UCLA Department of Ethnomusicology

This course looks in detail at elements of the melodic and rhythmic theory and practice of North Indian (Hindustani) music, and explores the structure of several prominent vocal and instrumental genres. Each class focuses on a primary music recording that we shall subject to detailed analysis. Our aims are threefold: (a) to understand how composition and improvisation work, thus providing a firm basis for their critical appreciation; (b) to uncover the sociomusical history and evolution of contemporary practices; (c) to address broader theoretical issues through an investigation of some of the key topics in that history, such as the promotion of ancient knowledge through scholarly medieval treatises; Hindu devotionalism versus Muslim secularism; the rise and fall of professional guilds; patronage in Mughal and regional courts; music and colonialism; historicity and historiography; the role of professional female entertainers, and the de-sensualization of performance; modernization; the advent of musical notation; music as public education; the role of music in Indian nationalism; music, media and technology in the 20th century; the state of classical music in Pakistan; globalization; and Hindustani music in the diaspora.