Music of Goa
Being a former territory of Portugal, Goa has a dominant western musical scene with the use of instrument such as the violin, drums, guitar, trumpet and piano.
Other popular performers include Anthony Gonsalves (violinist), António Fortunato de Figueiredo (conductor and violinist), Chris Perry (often called the king of Goan music), Hema Sardesai (playback singer), Ian D'Sa, (former guitarist of Canadian band Billy Talent, of Goan descent), Remo Fernandes (musician and playback singer), Surashree Kesarbai Kerkar (the greatest classical vocalist), Kishori Amonkar (classical vocalist), Dinanath Mangeshkar (dramatist and classical vocalist), and Oliver Sean (singer/songwriter).
Goa has produced many performers of Indian classical music, such as the vocalist Kesarbai Kerkar, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle.
[2] The traditional Goan musical instruments include dhol, mridanga, tabla, ghumat, dholak, kansallem, mhadalem, shehnai, surt, tasso, nagado, chowgudo, and tambura.
The ghumat is an earthen-ware pot-like vessel made by Goan potters with openings on the two opposite sides, one large and the other small in diameter, with the middle portion much bulging outwards.
The ghumat is essential for Hindu festivals, some temple rituals like Suvari vadan, bhivari and mando performances.
The chowgudo consists of two ‘dhobe’ and ‘zil’ placed in a cross form, facing each other, and played with sticks held in both hands.
The Christian hymns and Hindu religious songs are also characterized separately with the former related to contemporary western styles.
The Christian hymns and Hindu songs for the liturgy and popular devotions form an essential part of Goan daily life.
Every year, the three-day concert features both Indian and Western classical music along with dance performances held at the spectacularly situated Capela do Monte, high above the old capital of the Estado da India (former Portuguese state).
[12][13][14] Another major attraction of the Goan music industry is the Tiatr derived from the Portuguese word 'teatro' meaning theater.
Other songs, called kantaram are generally either comedic or based on topical, political and controversial issues that are interspersed through the performance.
The music is provided by a live band including keyboard, trumpet, saxophone, bass guitar and drums.
The standard hymnal of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman is called Gaionancho Jhelo (Garland of hymns) and the diocese also brings out a periodical sheet music publication of Konkani liturgical hymns a called Devacheam Bhurgeanchim Gitam (Songs of God's children).
However, they still form part of the churches interior decor and in almost all instances are located in the nave above the main entrances facing the altar in the far end below.
When tourism began to die out, a number of devotees stayed in the area, pursuing a specific style of trance music.
Goa Trance is closely related to the emergence of Psytrance during the latter half of the 1990s and early 2000s, where the two genres mixed together.
In popular culture, the distinction between the two genres often remains largely a matter of opinion (they are considered by some to be synonymous; others say that Psytrance is more "psychedelic/cybernetic" and that Goa Trance is more "organic", and still others maintain that there is a clear difference between the two).
Top DJs from the UK and other parts of Western Europe fly to Goa for special parties, often on the beaches or in rice paddies.
