ORIYA MUSIC

Orissa has a glorious tradition of music. The figures or dancers musicians Carved on ancient temple walls speak of Orissa's rich musical heritage. There were saint-poets of Orissa who composed lyrical poems to be sung. Bards usually went from place to place singing these songs which were meant to propagate religious ideas in various religious. instructions were usually given by the poet himself as to how the lyric was to be sung, i.e. the raga or tune to be employed and the tala or beat scheme to be followed.

By the 11th Century AD folk music or Orissa existing in the form of Triswari, Chatuhswari, and Panchaswari was modified into the classical style.  

From the 16th century onwards Treatises on music were written or compiled in Orissa. They were Sangitamava Chandrika, Gita Prakasha, Sangita Kalalata and Natya Manorama. Two treatises namely, Sangita Sarani and Sangita Narayana were also written in the early 19th century.

Odissi music is a synthesis of four classes of music, i.e. dhruvapada, chitrapada, chitrakala and panchal, described in the above-mentioned texts. The dhruvapada is the first line or lines to be sung repeatedly. The use of art in music is called chitikala. Kavisurya Baladeva Rath, the renowned Oriya poet wrote lyrics which are the best examples of chitrakala. Chitrapada means the arrangement of words in an alliterative style. All these were combined to form the style peculiar to Odissi music. Chhanda (metrical section) contains the essence of Odissi music. The chhandas were composed combining bhava (theme), kala (time), and swara (tune) The chaurisha represents the originality of Odissi style. All the thirty-four letters of the Oriya alphabet from 'Ka' to 'Ksha' are used chronologically at the beginning of each line. A special feature of Odissi music is the padi which consists of words to be sung in druta tala (fast beat). Odissi music can be sung to different talas: navatala nine beats), dashatala(ten beats) or egar tala (eleven beats).

Odissi Music is a classical form consisting of all the necessary ingredients common to Hindustani and Carnatic Music, such as rags and tala Jayadeva' was the first Oriya poet who composed lyrics meant to be sung and thus the words of those Lyrics were musical to start with. In addition he indicated the classical ragas prevailing At the time in which these were to be sung. Prior to this there was the tradition of chhandas which were simple in musical outline. Jayadeva was born in 13th century AD in the village Kenduli on the sacred river Prachi in the district of Puri. He rejuvenated the Indian classical music through his uncomparable compositions in his work Sri Geeta Govinda.

Ingredients of classical music like Raga, Tala, Geeta, Chhandas etc of Sri Geeta Govinda were introduced in the services of the  temple of the Lord Jagannath and accepted as the temple music of Orissa. The musical & poetic perfection of the compositions of Sri Geeta Govinda is superb. The sanskrit compositions of Abhinava Geeta Govinda of Jayadeva ushered a new era in the history of Indian Music, which can be rightly identified as Jayadevic Music. This music had paved the way for the development for the development and establishment of a separate system of Indian Classical music in Orissa in the form of Raga Khurda-Geeta-Pravandha-Gana.

Just like Hindustani & Carnatic music, traditional Odissi music has its own Melas, Ragas, Talas and Aravandhas, which are rendered in different styles. Some characteristic features of these are as follows.

Saras and the Shuddha-Swara-Saptaka

The tonal arrangement of the Nishada-Murchhana of the Saraj-Grama is accepted the Sudha-Swara-Saptak or the natural scale comprising 22 Srutis set in an ascending order. Among these 22 Srutis, the seven Suddha Swaras are practically used.

Besides these there are also five Vikrita Swaras. The seven notes in an ascending order are known as Saptak.

Melas: Thirty-two Melas have been introduced in this system for classification of the Ragas.

Ragas: have been divided into five groups such as Group A to Group E.

Talas: Already twenty Talas are found to be in vogue in this system and most of them are having similarities in their matras with those of Hindustani and Carnatic Talas but having difference in their rhythmic structures or compositions and names.

Pravandhas: Compositions used in classical music especially in vocal music, are known as Pravandhas. The compositions of Shree Geeta Govinda & other Sanskrit works are categorized under two types of Pravandhas such as: Divya Alikrama, Chitrapada and KsyudrageetaPravandha.