Gesture, Embodied Cognition, and Emotion: Comparing Hindustani Vocal
Gharanas in Performance
Hans Utter (hansutter@hotmail.com)
Abstract:
Introduction: Bilateral gesture in North Indian classical vocal music (khyal) has a
complex relationship with music structure and aesthetic intentions, and appears to
augment emotional expression and serve important pedagogical functions. Gesture
has an important role in Indian vocal training, especially in relation to processes of
attention, cognition, and memory. In this paper, I examine the multimodal
interactions between voice production, emotional expression, song text, and gesture
through an audio/visual analysis of performers in three different vocal traditions. I
will examine distinctions between different vocal gharanas (schools) through both
gesture and related stylistic/aesthetic elements. The use the spatial visualization of
sound based on particular vowels in the dhrupad vocal genre will also be discussed
as a possible influence on movement.
Method: The methods employed consist of collecting ethnographic data through
interviews and audio/video recordings, participation in learning situations, and
examining Indian theoretical treatises on vocal music. The data is correlated with
performance practices of the gharanas to determine the relationships between
aesthetics, vocal culture, and musical structure.
Results: While the use of gesture is not formally taught and can be idiosyncratic,
performers from specific vocal gharanas exhibit some common practices. However,
between gharanas gestures tend to emphasize the dominant aesthetic features
particular to that gharana, and correlate with distinct musical elements.
Discussion: For North Indian classical vocal music, the system of oral transmission
and individualized training in a particular gharana is evident in gesture, which
developed through the process of enculturation. My evidence shows that gesture is a
component of multi-modal processes of learning and expression, which supports the
hypothesis of the embodied nature emotional-cognitive processes.
(connects also to 2.1)
Biography:
Hans Utter has worked as a Lecture and Adjunct Professor of Music at The Ohio
State University and Capital University. His research focuses on the traditional

 methods of teaching and learning music in India, music perception and cognition,
and the role of the government in arts policy. Hans is an accomplished sitarist, and
has performed widely throughout the world. He has conducted extensive research
in India and Central Asia, which has been published in journals articles and book
chapters. He is currently completing his second book. He holds an M.A. and Ph.D. in
Ethnomusicology from The Ohio State University, and is currently an Ohio Arts
Council Artist in Residence in traditional music.