The music of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal is astonishingly diverse, so
much so that it's impossible to paint its portrait in broad strokes. From the subcontinent's ancient
and sophisticated classical traditions of Hindustani (North Indian) and Carnatic (South Indian)
music, to the filmi that accompanies the rhythms of daily life in much of India to the Hindu
religious devotional songs called bhajans or the ecstatic choruses of Muslim qawwali-not to
mention South Asia's extraordinarily rich and varied folk traditions or the music of religious
ceremonies that are weaved into the texture of everyday existence-this fabulous array means that
one can spend a lifetime just scratching the surface of South Asian music.
Each genre has its own history, evolution, and performance style, but of course the region's past
and its geography mean that many of these traditions are historically and aesthetically linked not
just to each other, but to neighboring regions as well. For example, the music of Pakistan and
north and northwestern India often has ties to that of Iran and Afghanistan (and even farther
afield to music of the Arab world and Turkey); the music of Sri Lanka has links not just to its
geographic neighbors-including the music of the island's very large Sinhalese Buddhist
community, which is linked to that of other Buddhist regions-but also to that of Portuguese and
even African music, due to Portugal's colonization of the island beginning in the 16th century.
While the classical, religious, and folk traditions of South Asia have roots that go many centuries
deep, the music of this region continues to be dynamic and ever-evolving: some of the
contemporary pop from India and Pakistan (not to mention the truly exciting sounds emerging
from the diaspora communities, such as in the Asian Massive movement) proves that many
young musicians from the region are creating innovative sounds that aren't pale imitations of
European or American chart toppers, but tunes that are wholly South Asian and proudly desi to
their core. -Anastasia Tsioulcas
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