INDIAN MUSIC EXPERIENCE

By Anusha Anand Mangalvedhe

"The earth has music for those who are willing to listen"

These words given by Reginald Holmes in his poem, the magic of sounds is actually brought to life by the Indian Music Experience, A museum dedicated entirely to melodious souls of the country. Sprawling across over 45,000 square feet, along with 8 systematically curated musical galleries dedicated to the Hindustani and Carnatic vocal artists and folklore traditions from all across Kashmir to Kanyakumari, Indian Music Experience is India's first ever interactive music museum dedicated to Music. It is situated in the Manhattan of India, our very own Bangalore city in JP Nagar. From displaying the evolution of music through Bharat Muni’s Natyashastra to modern day Bollywood music, this museum is a must visit for the musicophiles.

Here, one can learn about the Marvels of the Indian music by understanding the Origin, history and the journey of Indian music with the help of short documentary which is shown to the audience in the beginning of their museum tour. This documentary, with its vibrant, mesmerising visuals and melodious sounds is sure a treat to the viewers eyes and ears. The Samay chakra Theatre which happens to be one of the main attractions here, beautifully encapsulates the true essence of Hindustani music, with Divine music of great Hindustani singers such as Amir Khusro and Miya Tansen.

Coming towards the southern region of the country, the museum has tried to compile the divine works of the Trinity of Carnatic music: Tyagaraja, Muthu swami and Syama sastri by introducing the world with the distinctive style of handling the ragas and talas. With the help of the headphones provided by museum near each artefact and paintings, one can listen to their composition and get lost in spiritual journey leaving the audience completely spellbound! The main show stopper of the museum is the gallery of instruments which has more than 100 instruments on display. With the help of the monitor provided one can try playing the musical instrument virtually and experience its magic. Indian Music experience also showcases most delicately the gamete of exhibitions on famous musical personalities, musical instruments, techniques and history that undoubtedly shaped the journey of Indian music.

This museum was inspired and modelled after the famed museum of pop culture in US. In addition to all the musical installations, the Museum also features a Gift shop, an Amphitheatre, a café and a sound garden. Delivering evergreen music experience to the youth of the country with showcasing the rich diversity of Indian music and promoting the musical heritage of the country, is the main aim and the vision behind the establishment of the enthralling museum.