PSEB SS Music Instrumental study guide
PSEB SS Music Instrumental · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The PSEB Senior Secondary Music (Instrumental) is the Class XII elective through which a Punjab school candidate offers Hindustani instrumental music as a board subject. It is a school-leaving qualification, not a conservatory diploma and not a professional performance licence, and this page is an independent study resource rather than a board publication. The PSEB SS Music Instrumental study guide has 8 sections and about 2,472 words.
01Prescribed Ragas: Aroha, Avaroha, Pakad, Vadi–Samvadi and Time of Rendition
The prescribed-ragas domain tests whether you can present a raga as a complete entity: its ascending and descending paths, its identifying phrase, its dominant notes and its assigned hour. Examiners rarely ask one item alone - a typical question is 'Give aroha, avaroha, pakad, vadi-samvadi and time of Yaman.' Aroha is the ascent, avaroha the descent; both must carry komal/tivra markings.
336 words, about 2 min02Taala: Matra, Vibhag, Tali–Khali and Prescribed Cycles
Taala questions test whether you can dissect a cycle rather than just recite its bols: how many matras, how they are grouped into vibhags, where the claps (tali) and waves (khali) fall, and where sam sits. Vibhag: a bar or group of matras.
318 words, about 2 min03Notation Systems and Writing Swarlipi of Gats and Sargams
Notation questions ask you to convert sound into a written swarlipi that another musician can reproduce: correct swara symbols, octave marks, komal/tivra signs, and alignment of notes with matras and vibhags. Seven swaras: S R G M P D N.
333 words, about 2 min04Musical Instruments: Construction, Tuning, Maintenance and Technique
Instrument questions combine craft and practice: how the instrument is built, how it is tuned to the performer's Sa, how it is maintained, and which technique produces which sound. Sitar: gourd tumba, wooden dandi, tied movable pardas, jawari bridge, 6–7 main strings plus 11–13 sympathetic tarab strings; played with a mizrab.
355 words, about 2 min05History and Evolution of Hindustani Music and Basic Terminology
History and terminology questions test chronology and correct use of terms: who wrote what, when 'raga' entered musical literature, how the modern teaching system arose, and what each technical word means. Vedic samagana and the Natyashastra of Bharata describe grama and murchhana; the word 'raga' appears in Matanga's Brihaddeshi (c.
273 words, about 1 min06Life Sketches and Contributions of Instrumentalists and Musicologists
Life-sketch questions are marked on dates, gharana, instrument or field, guru, and concrete contribution - not on adjectives. Learn two musicologists and three instrumentalists in detail.
276 words, about 1 min07Gharanas, Baaj, Styles and Performance Traditions
Gharana and baaj questions test whether you can connect a style to a lineage, a place and audible features. A gharana is a school transmitted through guru–shishya lineage; baaj is the particular stroke-craft or idiom of playing.
271 words, about 1 min08Practical Performance, Prescribed Ragas on the Instrument and Viva Voce
The practical/viva section is where marks are lost quietly: an untuned instrument, a gat begun off sam, a raga announced with the wrong vadi. Examiners test prepared ragas on your instrument plus your ability to explain what you played.
310 words, about 2 min