Learn Hindustani Classical Music - Beginner’s Level

Whether you want to master Hindustani classical vocals, light music, or Bollywood songs, you have to get your basics right. The basics include -

• being able to sing the 12 musical notes properly
• having control over your breath
• being able to hit the notes at the right frequencies across all the three saptaks - mandra, madhya, and taar.

Keeping the above objectives in mind, the lesson plan of this course has been designed to cover the following topics -

• Introduction to the 12 Swaras - The swaras/ notes are the alphabets in music. For an absolute fresher, it might even take more than a month the sing the notes in the correct frequency. You have to be patient and keep practicing. 
• Breathing Practice - Your capacity to hold your breath and how long you can hold your breath impacts your vocal skills. A very simple exercise of breathing deeply and singing ‘OM’ as you breathe out trying to extend your breath as long as you can. It helps you to attempt longer musical phrases along with the improvisations flawlessly without having to pause for catching your breath.  
• Kharj Riyaaz  - When the Swar sadhna is done in the mandra saptak it is called Kharj Riyaaz. This exercise helps to increase your vocal range.
• Holding on Swaras - Singing a note and sustaining on it for as long as you can
• Introduction to Alankaars - Just like when you have gold, you can make different types of ornaments out of that gold. Likewise, you have the swaras/ notes and you are making different patterns out of them. It will help you to equip your brain with the sound of the notes. 
• Swaras in Aakar - When you learn to sing the notes, you can also sing them using the vowel sounds. The most common vowel used in singing is ‘Aakar’. In subsequent stages ‘Aakar’ is also used for ‘alaap’, ‘vistaar’, and ‘taan’ while singing the ragas.

About the Teacher:  An Indian Classical Vocalist, Pratiksha Vashishtha is a playback singer and a live performer. She works as an independent artist and has also collaborated with several reputed music labels in India. 

Pratiksha holds a Double Graduate and a Post Graduate degree in Hindustani Classical Music. She has been singing and learning music since the age of 7. She even helps students appear for the Gandharv Mahavidyalay Exam. She wishes to dedicate herself to imparting her knowledge to learners through ipassio.