PSEB Matric Music Instrumental flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Anahata Nada

Unstruck, self-generated inner sound not produced by a physical collision; in Indian music theory it is the subtle resonance achieved in deep practice, contrasted with audible ahata nada.

Shruti

The smallest theoretical microtonal interval recognised in Indian music; classical texts name 22 shrutis in an octave, though practical performance uses twelve semitone positions.

Komal and Tivra Swara

Komal swaras are lowered forms of Re, Ga, Dha, Ni; tivra Ma is the raised fourth. Sa and Pa have no komal or tivra variants.

Laya ke Prakar

Tempo multiples used in practice: ek gun (single), dugun (double), tigun (triple) and chaugun (quadruple). Each fills the same tala cycle with proportionally more bols.

Bhatkhande Notation Marks

Devanagari swaras with a line beneath for komal notes, a line above for tivra Ma, a dot below for mandra saptak and a dot above for tar saptak.

Paluskar Notation Convention

Uses Roman-style letters S R G M P D N with the same octave-dot and komal/tivra line marks; sam is shown as X, tali as numerals and khali as 0.

Khand in Tala Notation

The vertical bar written between vibhags in tala notation. It shows where a new vibhag begins, so the performer can align composition lines with matras.

Pakad

The short identifying phrase of swaras that captures a raga's characteristic movement. It distinguishes ragas that share a scale but differ in phrase order.

Vadi and Samvadi

Vadi is the principal or king swara of a raga, most emphasised; samvadi is the second most important, usually a fourth or fifth away.

Jati of a Raga

The note count in aroha and avaroha: audav (five), shadav (six) or sampurna (seven). A raga may be audav in ascent and sampurna in descent.

Prahar Time System

The eight three-hour periods of the day used to assign raga performance times; four prahars fall in daylight and four at night, with sandhi-prakash ragas at junctions.

Sam and Khali

Sam is the first matra of the tala cycle and the point of resolution. Khali is an empty section marked 0 where the hand waves rather than strikes.

Teental Structure

Sixteen matras in four vibhags of four. Tali falls on matras 1, 5 and 13; khali falls on matra 9. Written as X 2 0 3.

Jhaptal Structure

Ten matras divided 2+3+2+3. Tali on matras 1, 3 and 8; khali on matra 6. Written as X 2 0 3.

Rupak Tala

Seven matras divided 3+2+2. Its distinctive feature is that khali falls on sam itself, written 0 2 3, unlike most talas where sam is a tali.

Yaman Raga

Kalyan thaat evening raga with tivra Ma, sampurna-sampurna, vadi Ga and samvadi Ni. Its pakad uses Ni Re Ga and Ma(tivra) Dha Ni Sa.

Bhairav Raga

Morning raga of Bhairav thaat with komal Re and komal Dha, vadi Dha and samvadi Re. The komal notes are rendered with a slow oscillation.

Bhoopali Raga

Audav-audav evening raga of Kalyan thaat using S R G P D, with tivra Ma omitted. Vadi is Ga and samvadi is Dha.

Bhairavi Raga

Raga with four komal swaras - Re, Ga, Dha and Ni - vadi Ma and samvadi Sa. It is traditionally the concluding piece of a concert.

Lakshan Geet

A pedagogical song whose lyrics describe the raga itself - aroha, avaroha, vadi, samvadi, jati and time - composed in that raga and a tala.

Bandish

A composed song in a raga and tala, with sthayi and antara sections. Vilambit bandish belongs to bada khayal; drut bandish to chhota khayal.

Sargam Composition

A composition in which swara names replace lyrics, used to teach raga phrases and tala alignment; written in notation under the tala cycle.

Natyashastra

Bharata's ancient treatise, the earliest surviving text on Indian music and drama. It covers nada, shruti, grama and jati, the roots of raga.

Sangita Ratnakara

Sarangadeva's thirteenth-century treatise systematising ragas, talas and prabandha forms. It is the key bridge between ancient and medieval Indian music.

Ten Thaat System

Bhatkhande's classification of Hindustani ragas into ten parent scales: Bilawal, Khamaj, Kafi, Asavari, Bhairavi, Bhairav, Kalyan, Marwa, Poorvi and Todi.

Gharana

A stylistic lineage transmitted through a guru-shishya chain, marked by characteristic raga treatment, laya preference and ornamentation, such as Gwalior or Kirana.

Vishnu Digambar Paluskar

Vocalist and educator (1872–1931) who founded the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya and devised a widely used swara notation system for institutional music teaching.

V. N. Bhatkhande

Musicologist (1872–1944) who collected oral tradition, created the ten-thaat classification and wrote Hindustani Sangeet Paddhati, shaping modern Hindustani music syllabi.

Fourfold Instrument Classification

The traditional Natyashastra scheme: tata (string), sushira (wind), avanaddha (skin-covered percussion) and ghana (solid, struck without skin or string).

Tanpura Tuning

Four strings tuned Pa–Sa–Sa–Sa, or Ma–Sa–Sa–Sa for ragas avoiding Pa. The curved jawari bridge produces rich sustained overtones that support the singer.

Tabla Pair Structure

Daya (right drum) is tuned to Sa or Pa using the gatta; bayan (left drum) is tuned by adjusting the syahi paste and provides the bass pitch glide.

Tihai

A phrase repeated three times so that its final note lands exactly on sam, with no gap after the third repetition. It is used to conclude solos and compositions.