AIRS 2nd Annual Conference: Seattle 2010
Title: “Guru-sishya parampara”: a cultural examination of vocal pedagogical method in North India
(Demonstration and explanation)
Authors: Hans Utter (Ohio State University) and Utpola Borah
Introduction
Introduction and aim of contributing to AIRS Goals and Milestones India’s Guru-Sishya Parampara is a
unique system of transmitting musical knowledge which can be traced back to the Vedic period (1st-6th
centuries BCE). This oral tradition stresses embodied and experiential learning in formal and informal
settings over a span of decades. This paper analyzes the processes of teaching and learning Indian vocal
music through native and non-native viewpoints, examining the influence of culture-specific environments
on cognitive and sensory modalities. We hope to contribute to AIR’s goals of understanding processes of
singing and education, cross-cultural understanding, and the interrelations of perception and production of
music.
Method
The culturally specific modes of teaching and learning Indian vocal music will be examined from the
perspective of a native, professional vocalist and a Western-trained musician. Indian classical music
employs a system of microtonal inflections that are often imperceptible to the Western ear, which only be
taught orally. The impact of methods of teaching and learning in early childhood will be compared with
resultant differences in pitch perception, voice cultural, and sensory perception.
Results
This paper will demonstrate how and why different music styles require distinct pedagogical methods, and
offer some hypothesis as to how the gurusishya parampara utilizes innate human learning processes to
transmit knowledge through an embodied process that simultaneously functions on multiple cognitive,
kinesthetic, and emotional modalities. Finally, the possible cognitive and social implications of crosscultural music acquisition will be examined.
Discussion
We hope to open dialogue on the how differing systems of teaching and learning offer a window both on
culture and cognitive development.
Bios
Utpola Borah is an ethnomusicologist, educator, cultural archivist and performer of Hindustani (North
Indian) Classical music. She completed her Ph.D. at the time University of Delhi, India. Utpola’s extensive
research on the Bihu songs of Assam formed the basis of her book Bihu Festival of AssamMusic Dance &
Performance (2005). Her varied experience at the Archive and Research Centre for Ethnomusicology
(AIIS), the Indira Gandhi National Open University, and many other institutions has earned recognition as
a scholar, educator and archivist in ethnomusicology, folklore, anthropology and Performing arts of India.
Utpola is an accomplished Hindustani classical vocalist. She has been trained extensively in the traditional
“Gurukul” system under Dr Prabha Atre. Utpola is an All India Radio and Doordarshan (National
Television) artiste and has widely performed the Khyal, Thumri, Dadra, Kajri, Holi, Chaiti, Barahmasa and
Folk songs in India, Europe, and the United States.

 Hans Utter is currently a PhD. candidate in ethnomusicology at The Ohio State University. His current
research focuses on the Imdad Khan Gharana, including a detailed study of Ustad Vilayat Khan’s sitar and
vocal techniques. He has conducted research in cognitive ethnomusicology on entrainment with
nonperiodic music. Hans has worked as a lecturer in musicology at Ohio State University, as a course
writer, and as a visiting consultant at several universities. The AIRS project parallels his recent research
into the neurophysiology of music performance He is the author of Trance, Ritual, and Rhythm: The Cult
of Mahasu Deota in the Western Himalayas (B.R. Rhythms 2010). A disciple of sitarist Ustad Shujaat
Khan, he has performed in America, Canada, Europe, and India.