History of Indian Music and Contributions of Musicians and Musicologists
The history section tests chronology, works and contributions. Candidates should distinguish primary textual evidence from later legendary attribution and should connect each figure to a specific work or institutional change.
Key landmarks
- Bharata's Natyashastra is an early foundational treatise discussing swara, grama, jati and prabandha; it is not a modern raga manual.
- Matanga's Brihaddeshi is important for the idea of deshi music and early raga discourse. Sarangadeva's Sangitaratnakara, a 13th-century Sanskrit compendium, systematises raga, tala and instruments.
- Amir Khusrau is traditionally credited with early tarana and qawwali elements and with a Persian-Hindustani synthesis; such attributions should be phrased as traditional rather than documentary.
- Tansen, in Akbar's court, is traditionally associated with ragas such as Miyan ki Malhar, Miyan ki Todi and Darbari Kanada.
- Sadarang (Niamat Khan) and Adarang (Firoz Khan) are central to the khayal bandish tradition.
- V. N. Bhatkhande (1860-1936) developed the ten-thaat pedagogical classification and wrote Hindustani Sangeet Paddhati and Kramik Pustak Malika. V. D. Paluskar (1872-1931) founded the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya in 1901 and promoted notation-based public teaching.
Worked example
Match Sangitaratnakara to Sarangadeva, Kramik Pustak Malika to Bhatkhande, and Gandharva Mahavidyalaya to Paluskar. Reasoning: the first is a medieval Sanskrit compendium; the second is a modern notation and teaching series; the third is an institution linked to institutional music education.
Traps that cost marks
Crediting the ten-thaat system to ancient texts; swapping Bhatkhande and Paluskar; and presenting legendary attributions as certain historical facts.