Chapter 8 — Inspiration and Imagination

It is easy to assume that musicians are simply born gifted and lucky enough to reach the stage. The real story is usually different. Many great artists faced poverty, illness, disability or social barriers, and reached excellence through years of dedicated practice and the support of teachers and families.

Ravindra Jain (1944-2015) is a striking example. Born in Aligarh, he was blind from birth. He learned music from childhood and went on to become one of India's best-loved composers and songwriters, mainly in Hindi films. He composed music for more than 200 films, wrote many of his own lyrics, and composed the music for the hugely popular television serial Ramayan, watched by millions of families. He won the Filmfare Award for Best Music Director for Ram Teri Ganga Maili (1985) and performed in hundreds of live and television shows. He did not let blindness define him; he relied on memory, a keen ear and deep knowledge of ragas and poetry.

Pandit Puttaraj Gawai (1914-2010) of Gadag in Karnataka lost his sight as a small child and was raised in the music ashram of his guru, Panchakshara Gawai. He became a respected Hindustani vocalist, played several instruments, composed and wrote books, and for decades ran the Veereshwara Punyashrama, where blind and poor children learned music free of cost. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan. His life shows how one person's success can open doors for many others.

There are many more such artists, including Ghatam Suresh Vaidyanathan, whom you can research yourself, and artists in your own district.

What these lives teach.

• Practice matters more than luck. Every one of these musicians practised daily for years.
• Teachers and community matter. A guru, a family or an institution that believes in a child can change a life.
• Challenges can sharpen skills. Musicians without sight often develop extraordinary memory and listening.
• Success can be shared. Like Puttaraj Gawai, artists often turn their own journey into opportunities for others.

A note on respect. When we speak about artists with disabilities, the focus should be on their art and achievement, not on pity. Use respectful language, such as 'a musician who is blind', and remember that disability is only one part of a person's story.

Learning about an artist from your own region can be one of the most inspiring projects of the year. Doing it well needs a plan, just like a science investigation.

Step 1: Choose your artist. Ask family, neighbours and teachers about musicians, singers, instrument players or folk artists from your community, district or state, especially those who broke barriers to follow their passion. You might also choose one of the artists suggested in this chapter, such as Ghatam Suresh Vaidyanathan or Pandit Puttaraj Gawai.

Step 2: Write clear research questions.

• Where is the artist from?
• What art form do they practise?
• How did they start learning or pursuing it? Who taught them?
• What specific challenges did they face, and how did they deal with them?
• What are their main achievements and contributions?

Step 3: Gather information from more than one source. Good sources include interviews in newspapers, documentaries, official websites of cultural bodies such as the Sangeet Natak Akademi, books, and, best of all, people who knew the artist. If the artist lives nearby, you could request an interview through your school. Compare your sources; if two disagree on a date or fact, note both and say which one you trust more and why. Never copy text word for word; write in your own words and mention where each fact came from.

Step 4: Listen and watch. A musician cannot be understood only through reading. Listen to at least two recordings and, if possible, watch a performance or interview. Note what you hear: the instrument or voice, the style, the mood.

Step 5: Reflect. Ask yourself what you can learn from this life. Is there a habit, attitude or choice you could adopt?

Step 6: Present. Share your findings in a short talk, poster or slide presentation. A good structure is: introduction with a photo, early life, training, challenges, achievements, a short audio clip, and your personal reflection.

Judging your own research. Check whether you answered every research question, whether you used at least two sources, whether facts are accurate and credited, and whether your reflection is personal rather than general. Safety note: when contacting anyone outside school, always do it with the knowledge of a parent or teacher.

India's history of music is written not only in books but also in stone. Many temples and historical buildings show carved musicians and instruments, and some are still used as venues for music and dance.

Chennakeshava Temple, Belur (Karnataka). Built in the 12th century under the Hoysala king Vishnuvardhana, this temple is famous for its finely carved bracket figures (madanikas) and wall panels. Among them are dancers and musicians playing drums, flutes and stringed instruments, captured in graceful poses. Studying these sculptures tells historians which instruments were in use eight or nine hundred years ago and how they were held.

Gwalior Fort (Madhya Pradesh). In the late 15th and early 16th centuries, Raja Man Singh Tomar ruled from Gwalior and was a great patron of music. His court is closely linked with the growth of dhrupad, a grand and ancient style of Hindustani vocal music, and the region is also linked with the legendary singer Tansen, who trained in the Gwalior tradition before joining Akbar's court. The palace he built, the Man Mandir, still stands within the fort. Every year Gwalior hosts the Tansen Samaroh, a major classical music festival held in Tansen's memory, and the city gave its name to one of the oldest khayal gharanas, the Gwalior gharana.

Konark Sun Temple (Odisha). Built in the 13th century under King Narasimhadeva I and designed as a giant chariot of the Sun God, the temple is covered with sculptures. On its walls and on the hall in front of it you can see figures of musicians playing drums, cymbals and other instruments, and dancers in poses that link to the classical dance Odissi. Today the Konark Dance Festival, held every year with the temple as a backdrop, continues this connection between the monument and the performing arts.

How to study a musical monument.

• Find out when, by whom and why it was built.
• Look closely at images of its sculptures and list the instruments you can recognise.
• Find out whether concerts or festivals take place there today.
• Write a page on each monument with a sketch of one carving.

Respect for heritage. When visiting monuments, do not touch, climb or scratch carvings, and follow the rules of the Archaeological Survey of India. These sculptures have survived for centuries and must survive for centuries more.

Some Indian temples have pillars that produce musical notes when gently struck. They are one of the most remarkable meetings of music, science and sculpture anywhere in the world.

How do they work? Recall the science from the chapter on instruments: sound is produced by vibration, and the frequency of vibration decides pitch. A musical pillar is like a giant, solid instrument of the ghana family.

• The pillars are carved from resonant stone that vibrates at clearly audible frequencies when struck, instead of giving a dull thud.
• Each slender column has a different length, thickness and shape. Just as a shorter or thinner string gives a higher note, a slimmer or shorter stone column vibrates faster and gives a higher pitch.
• The columns are often of varying density and some are partly hollow, which changes how they vibrate and lets different notes be produced.
• The precision of carving is the key. The ancient sculptors had to shape the stone very carefully to get a pleasing, steady note, which shows their deep practical knowledge of sound.

Historians believe such halls may have accompanied music and dance during temple rituals, with musicians striking the columns as part of a performance.

Protecting the pillars. Over the years, so many visitors struck the Hampi pillars that some were damaged. Today striking them is not permitted, and guards and barriers protect them. This is a good lesson: a heritage wonder can be destroyed by careless curiosity. Enjoy recordings or videos of the pillars instead of trying to tap them yourself.

Try a safe model at home. Arrange steel glasses or bottles of different sizes, or the same glasses with different water levels, and tap them gently with a pencil. Larger or fuller vessels generally give lower notes. You have made a small model of the same idea: changing the size and mass of a vibrating body changes its pitch. Write down your observations in a table, with a column for the vessel, the water level and whether the note was high or low.

Music in India is kept alive by many kinds of institutions: places and organisations that teach, perform, record or support music. Knowing what exists around you can open new opportunities to learn and listen.

Kinds of music institutions.

• Music schools and classes: from a local teacher's home class to large schools offering graded exams, such as those linked with the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya Mandal.
• Universities and colleges with music departments, such as the Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya in Lucknow.
• Sabhas and music societies, such as the Music Academy in Chennai, which organise concert seasons.
• National and state bodies, such as the Sangeet Natak Akademi, which honours artists and supports research and festivals.
• Student movements such as SPIC MACAY, which bring classical artists to schools and colleges.
• Radio, recording and archives, such as All India Radio.

India also has a long history of music education for girls and women. A photograph from 1895 of a group of girls attending a music school in Mysore shows that formal music training has a deep history in the country.

Investigating an institution. Find a local music school or venue by asking family and friends or searching online. Then find out:

• What does it do? Does it run classes, organise concerts, hold competitions or workshops?
• Who can join, and at what age? Are there online options?
• What styles of music are taught: Hindustani, Carnatic, folk, Western, devotional?
• What other activities take place there?

Visiting. If possible, visit with a parent or as part of a school field trip. Follow good etiquette: arrive on time, keep your phone silent, do not walk around during a performance or class, clap at the right moments, and ask permission before taking photographs. Thank the people who host you.

After the visit. Write a short report: the name and type of institution, what you saw and heard, one thing that surprised you, and whether you would like to learn there. You might discuss with your parents the possibility of joining a music class, in person or online. Many great artists began with a small neighbourhood class.

India has many choirs and bands that grew out of particular communities and regions, and listening to them widens your sense of what Indian music can be.

Shillong Chamber Choir (Meghalaya). Founded by the composer and pianist Neil Nongkynrih, this choir from Shillong became known across India for its rich vocal harmonies and its mix of Western choral music, Indian film songs and Khasi folk melodies. It won a national television talent competition and has performed at major national events. It shows how the harmony skills you practised in this year's music lessons can be developed to a very high level.

Bastar Band (Chhattisgarh). This ensemble brings together tribal musicians from the Bastar region and their traditional instruments, many of which are rarely heard outside their villages. It presents the music, rhythms and songs of communities such as the Gond and Muria on stage, helping to preserve and share them.

Many other communities in India have their own orchestral or vocal traditions, such as the brass bands at weddings, the Manganiar and Langa ensembles of Rajasthan, the panchavadyam ensembles of Kerala and church choirs in many states. You can research one of these.

How to reflect on a performance. Whether you watch a live concert, a school programme or a recording, a reflection is more than 'I liked it'. Use these prompts:

• What did I see and hear? Number of performers, instruments, voices, language, costumes.
• How was it organised? Who led? How did performers signal to each other? How did the piece begin and end?
• What elements stood out? Melody, rhythm, lyrics, harmony, tempo changes.
• How did I feel, and why? Link the feeling to something specific, such as a sudden loud entry or a slow ending.
• What did I learn? One idea you could use in your own music.

Write your reflection in a notebook or journal soon after the performance, while details are fresh. Compare your notes with a classmate who heard the same performance; you will often notice different things.

Research extension. Find another community that has a band or choir. Note where it is from, what instruments or voices it uses, and what makes its sound special.

This year you have explored the elements of music, instruments, ragas, devotional traditions and the lives of great artists. Now it is time to use your imagination to look forward. With focus and dedication, you too can achieve a great deal and contribute to building a stronger nation. One creative way to picture this is to write a newspaper article about yourself as you might be twenty years from now.

Write in the third person. A newspaper reports on someone from the outside, using 'he', 'she' or the person's name, not 'I'. For example: 'Riya Sharma, 33, a sound engineer from Nagpur, has designed the acoustics of a new concert hall...'. This viewpoint helps you see your own life as others might see it.

Plan before writing. Note down points for each of these:

• What career have you chosen?
• What are some of your major accomplishments?
• What part does music or another art form play in your personal life?
• What milestone event is the newspaper reporting?
• What do you enjoy doing at present, and how did it lead to this future?
• Any other interesting details about your life.
• What are your dreams still to come?

For inspiration, read the biographies of people you admire. Notice how their stories mention early interests, turning points and achievements.

Structure of a news article.

Steps. Make notes, write a rough draft, then think of a headline that would make a reader stop. Revise the draft for clarity, check spellings and facts within your story, and write a final article of 400-500 words. Post it on the class notice board.

Other formats. Media keeps changing. If you prefer, present the same story as a podcast episode, a short video report or a blog post. The planning steps stay the same.

Judging your article. Is it in the third person throughout? Does the headline grab attention? Does the opening answer who, what, where and when? Is music or art part of the story? Is it within the word limit?

An autobiography is the story of a person's life written by that person. A musical autobiography tells that story through music: each important part of your life is represented by a song or piece of music that captures what you want to say about it.

Step 1: List your life details. Think about your life so far and note down things you want to share:

• Where you were born and grew up.
• Something about your family.
• Interesting things you have done, places you have been.
• Your hobbies and interests.
• Anything else you want people to know about you.

Step 2: Match a piece of music to each detail. The music can be anything: a lullaby your grandmother sang, a festival song from your region, a film song that was popular when you moved house, a bhajan sung at home, a school song, the theme music of a sport you love. The choice should represent what you want to convey about that part of your life.

Step 3: Explain each choice. For each song, write a few sentences on why it belongs in your autobiography. Mention a musical reason as well as a personal one. For example: 'I chose this Bihu song because my family celebrates Bihu every April; its fast dhol rhythm feels like the excitement of that day.'

Step 4: Share. Present your songs and descriptions to the class, perhaps playing a short clip of each. Respect everyone's choices; a musical autobiography is personal, and some stories may be private, so share only what you are comfortable sharing.

Extension: write your own song. Take one event from your life and write a song about it. Think about the lyrics (what story you are telling), the melody (should it rise with excitement or move gently?) and the arrangement (which instruments, clapping or voices would support the story?). This brings together everything you learned this year about melody, rhythm and lyrics.

Judging your work. Does each song clearly connect to a life detail? Did you give a musical reason, not only a personal one? Is the order of songs a clear story from past to present?

Inspiration is valuable only when it changes what you do. The final step of this chapter is to turn what you have learned from artists, monuments, institutions and your own imagination into a practice plan for the coming months.

Learn from the habits of great musicians. Almost every artist you studied this year shares a few habits:

• Daily practice, even if short. Twenty focused minutes every day achieve more than two hours once a week.
• Learning from a teacher and accepting correction.
• Listening widely: classical, folk, devotional, film and music from other countries.
• Performing, even in small settings such as family gatherings or school assemblies.
• Reflecting on what went well and what needs work.

Make a practice plan. Write down:

Keep a music journal. In it, note what you practised, how long, what improved and what was difficult. Paste in your research on an artist, your notes from a monument, your reflection on an ensemble, your future-self article and your musical autobiography. By the end of the year, the journal itself becomes a record of your growth as a musician.

Dealing with difficulty. Every learner hits a wall at some point: a tala that will not settle, a high note that cracks. Remember the stories of artists who overcame much bigger obstacles. Slow down, break the problem into small parts, ask for help and keep going. Progress in music is rarely a straight line, but it always comes with regular effort.

Music and the wider world. Your music can also serve others: singing for elderly neighbours, teaching a younger sibling a song, or joining a community choir. Like Puttaraj Gawai, you can turn your own learning into something that helps other people learn.