Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 1st Movement vs. Maru Bihag (Hindustani Raga)
Bach's pitch
- Scale used is the *diatonic scale*, comprising 7 different tones (do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do) - same kind of scale used in nearly ALL modern music (of any kind or style)
Bach's harmony
- *Basso continuo* - cello plays "a skeletal indication of the primary melodic and harmonic ideas" of the whole composition.
Bach's dynamics
- *Terraced dynamics* - changes in volume are sudden rather than gradual
Hindustani Raga's rhythm
- *tala* - meter in Hindustani Raga - No meter during opening alap section, then a regular and unchanging meter of 10 beats, divided up as *2+3+2+3* - this particular tala is called *jhaptal* - Tempo gradually increases: very slow at beginning to very fast at end - Durations of notes of *gat* (recurring melodic phrase) are varied in continuously more complex patterns
Bach's tonality
- Baroque music is the first to use the system of keys that are still used today in nearly all music. - Consequently, it has a very clear tonal center
Bach's rhythm
- Clear, regular, and *unchanging meter* throughout - Tempo is moderately fast and unchanging - Durations of notes of the *ritornello melody* are nearly all the same (16th notes)
Hindustani Raga's tonality
- Hindustani raga is modal, and so has less of a tonal center
Hindustani Raga's melody
- Melodies produced by constant improvised variation on the gat melodic phrase introduced at the beginning of the jhala section
Hindustani Raga's dynamics
- Performance nuances aside, *no marked dynamics*
Bach's melody
- Ritornello melody is comprised of *3 phrases* - 2nd phrase harder to hear than 1st, and the 3rd even harder - each phrase is longer than previous one, creating *asymmetry*
Hindustani Raga's pitch
- Scale is comprised of 9 tones or pitches - scale is different depending on whether ascending or descending in pitch.
Hindustani Raga's harmony
- Since a sitar only plays one note at a time, and the tabla is an *unpitched percussion instrument*, harmonies are limited to the *drone* (one or two constantly held pitches) played by the tambura
Hindustani Raga's texture
- The alap section is homophonic, the jhala section polyphonic. - Since the jhala section is much longer, the *dominant texture is polyphony*
Bach's texture
- The ritornello is homophonic, the solo sections *polyphonic* - Since most of the piece is solo sections, the *dominant texture is polyphony*
jor-alap
- adds a strong metric pulse - after the *alap*
jhala
- adds percussion and moves to a musical climax
alap
- an initial section which is an *improvisatory exploration* of the raga as a mode - slow, free-rhythmic - followed by the *jor-alap*
Bach vs. Hindustani Raga similarities
- strings are plucked, so each note is clear - texture is mostly polyphonic with some homophony
Bach's tone color
instruments: violins, viola, cello, flute, and harpsichord - Strings of harpsichord plucked, not struck, so can hear each note clearly
Hindustani Raga's tone color
Instruments: sitar, tambura, and tabla (percussion) - String of sitar are not strummed but plucked, so can hear each note clearly