Indian Classical/ Bhangra Music

Guru

A master performer

Improvise

Making up music during a performance

Raga

A set of pitches

Drone

A repeated note or set of notes repeated throughout a piece

Tala

A cycle of beats that repeats

Alap

The opening section of a piece of Indian classical music

Gat

The main middle section of a piece of Indian classical music. It is a fixed composition

Jhala

The fast climax of a piece of Indian classical music. It is often virtuosic

Sitar

A stringed instrument

Tabla

A pair of Indian drums

Sarod

A plucked stringed instrument with a metal fingerboard

Tanpura

A stringed instrument which plays the drone

Sarangi

A stringed instrument which is bowed

Bansuri

A side-blown flute

Dhol

A double-headed barrel drum

Tumbi

A high-pitched stringed instrument with one string

Riff

A short repeated phrase

Chaal

The fundamental rhythm used in bhangra

Synthesiser

An electronic keyboard instrument

Drum machine

An electronic instrument that produces percussion sounds

Sampling

Taking an extract from one recording and using it in another