The dholak is a double-headed hand drum that’s prevalent in Indian, North African, Nepalese and Pakistani music, especially qawwali, Bhangra and various styles of North Indian folk. It doesn’t have the same kind of specific tuning as the tabla, which means it’s used more as folk music accompaniment than as a classical instrument, but that doesn’t mean you can’t play dholak in the game room.
COUNTRY: Trinidad, Guyana, Suriname
Indian indentured servants who came to Trinidad from 1845 to 1917 brought their music with them and eventually fused it with island music to form a genre called chutney. Traditional chutney music added Indian instruments like the dholak and the harmonium to Caribbean songs, as well as a religious sensibility and, often, vocals in Hindi. Contemporary chutney pioneers like Surinamese vocalist and harmonium player Ramdew Chaitoe became well-known in the ’60s and ’70s all over northeastern South America and the Caribbean . Today chutney has blended with soca to form “chutney soca,” which has become popular international dance music. “What is chutney music?”: a primer | Kuch-Kuch Baby!
Soca is a faster version of calypso that has substantial influence throughout the Caribbean. Trinidadian musician Ras Shorty generally receives credit for originating it in 1963 when he added Indian instruments such as the dholak and the the tabla to calypso. In the 1970s calypsonians such as Shorty had also added soul, disco and funk, transforming the genre into internationally popular dance party music. Today soca remains popular throughout the Caribbean, especially the more overtly East Indian chutney. A brief history.
COUNTRY: Trinidad and Tobago
KEY INSTRUMENTS: Bass, Dhantal, Dholak, Drum kit, Guitar, Tabla, Trumpet, Trombone
SONG ON AATW: LATIN AMERICA CD: Wan Boto
[mappress mapid=”16″ center=”-8, -60″ zoom=”3″]
]
[Information about qawwali coming soon.]
[wpspoiler name=”Bollywood!” open=”true” style=”aatw-video”][/wpspoiler]
[Information about filmi coming soon.]
