Carnatic Music: Basic Guidelines to the Art of playing the Instrument Veena

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Basic Guidelines
Art of Veena-playing
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Carnatic Music

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Terminology
Style Method or technique of playing
Swara A note on the musical scale or octave
Janta swara Double notes
Dhātu swara Pattern of swaras skipping notes in
between
Meettu The plucking of string with fingers
Gamaka The graceful rendering of swaras for
enhancing continuity and melody

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Styles
• Karnataka
• Tamil Nadu
• Andhra Pradesh
• Kerala
Four different styles of Veena-playing from southern India
• Frequency of meettu
• Fingering technique
• Tempo
• Gamaka rendering
Distinctive characteristics of the four Styles

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The Instrument Veena
Characteristic features of the musical instrument Veena
• Comprises 24 Frets and 7 strings mainly
• FOUR Major strings used for playing
• THREE Minor strings used for Tāla or rhythm
• Covers a range of three and a half octaves
• First Major string tuned to S-Shadja in the middle octave, is
the Main string and covers the middle & higher octaves
• Other three Major strings tuned to P-Panchama, S-Shadja and
P-Panchama of successive lower octaves respectively

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Fingering techniques
• The combined action of the fingers of both hands synchronize to
produce musical sounds on the instrument Veena
• The Right hand and Left hand are used in different ways while
playing the instrument.
• The index and middle fingers of the Right hand are mainly used
for plucking the major strings
• The little finger of the Right hand is used to sound the three
minor strings
• The index and middle fingers of the Left hand are mainly used
for pressing the strings in the middle of the frets of concerned
notes

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Right-hand technique
• The index and middle fingers of the Right hand are used one after
the other in succession for plucking the Main string Shadja and the
second major string Panchama; this helps in rendering fast passages
of music
• The little finger is used in an upward motion to strum the 3 Minor
strings, used to denote the occurrence of beats in a tāla
• The index finger and little finger movements are synchronised to
produce the note along with tāla sound
• The ring finger is occasionally used to sound the third Major string
Mandara, as and when required.

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Left-hand technique
Part 1
• The Left hand is used on the frets by pressing the strings on the
middle of the frets to produce clear sound of musical notes
• The index finger and middle finger are used – either together or one
after the other
• Example: In Swarāvali in Raga Māyāmālavagowla, the index and
middle fingers can be used together while playing S and R
• While playing pairs of adjacent swaras G-M, P-D, N-S(high) in
ascending order, the index finger is used for the first swara and the
middle finger for the second swara, in each successive pair
• The index finger is placed on the first swara and rendered by
plucking it with the right hand

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Left-hand technique
Part 2
• The index finger remains in the first swara while the next swara
in the pair is sounded with the middle finger.
• While playing descending swara pairs S-N, D-P, M-G, place the
index finger on swara N and the middle finger on swara S.
• Pluck the string with the Right hand to sound the swara S, then
remove only the middle finger to sound the next swara N.
• Follow this method for playing the other pairs of swaras D-P and
M-G.
• The swaras R and S can be sounded with both fingers together.

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Gamaka rendering
Part 1
• Gamaka is a graceful way of rendering swaras to produce continuity
and melody
• Enables swaras of higher-pitch to be rendered from swara-positions
of lower-pitch, by pulling the string to a certain extent by which the
higher swara can be produced
• The index and middle fingers of the left hand are used to render
gamaka
• Gamakas are of many types, simple and complex; require practical
knowledge and experience to render them correctly
• The basic exercises use a type of gamaka Sphuritam; its rendering
is explained with Janta Varisay or double swara exercises.

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Gamaka rendering
Part 2
• In Arohana or ascending notes of Janta Varisay, play the first swara
by placing the middle finger on the main swara, and the index finger
on the swara to its left.
• Then repeat the swara by slightly lifting and placing the middle
finger on the main swara back again in quick
succession, emphasizing it while playing.
• In Avarohana or descending notes of Janta Varisay, play the first
swara by placing only the index finger on the main swara.
• Then repeat the swara, by moving the index finger to the swara on
its left, and quickly placing the middle finger on the main swara.

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Meettu
• The plucking of the string is referred to as Meettu
• It is used for all swaras in the basic exercises as these have no
lyrics or Sāhitya: as in Swarāvali, Janta Varisay, Thāra Sthāyi
Varisay, Mandra Sthāyi Varisay, Dhātu Varisay, Alankāra, Jathiswara
• Compositions such as
Geetham, Swarajathi, Varnam, Kruthi, Keerthana, Devaranāma, Va
chana, Thevāram, etc. have Sāhitya; here Meettu is used for
swaras on which sāhitya occurs
• In instances where there is a long gap in the occurrence of
sāhitya, for example, in Varnams, a meettu may be used in
between as required, to give continuity and clarity of sound.

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Presenter: Meera Raghu
Thank You
Copyright © 2013, MR, Tuning into Music.
Carnatic Music