When music is your religion.... Review on Tips on Music Education

. the doors of heaven are open for you.

Now this is not possible without knowing music. I have seen people who think that Himesh Reshammiya has done magic with his vocals for the alaap of Aashiq banaaya Aapne, and the composition is very complex one and the same people say that Tauba Tauba Ishq Main Kariyaan is an okay kind of song in terms of composition. I do not know what Pt. Jasraj will say about their views.

This is where music education comes into picture. There was a time when sad songs were picturized on Piano. Why have they disappeared from the cinema these days? The answer is simple, because the audience might not digest them. Today, people wants everything moving, they want to see the results immediately. A person going to gymnasium cannot wait for 3-4 months for the results. He will take all sorts of protein powders available in the market to get the results faster.

The same applies to music as well. All people want to learn is playing a few Hindi(or Tamil or whatever their mother tongue is) songs on keyboard or guitar and play them in front of their friends to gather applause. The worst part is they spread the word that they are learned musicians. How can you expect the outcome to be.

The outcome shows in the kind of songs we are getting. Jatin Pandit(Jatin-Lalit) rightly said on Hero Honda Sa Re Ga Ma Pa that we all are involved in criticizing the current music scenario but we do not do anything right to improve it.

There is one thing which can improve the quality of music striking our ears - Music Education.

There are various music schools which teach you music. The very basic thing which one should keep in mind even before entering the school the instrument which he is going to learn.

All the schools teach two types of instruments apart from vocals

1. Taal(tabla, mridangam, dholak, drums and percussions etc.)

   
   




2. Sur(Piano, Guitar, Flut, Violin, sitar etc.)

   
   

Once you have made up your mind, you can go and select the style of the music(Hindustani, Karnatic or Western). Remember, if you opt for tabla, you need to learn hindustani form. Also if you choose any'sur' instrument from hindustani, it is better to learn it alongwith the vocal course. As they say'Bilawal se thumri tak bahut kadi saadhna hoti hai'(It is a difficult path from Raag Bilaawal to Thumri), getting to the last level can be extremely difficult.

Now I should give a basic guide for the music education.

There are twelve grades in music(be it Hindustani or Western). For every grade, examinations are conducted once a year. Thus it is apparent that you need to give at least 12 years to music education. For western music education, you can give examinations up to 8 grades in India from Trinity School of Music. In order to clear grades 9 to 12, you need to register either from London or Saudi Arabia.

In Hindustani Classical music, there are 12 grades but the naming of the grades is different from the western classical music. In western classical we simply call them as Grade 1, Grade 2 and so on. In Hindustani Classical, we have their names as:

Grades in Hindustani Classical

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Title of the Course         Duration

Prarambhik                           6 months

Praveshika Pratham           12 months

Praveshika Purna             12 months

Madhyama Pratham             12 months

Madhyama Purna               12 months

Visharad Pratham           12 months

Visharad Purna               12 months

Alankar Pratham                      18 months

Alankar Purna               18 months

Praveen                           No fixed Duration

Sugam Pratham

Sugam Purna  

As it is quite clear, it becomes very difficult to pursue classical music after sometime as it requires a lot of practice to become a master.

Details of Music Schools –

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Across India, a lot of music schools are present which provide you music education to the last grade as applicable. Some of the prominent names are –

1. Bhatkhande Sangeet academy

   
   




2. Gandharva Mahavidyalaya

   
   




3. Trinity School of Music

   
   




4. Shanmukhananda Sangeet Vidyalaya

   
   




5. Dilrang Academy of Music – Mumbai

   
   




6. Sangeet Vidyavihar – Mumbai

   
   

The course fee is very less and normally ranges from Rs. 100/- to Rs. 500/- per month.

I feel that you have one life. We proudly say that “I just love listening to songs” and do not even know the composers and lyricists of the songs. This proves your “love”. Why cannot we do something towards our lifelong hobby? This is the only hobby(apart from sleeping) which will last life long. So I believe everyone should learn music, if not advanced then at least basic.

I think that I have written enough on this topic. I am a music lover and thus in my emotions and sentiments, I might not have done justice to the topic or the writing. I ask you all for my apologies if I am wrong or too much aggressive anywhere and would like to thank matwalaboy – Mayank bhai for motivating me to write a review in 2005 calender year.

This might be my last review this year. I will continue to write more the next year.Hope to read your comments soon……….

Wish you all a very happy and prosperous New Year 2006