The music of

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...

includes many kinds of

folk songs Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has be ...

from the area, many of which are sung without accompaniment. Sindhu bairavi

Styles

is a type of song that celebrates extramarital romance.The word means lover . It is popular in

Mahasu Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

and Sirmaur, and is accompanied by a female dance called . Laman songs from Kullu Valley are another type of love song.

Saṃskāra Samskara ( IAST: , sometimes spelled ''samskara'') are sacraments in Hinduism and other Indian religions, described in ancient Sanskrit texts, as well as a concept in the karma theory of Indian philosophies. The word literally means "putting t ...

songs are sung at festivals and celebrations by women of Himachal Pradesh. These songs are based on ragas, which are compositions of Indian classical music, as are the martial . are religious songs, sung at the bride's house after a wedding and by women at the home of an unmarried girl. In

Chamba Chamba may refer to: People * Gilberto Chamba (born 1961), Ecuadorian serial killer * Jessica Chamba (born 1981), European activist Places Ghana * Chamba, a town in the Northern Region India * Chamba (Vidhan Sabha constituency), Himachal Pradesh ...

Pangi Pangi may refer to: Geography ;Democratic Republic of the Congo * Pangi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, a community in Maniema province * Pangi Territory, a territory in Maniema province, Democratic Republico of the Congo ;India * Pangi Valley ...

, wandering musicians play a (

tambourine The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though ...

) and perform, also using string puppets.

Musical instruments

Percussion

Himachal Pradesh folk music features a wide variety of drums, including , , , , , , , , , , , and . Non-drum percussion instruments include the and (

gong A gongFrom Indonesian and ms, gong; jv, ꦒꦺꦴꦁ ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ja, , dora; km, គង ; th, ฆ้อง ; vi, cồng chiêng; as, কাঁহ is a percussion instrument originating in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Gongs ...

s), (

tongs Tongs are a type of tool used to grip and lift objects instead of holding them directly with hands. There are many forms of tongs adapted to their specific use. The first pair of tongs belongs to the Egyptians. Tongs likely started off as ...

), and ( cymbals), (

bell A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inte ...

s), (platter) and .

Winds

Band at the Royal Palace, Sarahan, HP, India

There are also wind instruments like (twin flutes), , (oboe), (flute), (straight brass trumpet) and (curved brass trumpet).

Strings

String instruments include , (a small fretless lute), (bowed lute), , , and .

Singers

Mohit Chauhan Mohit Chauhan (born 11 March 1966) is an Indian playback singer, known for his work in Hindi films. He was a part of the Silk Route band. Chauhan has received two Filmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer and three Zee Cine Award For Bes ...

's 'morni', Karnail Rana's various folk songs, Dheeraj's love songs and Thakur Das Rathi's 'Naatis' has given great contribution to the music of Himachal Pradesh. New initiatives like Mountain Music Project and

Laman In the Book of Mormon, Laman and Lemuel () are the two eldest sons of Lehi and the older brothers of Sam, Nephi, Jacob, and Joseph. According to the text, they lived around 600 BC. They were notable for their rebellion against Lehi and Nephi, b ...

are giving Himachali folk a contemporary sound.

Modern Himachali Music

References

{{Himachali culture

Himachal Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...