What is Technique / Tantra ?

Technique is a tool used to understand and unravel a subject. It is an accessory which helps one in identifying complexities of the subject and the ways to over come and conquer those areas .

Right hand and left hand

Violin – an old Indian Instrument – Dhanur Veena is probably the only instrument that has the capacity to expand and extend the boundaries of the art form because of its inherent qualities .

As possibilities, we have five octaves to create the sound of a Raga .
We have the bow which makes it possible to hold on to a note breathlessly for ever without a pause or a stop in between .
We have a tone that is so unique that it attracts and identities itself as the sound produced through the instrument – Violin

We can probably play the fastest and the slowest of melodies on the violin with the same flair and felicity.

So the possibilities of the Violin is immense …
Technically this is one the most advanced of all Indian instruments and we have to thank all the great masters who have made this a possibility .

But do we have a “ prescribed standard school or form of technique” to play the violin , unfortunately no .
As a cultural canvas , we have something called as the “ Paramapara”, thought process .
This one aspect is uniform in Spirituality , Bhakthi Maarga , Politics , Business and of course Music and Dance as well.
In Music it takes the name of Bhaani or Gharana. So, the production of the musical sound becomes more important that how you produce it .

The important thing is to find an uniform technique at the foundation level so that students learn to play the instrument well and then branch out to any style that he / she
wants to pursue.

Techniques are of 2 kinds

Right hand – the bow
Left hand. – the positions

Right hand :

The most important tool in this modern world for man kind to master is the art of communication. The better one communicates in this world the more is the reach and success. Similarly the bow -the right hand is the medium that communicates the sound of the instrument to an audience. The more refined the skill the better the sound and hence the better the reach. It is very important to have the right grip, the right pressure etc, in the bowing hand.
It is very important to note that , In Indian music system setting the skill level is more a personal choice and connection than a prescribed one.

So the emotional quotient becomes very very important. The dynamics of the musical phrase, the output volume, the speed of the bow, the length of the bow, all these are generally triggered by the personal understanding of the said phrase and the emotional connect behind it.

In Indian music there are four basic kinds of bowing technique.

Swara bow
Saahithiya bow
Tana bow
Alapana bow.

Swara bow :
This is a kind of bowing where the length of the bow is generally short. Swara is a musical note. Each Swara will have a separate bow – meaning if the movement of the one bow is from left to right or top to bottom then the movement of the next bow will be from right to left or bottom to top.. In doing so, we have to perfect the technique of playing a note at a time and see to it that the sound produced is not scratchy. The sound has to be clean and pure. Importantly while bowing the bow should not touch the other strings while playing on one. We should try and get a good control on the playing of the bow in one string at whatever speed. The idea is to use the grip to our maximum advantage and optimize the potential. A good grip is that which, while playing a musical phrase whether it is fast or slow, it should facilitate the correct pressure so as to bring out the best sound possible for that phrase.

Sahithiya bow :
This is a very important way of bowing particularly in the context of Indian music ( Carnatic Music )
Indian music is understood predominantly by songs and bhajans . So when we play those songs or bhajans on the instrument, the movement of the bow suggesting to the words becomes very very important –
Vatapi ganapathim bhaje ham , will have
Va- one bow
Ta- another bow
Pi- yet another bow
Ga- another bow
`na- another bow
Pa – another bow
Thim – another bow
Bhajey – another bow
Ham – another now ..

This way , when the melody is played ,
The familiarity of the sound sets in and the phrase is recognised as the song Vatapi Ganapathim.
So, we have to know and understand the sahithya of the song to execute it well on the instrument at the beginning stage .

Tanam bow :
This is probably the most interesting and skill oriented technique among all the different kinds of bowing patterns. As i said earlier , the skill quotient is a very individualistic benchmark and hence each artistes chooses his own bench mark on how to skillfully execute his art through the instrument.

While playing the Tanam, there are multiple patterns that can be brilliantly presented on the instrument. The options are limitless. It could be phrases with long bows, or it could be a never ending cascade of sounds of one note by making one long bow sound like a multiple bows . It can be a whip of sound from the lower octave open string to the higher octave open string and can create melodic rhythmic patterns with that technique. We could use the bounce of the bow as a catalyst to create musical patterns – so there are many techniques that one can develop when playing the Tanam .

Alapana Bow or the Ragam playing bow :

While playing a Raga or a Alapana, one has to first understand that it is a complete improvisational platform and hence one needs to have a very good understanding of the sound scape of the Raga and the instrument.
The way the bow moves along the strings is going to determine the ideology of the phrase. The emotion is completely dependent on the right hand . The dynamics of the sound of the raga , How loud or soft one has to play a phrase it all depends on the emotional quotient of the artiste and completely depends on the right hand to produce the expected result in sound . We have to make sure that the transition from one bow to another is smooth and does not cut in between a phrase.
again this is a very individualistic thought process. Music is an aural medium and it is up to us to make the listening experience as musical as possible.

Left hand – it is very important to understand the natural quality of an instrument . Purity in note is as important as purity in sound of the instrument.

First and foremost aspect in playing an instrument is to understand and perfect the position of a musical note. It is very very vital to know the precise position of a note as it is more than as a movement. We call that as Shudha Swaram — anything that is not, is called Abhaswaram .

It also becomes very important how we use the four fingers of the left hand in producing the desired sound and phrase.

The sound of the Violin is inherently so beautiful and user friendly that it will magnify everything that you play with its sweet tone so if one plays an abhaswaram that will also get magnified!!
We have four fingers to use in identifying positions on the instrument which helps in the dynamic possibilities of the instrument.

The correct positioning of the thumb of the left hand becomes very important in facilitating the smooth movements of the other four fingers in playing the instrument. That is the thumb rule.

The best thing that I like about the possibilities on an instrument is that it is not language dependent . It has the unique capacity to reflect the 7 notes and their variations as per the skill and musical virtuosity of the performer and hence the music produced is a universal phenomenon.

How we refine and perfect the use of the left hand is very very essential in bringing out the aesthetics of the raga and the instrument. How to hold the violin while playing in the lower octave. How to readjust the hand while playing on the higher octave. How much to move between notes while playing a gamaka .

A very strong left hand technique is imperative in moving freely on the instrument. While playing Indian music we generally use the first and fifth position only. The other positions are very very very rarely used . Since the practice of Indian music is driven by the individual passion and quest for multiple things -such as – some may seek technical perfection, hence their play with the instrument will be that much expanded, some may seek bhakthi in music and hence their musical search will be on that front. Some may seek spiritual commune through music and they will seek that — there are so many dimensions in the art that the practitioner is given the freedom of choice .

That being the case – it is very important to have at least basic level standardised technique of both Left and Right hand while playing the Violin .

Our art being so individualistic in its form and content , it is that much more imperative to find the correct and comfortable technique to produce the sound in the instrument. Technique is a very important tool in bringing out the best possible sound of the instrument.

This effort is to bring in a basic standard in playing the Indian violin , so as to facilitate the beginners with a sound playing technique of both the left and right hand , which will help them progress in their quest to master the instrument