Geetham.