 The musical accompaniment of Odissi dance is essentially the same as the music of Orissa itself. In Odissi, the words used in Drutala (speedy rhymes) are called padis and Navatala`s (nine rhymes) use is also the special feature of Odissi music. Besides, even Dasatala (ten rhymes) and Egaratala (eleven rhymes) are commonly used in Odissi music. Odissi music is a unique blend of North and South Indian classical music but with its own distinctive qualities. Today, the Odissi musical orchestra consists of the Guru who mostly is also the pakhawaj player accompanied with one or two vocalists. There are a number of musical instruments used to accompany the Odissi dance. One of the most important is the pakhawaj, also known as the mardal. Other instruments, which are commonly used, are the bansuri (bamboo flute), the manjira (metal cymbals), the sitar and the tanpura.
Like Hindustani and Carnatic systems, Odissi music is a separate system of Indian classical music and is having all the essential as well as potential ingredients of Indian Classical form. The present form of the traditional Odissi music is the outcome of the continuous evolution of the earliest Indian classical music. Orissa could imbibe all the waves of classical music beginning from Sama-Gana to Raga prabandha Gana, but finally it assumed the present form of "Ragaksyudra-Geeta-Pravandha-Gana". This system is popularly styled as traditional Odissi music. |
