About
OUR VISION
To be a best-in-class institution fostering an appreciation of music and allied art forms while facilitating the development of musical sensibilities to groom a generation of musicians and music-lovers. To that end, we will continuously strive to ensure that the educational experience for students as well as parents is exceptional. We aim to foster a love of music among all whom we encounter.
We welcome all families without exclusion and commit ourselves to respect each and everyone regardless of their age, gender, race, caste, economic status, marital status, faith, or their national origin.
We will put our students’ interests first in all that we do.
We will support parents and provide them information and tools to help their children work towards and achieve their goals in music and in life. We will help parents bring classical art forms into their homes.
We further commit ourselves to use planet resources wisely and respectfully, avoid waste and to actively take steps to reduce the harms we do to other life and to minimize the footprint we leave behind us. This environment is the only one we have. Let’s do our best to keep it well and pass it along to those who come after us.
OUR APPROACH
The Gapa Music School uses an approach to teaching and learning Carnatic music which focuses on helping students enjoy music and learn to appreciate the many nuances of raga and compositional music in all its varied forms. Our hope is that students become lifelong rasikas of the music form as they learn not merely to sing but understand the social and historical context and rich poetry in which the music evolved.
Indian classical music is rightly referred to, as rāga music. The Gapa School considers a holistic comprehension of rāga-ness to be central to learning Indian classical music. The conventional approach to teaching Carnatic music involves exercises, usually in rāga MāyāmāỊavagauỊa, followed by gītams, svarajati-s, jatisvaram-s, varṇam-s, kṛti-s and so on. While adopting the best practices in this conventional approach, the Gapa School will take a different approach to give students the opportunity to absorb the rāga in depth, and express their internalization of rāga-ness in their music.
The Gapa School’s curriculum is designed to take students through a sustained journey for each rāga – with exercises, compositions, varṇam, kṛti etc. ensuring an in-depth coverage of the rāga, before moving to the next rāga. The process of developing rāga-nesscan be likened to developing muscle memory – by the time the student goes through this journey, the notes, movements and graces (gamaka-s) of the rāga get well-set in the mind, as well as the voice. Learning a few rāgas this way will lay a solid foundation and equip the student to pick up and handle many more rāgas with ease. As the mental algorithms for working with rāgas gets trained and sharpened this way, the student will see that the pace of learning quickens naturally, and their ability to work with new rāgas can be developed with great felicity.
CURRICULUM
The curriculum will be designed as a student’s educational journey of music, over six years:
- Years 1 & 2: Primary
- Years 3 & 4: Core
- Years 5 & 6: Advanced
These are broad time frames and lateral entry will be permitted on a case-by-case basis after a careful evaluation of prior musical learning, and musical abilities.
The curriculum will be based on a traditional repertoire and musical styles with an emphasis on strong fundamentals coupled with application of those fundamentals to musical presentation in an aesthetic and creative manner.
Students will be encouraged to seek a deeper understanding of the “why” behind traditional practices of the art form. Theoretical aspects and technical nuances will be presented in an accessible and lucid manner with pertinent illustrations, anecdotes and insights.
Practical training will be provided through a blended learning model, which includes offline (pre-recorded), online (over the internet) and in-person (classroom) sessions. Assignments, evaluation and feedback, will be an integral part of encouraging original thinking and fostering creativity.
Both group classes and individual classes have benefits of their own, and will be planned as per the requirement of the students.
There will be a lot of emphasis on guided listening and development of listening with discernment. Students will be expected to listen to suggested content, and to attend concerts as per the listening guidance.
Developing keen listening skills is an important part of any musical journey. Students and parents are encouraged to attend all programs conducted by Dhvani, with a minimum attendance of six performances each season. Students and their families need to become Patrons or Benefactors of Dhvani.
Participation in musical events and community initiatives planned around musical themes, will also be encouraged to foster music as a point of social connect and development.
Students will be encouraged to develop multi-lingual capabilities.