Music of India: Instruments, Musicians and Gharanas
Music of India: Instruments, Musicians and Gharanas
Music questions ask which instrument a maestro plays, which gharana a singer belongs to, the two classical traditions, and how instruments are classified. A matching table of musicians and instruments covers most questions.
1. Musicians and Their Instruments
| Musician | Instrument or form |
|---|---|
| Bismillah Khan | Shehnai (Bharat Ratna 2001) |
| Ravi Shankar | Sitar (Bharat Ratna 1999) |
| Zakir Hussain | Tabla |
| Hariprasad Chaurasia | Flute (bansuri) |
| Shivkumar Sharma | Santoor |
| Amjad Ali Khan | Sarod |
| Allauddin Khan | Sarod (guru of Ravi Shankar) |
| L. Subramaniam | Violin |
| U. Srinivas | Mandolin |
| M.S. Subbulakshmi | Carnatic vocal; first musician to receive the Bharat Ratna (1998) |
| Bhimsen Joshi | Hindustani vocal, Kirana gharana (Bharat Ratna 2009) |
2. Gharanas (Hindustani vocal)
| Gharana | Notable artist |
|---|---|
| Gwalior | Oldest khayal gharana |
| Kirana | Bhimsen Joshi, Gangubai Hangal |
| Mewati | Pandit Jasraj |
| Jaipur-Atrauli | Kishori Amonkar |
| Patiala | Bade Ghulam Ali Khan |
| Agra | Faiyaz Khan |
3. Traditions and Instruments
| Item | Facts |
|---|---|
| Hindustani music | North India; forms dhrupad, khayal, thumri |
| Carnatic music | South India; Purandara Dasa is called the father of Carnatic music; trinity: Tyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar, Syama Sastri |
| Tansen | Court musician of Akbar |
| Instrument classes | Tat vadya (string: sitar, veena), sushir (wind: flute, shehnai), avanaddha (membrane: tabla, mridangam), ghana (solid: cymbals, ghatam) |
4. Instruments and Ragas at a Glance
| Item | Fact |
|---|---|
| Sarangi | Bowed string instrument used to accompany vocal music |
| Pakhawaj | Barrel drum used in dhrupad |
| Mridangam | Main percussion of Carnatic concerts |
| Ghatam | Clay pot played as percussion in Carnatic music |
| Jaltarang | Porcelain bowls filled with water and struck |
| Santoor | Hammered string instrument from Jammu and Kashmir |
| Rudra veena | Plucked string instrument of the dhrupad tradition |
| Raga Bhairav | Sung in the early morning |
| Raga Yaman | Sung in the evening |
| Raga Malhar | Associated with the monsoon |
✗ Pandit Jasraj belongs to the Kirana gharana | ✓ He belonged to the Mewati gharana; Bhimsen Joshi was Kirana
✗ Zakir Hussain played the santoor | ✓ He played the tabla; Shivkumar Sharma played the santoor
हिंदी नोट: बिस्मिल्लाह खान शहनाई, रवि शंकर सितार, ज़ाकिर हुसैन तबला, हरिप्रसाद चौरसिया बाँसुरी और शिवकुमार शर्मा संतूर से जुड़े हैं। पंडित जसराज मेवाती घराने के और भीमसेन जोशी किराना घराने के थे। पुरंदर दास कर्नाटक संगीत के पिता कहलाते हैं।
Exam Pointer: Verified NTPC patterns: matching musicians with instruments (June 2026 UG CBT-1) and Pandit Jasraj's gharana (June 2022 CBT-2). Tradition and instrument-class questions are tagged syllabus-based.
Pariksha Pattern: Every Way NTPC Asks This Topic
Pattern 1: Musician and instrument
[PYQ: NTPC UG CBT-1 14-Jun-2026 Shift-3]
EXAM LEVEL
Q. With which instrument is Bismillah Khan associated?
The shehnai.
Answer: Shehnai
EXAMATLAS LEVEL
Q. Match the musician with the instrument: Shivkumar Sharma, Amjad Ali Khan, U. Srinivas.
Shivkumar Sharma: santoor. Amjad Ali Khan: sarod. U. Srinivas: mandolin.
Answer: Santoor, sarod, mandolin
Pattern 2: Gharanas
[PYQ: NTPC CBT-2 13-Jun-2022 Shift-1]
EXAM LEVEL
Q. Pandit Jasraj belonged to which gharana?
The Mewati gharana.
Answer: Mewati
EXAMATLAS LEVEL
Q. To which gharana did Bhimsen Joshi belong, and which is the oldest khayal gharana?
Kirana; Gwalior.
Answer: Kirana; Gwalior
Pattern 3: Hindustani and Carnatic traditions
[Pattern: syllabus-based, PYQ-style]
EXAM LEVEL
Q. Who is called the father of Carnatic music?
Purandara Dasa.
Answer: Purandara Dasa
EXAMATLAS LEVEL
Q. Name the trinity of Carnatic music, and whose court musician was Tansen?
Tyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Syama Sastri. Tansen was Akbar's court musician.
Answer: Tyagaraja, Dikshitar, Syama Sastri; Akbar
Pattern 4: Instrument classes and honours
[Pattern: syllabus-based, PYQ-style]
EXAM LEVEL
Q. To which class of instruments does the tabla belong?
Avanaddha vadya (membrane instruments).
Answer: Avanaddha (membrane)
EXAMATLAS LEVEL
Q. Who was the first musician to receive the Bharat Ratna, and in which year?
M.S. Subbulakshmi, in 1998.
Answer: M.S. Subbulakshmi, 1998
60-Second Revision
- Shehnai Bismillah Khan; sitar Ravi Shankar; tabla Zakir Hussain; santoor Shivkumar Sharma; flute Hariprasad Chaurasia; sarod Amjad Ali Khan.
- Mewati Jasraj; Kirana Bhimsen Joshi; Gwalior oldest.
- Purandara Dasa father of Carnatic music; Tansen at Akbar's court.
- Tat, sushir, avanaddha, ghana.