Hindustani Classical Music and Varanasi

A North Indian classical tradition

Hindustani classical music is one of the principal classical music traditions of South Asia. It is built around melodic frameworks called ragas and rhythmic cycles called talas, with performance shaped by improvisation, composition, training and the relationship between soloist, accompanists and audience.

Voice and instruments

Vocal traditions are central, while instrumental performance may feature sitar, sarod, sarangi, bansuri, shehnai, tabla, tanpura and many other instruments. No single ensemble represents all Hindustani music; instrumentation depends on genre, performer and context.

Varanasi as a city of music

Varanasi has a distinguished musical history and was designated a UNESCO Creative City of Music in 2015. The city is associated with vocal and instrumental lineages, religious music, festival traditions and forms of teaching transmitted through guru-shishya relationships between teacher and student.

The Banaras gharana

The term Banaras gharana is used in several performance contexts, including tabla and vocal traditions, to describe lineages and stylistic approaches associated with the city. Gharana should not be understood as a rigid trademark: musicians learn, travel, collaborate and absorb influences beyond a single lineage.

Music in the Everyday Lives project

Music on this website should not function as generic “Indian atmosphere.” When original music is commissioned for Varanasi photographs, the aim is to work with musicians who understand the city’s traditions and can respond to individual images while preserving the distinction between documentary sound, newly composed music and licensed recordings.