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Introduction to article
-These two elements contributed in evolution and were incorporated latter
•Indian film industries produce more feature films than any other country.
•Indian film songs have their own place within Indian popular music.
•Film production in the 1950’s and 60’s grew in Pakistan and Bangladesh, following the model of Indian dance and music forms.
•Indian film songs were the first songs to be mass-produced and mass-marketed in India.
Main barrier in south asia
-Over 15 major languages spoken
-Each having its own poeitc and musical idioms
With the dramatic spread of cassette technology, the amount of popular music, independent of the film world is increasing exponentially
-These two languages now exist throughout north india and understood
-Pop music made using these languages
-High taxes
-High ticket prices
-Competition of cable TV
-High fees
-Etc.
Urban vs Village
•The first film in India with sound was Alam Ara by Ardeshir Irani in 1931; released by Imperial film company in Bombay
•The first “hit” song was Dede khuda ke namse sung by the singer/actor W.M. Khan in Alam Ara
•Early Indian films consisted of mythological, historical and devotional themes, the songs were used to embellish and increase the emotional appeal of the film.
•Early film female singers generally had low husky voices but some did have the lighter, more natural voices.
•Male singers generally had strong, full voices but with the introduction of Kundan Lal Saigal a softer male voice was introduced.
-Ex. Chico Chico from Puerto Rico (Latin)
-Stevie Wonder’s “I Just Call to Say I Love You” (English)
•Film music started getting spread by radio and recordings
–Under the direction of Dr. B.V. Keskar, All-India Radio has offered a steady fare of film music on selected stations, alongside channels promoting art and folk music.
•Degree of blurring between the commercial profiteering films and the art films
•Art films are films where there is no relevance to see that the movie achieves fame.
•Shyam Benegal has made an attempt to produce movies which combine box-office appeal with artistic integrity.
•Govind Nihalani, Mani Kaul and Mrinal Sen have produced art films in regional languages
•Commercial Bombay formula have more masala (“spice”) in increasing the amount of violence and eroticism
•Modern Indian film music continues to incorporate elements from contemporary western popular music.
•Larger number of films are in form of social films
–Problems relating to prostitution, arranged marrages, crime and corruption, and most commonly hte conflicts between rich and poor.
–Social films are stereotypic like romantic love is superior than matters like cast, dowry, parental preferences, etc
•Rich are shown to be corrupt while poor are as moral and good
•Music is essential to Indian cinema – commercial films without songs are very rare
-Music directors and composers are better paid than actors or film directors
–Film singers are as famous as actors themselves
•In early stages, songs were sung on screen by actors who were also vocalists such as K.L.saigal
•Song were convenient vehicles for expression - to show “falling in love”
–Typical song scene occured in garden, mansion, cabaret, and nightclubs.
•Film songs are usually grouped according to language
•In the late 1940’s the mainstream format for film songs was introduced and this format still remains.
•Filmi bhajans were very common and included in commercial films up to the 1950’s-1960 (golden age of melody).
•Film ghazals were popular romantic songs before film trends moved towards the action packed thrillers of the 70’s.
•Film qawwalis mostly appeared in Muslim social and historical films, and they tend to not improvise and include non-traditional instruments.
•Film folk songs are inspired by many of India’s regional music traditions and tend to have medium to fast tempos.
•Fear of box-office failiure, producers sticked tp “star” system
– A star
– 6 songs
– 3 dances
•Has been an important feature of Indian Film since its conception
•Cinema production came to be dominated by Bombay and Madras by late 1940s
•Consists of imitations of glittery Bombay films
•Local culture are promoted by state governments
•Examples:
1)Gujarat government provides tax subsidies to films highlighting Gujarati culture.
Two traditional dance forms: garba and ras
(put clips of garba and/or ras)
2)Bhangra in Punjabi cinema
3)Lavani in Marathi films
•Sophisticated light classical genre.
•Solo singer accompanied by tabla and harmonium or sarangi
•Performs interpretative improvisations on the first line of each couplet, returning to a melodic refrain with the subsequent rhyming line
•Each couplet is followed by a short laggi section, where the tabla player improvises in fast tempo.
•Bears some resemblances to the light classical ghazal
•Male and female singers might alternate singing successive couplets and join on the final verse.
•Laggi sections between couplets are replaced by orchestrated instrumental passages, which are generally distinct from one another in melody and instrumentation.
•“Playback System”
–Actors lip-synced already recorded songs by playback singers
-Demand for star vocalist and music directors still important to this date
•All musicians are freelance and are a part of the Cine Musicians Association
•C.M.A. rank their musicians, which than determines the pay and opportunities received by the musicians
•Musicians for virtually every type of instrument (both Indian and western) are available for music directors
•Studio orchestras grew from two or three musicians to hundreds of musicians in the 1950’s and 60’s.
•After the 1940’s the size of music directors orchestra became a measure of prestige and success
• Post-war period had increase in western musical elements
–Instrument like violin, clarinet, conga and saxophone
–Rhythms like foxtrot and polka; and chordal harmony.
•Most popular music directors
–Naushad and S.D. Burman
•Major male singers
–Mohammad Rafi, Mukesh, Kishore Kumar, and Talat Mahumoud
•Major female singers
–Lata Mangeshker and Asha Bhosle
-Western Influence
The 1950s is referred to the “golden era”
Sahir Ludhianvi wrote lyrics for films
Kavi Pradeep’s poetry was used for patriotic songs
1903 – Indian cinema is born
Shailendra covered a long distance
In the silent era, the cinema acquired the basic shape and form that survives today
Kaifi Azmi, from Urdu literature, joined rising lyricists
The best lyrics of Sahir, Shailendra, and Kaifi Azmi was when they teamed up with S.D. Burman
Musicians were the film’s music directors and munshis (dialogue writers)
Prem Dhawan started his career in 1948 with Ziddi
In more sophisticated films, a piano and violin were used
He learn music from Pandit Ravi Shankar
The orchestra consisted of a harmonium and tabla
He was honoured with a Padma Shri in 1970
In the 1960s, a new phase of lyrics and lyricists started
Same song compositions were not always used
Verses were written based on situations
Aga Hashr Kashmiri was hailed as the “Indian Shakespeare”
Songs were picturized in a single shot
Musicians were not seen in the shots but were there during the recording
The year 1947 brought about changes in the industry and the country
The success of a song was determined by the quality of the tune and melody
The most important lyricist was Rajinder Krishen
The system of playback arrived in 1935
The lyrics changed in terms of language in the mid-1940s
Music became an important factor
The number of songs per film rose from 10 to 20 or more
After 1947. Bombay became the biggest centre for Hindi films
Poets began to migrate to the film industry
There were teams of music directors and lyricists
Madhok was responsible for the fold song image in film music
Sahir Ludhianvi joined the industry in 1948
1940s – the tradition of music and songs had already gripped films
In 1948, Lata Mangeshkar sang her first solo song
Saraswati Devi was probably the first music director of the industry
Soon afull-fledged lady lyricist made her presence felt – Miss Komal B.A.
Raj Kapoor made his directorial debut with the film Aag
There has been no trend setting lyricist
C. Ramchandra created the culture of the “beat” or rhythm
By 1945, film lyrics started reflecting the changing mood of the country and a new group or lyricists came along
Noorjehan and K.L. Saigal were the ruling voices at the time
Madhok was the most prominent lyricist
Sachin Dev Burman made his independent debut as a composer in 1946
In 1946-47, independence was imminent