| European ideas
regarding "classical" and "folk" music do not apply to Indian music. Traditional
and modern, codified (marga) and regional (deshi) styles
mingle in every performance. Religion is much more an integral part of
daily life in India than in Europe. Almost every house has a small space
serving as a chapel (pooja room).
Often, there is a sacred tulasi plant in the garden. On the other hand, music also relates to various social customs without being "religious music" in the Western sense of the word. There exists an old tradition of classical music for art's sake. For most Indians, music is, of course, a means of distraction from daily worries, a form of entertainment among others. Although the mass media (cinema, radio, television) have changed popular tastes and introduced many foreign and modern elements, it still can be said that Karnatic music always remains unmistakably South Indian in character and temperament. The idea of an individual and permanent musical "work" is still not very important in India. Perhaps it does not relate to prevailing philosophies about the nature of the universe and man's role in the scheme of evolution. More important, therefore, than the reproduction of a finished work is the understanding of stylistic principles underlying traditional music. Ludwig Pesch on South Indian (Carnatic) Music
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