Learning Kirtan/Vaja...

[P_Singh]

Waheguroo Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguroo Ji Ki Fateh!

To all of you out there (i.e. on this message board...LOL)..who can do kirtan or have been learning the vaja etc...PLEASE could you give tips on the following:

How long does it take to be able to learn properly the keys on the vaja etc?

Any advice/tips for speeding up the process OR generally for like improving your voice etc?

I know theres this one tape where the guy does a whole range of voice related exercises to improve your voice sound etc, BUT I've not listened to it yet, but been told it works!

I know people will probably say 'you can't really say how long it will take to learn the vaja/baja as it depends on the person etc' BUT like is there something you could do, like a certain amount of practising a day or something?

I've ONLY just starting learning and my voice sounds WHACK! Like these expressions... ... :wub: ... ...probably likely to make someone turn around and be like ' ' ! ! !

I'm still doing the saa reh gaa maa paa

daa ni saa

Thanks in advance...

[Guest rsingh]

my tip is learn classical Raag Kirtan using traditional Sikh musical Instruments, reviving the age old traditions of Khhalsa Panth.

dont take offence, lol

[Taran]

Kirtan is best learned when your young.. im not saying that you cant do i now.. but you have a sweet innocent voice when you young.. and when it drops.. thats the end of your career... lol..

How old are you???

What ever you learn its best to start when your young as its harder to pick up wen your older.. but that goes for anything..

Try tabla.. its hard to learn.. and you can contribute to kirtan aswell!!

or as veer ji said above.. something more classical even.. but that will be even more difficult to learn..

I started to learn kirtan when i was about 6.. vadja and tabla.. when i was about 13 or 14 my voice slowly dropped so i kept on with tabla.. i dont play as much now.. but i can still play with anybody..

Its good to learn and a good way to stay in sikhi..

as for time limit.. you should be able to pick up the basics in about a month or less.. and then just learn the shabads as you go along.. slowly you'll be able to listen to a tape and pick off the tune, hence learn off tapes..

hope this helps.

gurfateh..

[Simran9]

hey this is good question :wub:

I have a harmonia but no one in the family knows how to play it. that juz sucks.

[smartsingh24]

I'm gonna take some quotes out of other people's replies.

Kirtan is best learned when your young.. im not saying that you cant do i now

True, it is best to learn when you're young (i'll have been learning for ten years next september), but don't fret. What you could use, is someone that knows kirtan very well, usually ur local ragi, to help you find your voice range. Once you find that, you have a grasp of what you should be able to sing.

you should be able to pick up the basics in about a month or less.

I'm gonna have to disagree with that, because you need a certain amount of skill to really be able to figure out what sounds melodious, and what strings of keys put together will sound good. Again, usually it's good to get some outside help.

my tip is learn classical Raag Kirtan using traditional Sikh musical Instruments, reviving the age old traditions of Khhalsa Panth.

Always good to learn raag, but don't limit urself only to it. If you're serious about learning how to play vaja in particular, concentrate your efforts on that first.

How long does it take to be able to learn properly the keys on the vaja etc?

Seriously, depends on how complex your shabad is going to be. You should try to get your fingers heavy and light at the same time. What I mean by that, is that they should be able to press every key hard enough to make it's proper noise, but light enough in order to move quickly along. The Vaja is a wind instrument, so going quick needs heavy and light fingers.

Any advice/tips for speeding up the process OR generally for like improving your voice etc?

Can't help you with your voice that much, except to try and challenge it. If you're young enough, you can increase your voice range. Don't worry if you can't, because they have scale changing vajas to accomadate any need you have.

I know people will probably say 'you can't really say how long it will take to learn the vaja/baja as it depends on the person etc' BUT like is there something you could do, like a certain amount of practising a day or something?

Can't tell you how much to pr

actice, practice enough to warm up your vocal cords, but don't strain your voice.

I'm still doing the saa reh gaa maa paa daa ni saa

Never forget to do that :TH:

[AmardeepSingh]

http://www.keertan.tk

[Jaspaul Singh]

Im 21 and i started learning kirtan like about 8-9 months ago... and i can not explain guru kripa naal how awesome it feels to do kirtan. My whole family i dont know anyone who would know kirtan or tabla, so for me it was a big step but i got still a loooooong way to go, but a lot of my friends still encourage me and dats wat keeps me at it, and knowing that guru sahib is right there.

I started off by learning the sargam (sa re ga ma) and sargam should be done whether you know wicked kirtan or not cuz it gets your hands going in different combinations and gets you into different voice patterns. Im learning both kirtan in raags and simple tunes.

..... i would also like some input and advice too but those are my two cents :wub: .....

[P_Singh]

Thanks for ALL your advice so far...

PLEASE keep on posting...

Yeah, I LOVE Akhand Keertan, BUT I'm NOT at the stage of doing like any shabads or anything, just started learning really...

I guess it'll take time, but eventually should be able to do a range of shabads in different raags, starting with simple ones first

Theres a misconception that Akhand Kirtan is NOT in raag, when it is, some may not be, but usually most kirtani's keep to raag, well the one's I've heard anyways...

LOL Taran Ji, I'm not a budha!

[Deg_Teg_Fateh]

veerji,

what i can say is that if you have the interest in keertan you will do great! I started when i was like 5 (Guru's kirpa my mom does kirtan).like you said about your voice, i personally had the same problem. But the more you sing, the better it gets.you soon come to sing in both high and low pitches. (never get discpuraged by anyone who says you dont sound good) All you are doing is praising Waheguru and the josh that comes in when you are singing is like WOW.

I now help teach keertan at my local Gurudwara we use sargams. using this method, you cant really forget the raags and as your experience increases,you get it all naturally.

voice tips(works for me)-- I listen to keertan, try to sing with them and get the tune in my head... go to the baja, play it and then sing as loud as i can.

hope this helps.... hehe, remember to drink lots of water before (luke warm water is good for your throat).

If you like i can post some shabads with raags, please check keertan central by Sandeepsingh in the Picture/download section. it might help.

Waheguroo Jee Ka Khalsa!

Waheguroo Jee Kee Fateh!!

[Guest rsingh]

Taus

Taus means ‘peacock’ in Persian and is derived from sitar and sarangi. It’s body is shaped like a peacock and it is played with a bow. It has a sound hole at the ‘tail’ portion of the instrument and stands on bird-feet carved in wood.

Guru Gobind Singh Ji, the tenth Guru of Sikhs, kept the family trend by creating the instrument which he named the ‘taus’, which, in Persian, means peacock. Some scholars believe that the sitar was invented in Guru Gobind Singh’s time period as well, and that the creation of new instruments was in fashion at that time. The taus is painted in all of the bright shades of the beautiful bird, the peacock, in its sound structure. Its long tail serves the purpose of the finger board of the instrument, upon which nineteen metal frets, elliptical in shape, are tied with cotton or silken cord. The lower portion, the head, carved to look just like the peacock, is covered with hide. The taus is played seated, with a bow. The parts of the bow include a wooden round stick, bow hair of horse tail, a wooden bridge, and a screw. The taus has sixteen sympathetic metal strings, along with its four playing strings.

The taus is very similar to the dilruba in construction and in playing technique. However, the taus has a bigger sound box and therefore produces a much more resonant and mellow sound.

DILRUBA

The Taus, a failrly large and heavy instrument, was designed and created by the tenth Sikh Guru, Gobind Singh. The Sikhs approached Guru Gobind Singh and suggested that its size and weight can create a prob

lem in mobility for the Saint-Warriors. Upon request the Guru gave the Sikhs permission to scale down the size and design of the taus. The resulting instrument came in the shape of what is now known as the dilruba (a Persian word meaning ‘heart stealer’).

Early instruments were decorated with gildwork and the gaj bore two or three tassles, usually red or green, on one or both ends. These instruments have a subtle, majestic look.

The dilruba is one of the most popular stringed instruments in the North of India and, like the taus, is a clever combination of the sitar and the sarangi. The fingerboard with the frets very much resembles the sitar. The belly of the instrument is covered with skin like a Sarangi and, like the Sarangi and Taus, it is played with a bow (gaj). The main difference from the Taus is the lack of the artistic peacock head and design of the body.

The stem of the dilruba contains eighteen or nineteen elliptical frets which are movable. They are tied to the stem by means of thin pieces of gut so that the frets can be moved according to the scale of the raga being played. The bridge is placed on the skin-covered body, over which all the main and sympathetic strings pass. Of the four main strings, the last is the principal playing string. There are about twenty-two sympathetic strings or tarabs running underneath the frets and fastened to a series of pegs on the side.

The bowing is done with the right hand while the fingers of the left hand are used to play over the strings. The frets on the dilruba are meant only to guide the player in locating the correct position of the notes. The dilruba is held vertically, the lower portion on the lap of the performer or in front of him and the top resting against the left shoulder.

SARANGI

The name Sarangi is said to mean ‘sau rang’ (100 colours) or ‘sa rang’ (colours whatever it touches). It is

the most important bowed instrument of North Indian music.

Like most stringed instruments the sarangi has a wooden sound box. The instrument has no frets or fingerboard; the strings float in the air. Pitch is determined by sliding the fingernail against the string rather than pressing it against a fingerboard (like violin). This allows subtle glides and embellishments, which are extremely close to the human voice.

The Sarangi of the Sikhs was brought in and promoted by the sixth Guru, Hargobind Sahib, to sing the ballads from Siri Guru Granth Sahib or from Bhai Guru Das’ poetry. Vaaran (ballads) are to be found in great number among these works, and they incorporate an aggressive approach to singing and expression (an attack on the mind).

It appears that the Sarangi was a folk instrument long before it came to be accepted in classical music as an accompanying instrument. This was most probably during the rise of the Khayal gayaki (style) at the time of Mohammed Shah ‘Rangila’. By the nineteenth century, the Sarangi came to be associated with dancing girls and courtesans, and was used as the standard instrument for accompanying Khayal, Thumri, and occasionally for Dhrupad. However, its popularity is on the decline, partly because of these negative associations, and partly because of the technical difficulties in tuning and playing the instrument.

SARANDA

Guru Arjan Dev (1563-1606), fifth Sikh Guru, was a master musician and musicologist. He had a great passion for folk music, and looking at his contribution to the musical heritage of India, we see a huge line up which is influenced by folk traditions.

The Saranda took birth from his passion for music. However, there are varying statements and opinions by scholars as to who actually created th

e Saranda. Some say it was the idea of Guru Angad Dev Ji and was developed by Guru Ramdas Sahib, the fourth Guru. Examining the facts concerning that time period, and the musical interests related to that period, it makes more sense to believe that Guru Arjan Dev ji invented, or developed, the Saranda. He is said to have designed the Saranda (a large bowl-shaped string instrument, played with bow), which he himself played and used as the ideal accompaniment for the male voice.

The Saranda produces a hauntingly beautiful deep tone quality which sings in alternation and in support of the human voice.

(to me its the most beautiful one but im biased :wub: )

all info from raj academy find out about all these instruments:

Dilruba , Pakhawaj, Rabaab, Santoor, Saranda, Sarangi, Sarode , Sitar, Tabla, Tanpura, Taus,