Religious music (also sacred music) is a type of music that is performed or composed for religious use or through religious influence. It may overlap with ritual music, which is music, sacred or not, performed or composed for or as a ritual. Religious songs have been described as a source of strength, as well as a means of easing pain, improving one's mood, and assisting in the discovery of meaning in one's suffering. While style and genre vary broadly across traditions, religious groups still share a variety of musical practices and techniques.
Religious music takes on many forms and varies throughout cultures. Religions such as Islam, Judaism, and Sinism demonstrate this, splitting off into different forms and styles of music that depend on varying religious practices. Sometimes, religious music uses similar instruments across cultures. The use of drums (and drumming), for example, is seen commonly in numerous religions such as Rastafari and Sinism, while wind instruments (the horn, saxophone, trumpet and variations of such) can be commonly found in Islam and Judaism.
Throughout each religion, each form of religious music, within the specific religion, differs for a different purpose. For example, in Islamic music, some types of music are used for prayer while others are used for celebrations. Similarly, a variation like this is shared between many other religions.
Music plays a significant role in many religions. In some religions, such as Buddhism, music helps people calm their minds and focus before meditation. In Sikh music, known as Kirtan, the music helps people connect with the teachings of the religion and with God. Some other religions, such as Islam, use music to recite the word of their holy book. Some religions relate their music to non-religious musicians. For example, Rastafarian music heavily relates to reggae music. Religious music helps those of all religions connect with their faith and remember their religious values. are also included
Buddhist music
Buddhist music is music created for or inspired by Buddhism and part of Buddhist art.
Buddhist chanting Buddhist chanting is a form of musical verse or incantation, which is similar to religious recitations of other faiths. Buddhist chanting is the traditional means of preparing the mind for meditation, especially as part of formal practice (in either a lay or monastic context). Some Buddhist traditions also use chanting as a form of devotional practices.
Apart from chanting, in certain Buddhist traditions, offerings of music are given in honor of the Triple Gem, consisting of traditional music performed by specialists, or of the ritual music that accompanies the chanting. One significant example lies in Sri Lankan tradition, where a traditional ceremony is performed by drummers as a musical offering, also popularly known as "Sabda-Puja".
Christian music
According to some scholars, the earliest music in the Christian Church came from Jewish worship music, with some additional Syriac influence. It is believed that this music lay somewhere between singing and speaking, or speaking with an understood ritual cadence.Foley 2008,. However, there is another opinion that the roots of early Christian music come from the early ascetic monastic orders.Taruskin and Gibbs 2013, p. 9.
Hymns
Christian music has diversified over time, reflecting both its centuries-old roots as well as more contemporary musical styles. Thousands of traditionally-styled songs of praise or worship, called "hymns" (from the Greek word hymnos meaning, "song of praise"), were written over hundreds of years. Eventually, these songs were compiled into books called "hymnals", from which pastors and congregants would read during Christian services – a practice that continues in many churches today.
Prior to the eighteenth century, Christian hymnals were published as standalone texts without accompanying musical scores. The first American hymnal with both text and song was published in 1831. In Europe, the Church of England did not officially allow hymns to be sung until 1820. Originally, hymns were sung by "lining out" the lyrics, meaning, the pastor would sing a line, and then the congregation would repeat it. This was done because, at that time, books were expensive, so it was economical to provide the pastor of a church with one copy from which everyone could sing.
Christian music in the modern era
Modern methods of publication have made hymnals much more accessible to the public today than previously. The practice of "lining out" the lyrics of hymns has therefore largely fallen away, although it continues to be practiced in some traditional churches. In the twentieth century, Christian music has developed to reflect the emergence of a diverse array of musical genres including rock, metal, pop, jazz, contemporary, rap, spiritual, country, blues, and gospel. The use of specific genres and styles of music in church services today varies across Christian denominations and according to the personal preference of pastors and church members. As of the late twentieth century, there has been a widespread preference in less traditional churches towards using contemporary music (particularly, "praise and worship" songs, which attempt to preserve the religious intent of hymns but use contemporary lyrics and a more modern musical sound instead) as well as gospel and spiritual music.
Hindu music Hindu music is music created for or influenced by Hinduism. It includes Carnatic music, Indian classical music, Hindustani classical music, Kirtan, Bhajan, Pann and other musical genres. Raagas are a common form of Hindu music in classical India. Vedas are also in Hindu music.
A bhajan is a Hindu devotional song, often of ancient origin. Bhajans are often simple songs in lyrical language expressing emotions of love for the Divine, whether for a single God and Goddess, or any number of divinities. Many bhajans feature several names and aspects of the chosen deity, especially in the case of Hindu sahasranamas, which list a divinity's 1008 names. Great importance is attributed to the singing of bhajans with Bhakti, i.e. loving devotion. "Rasanam Lakshanam Bhajanam" means the act by which we feel more closer to our inner self or God, is a bhajan. Acts which are done for the God is called bhajan.
Generally all music dedicated to goddess Mother Kali is called 'Shyama Sangeet' in Bengali. Two famous singers of this Bengali Shyama Sangeet are Pannalal Bhattacharya and Dhananjay Bhattacharya. Pannalal Bhattacharya's elder brother Prafulla Bhattacharya and middle brother Dhananjay Bhattacharya were the first music teachers of saint artist Pannalal Bhattacharya. Dhananjay Bhattacharya stopped singing devotional songs after finding devotional spirit in his brother Pannalal. However, after the demise of Pannalal Bhattacharya, he contributed again in Bengali music with many devotional songs by his sweet, melodious voice.
A ragaRaaga or raag (IAST: rāga; also raaga or ragam; literally "coloring, tingeing, dyeing") is a melodic framework for improvisation akin to a melodic mode in Indian classical music.
Islamic music
Islamic music comes in many forms. Each form is used for different purposes as one may be for prayers and complete focus towards Allah (God) and while the other is entertainment, however still including that religious aspect.
Prayer Islamic prayer is a type of religious music that Muslims use when they pray and worship Allah. These prayers (in Arabic, prayer is Salah) that occur five times a day. These prayers are conducted by facing Mecca while standing, having both knees to the ground, and bowing. During prayer, recitations are usually of the Islamic holy book: the Quran. Throughout the day, in Mecca, these prayers connect the Muslim people through a series of melodic prayers that are often amplified throughout the city. In Islam, the implication of prayer, and in this case the Salah, is for ritual since it is believed to be the direct word of God that shall be performed as a collective, as well as individually.
Sufi music Sufism, Islam's mystical dimension, advocates peace, tolerance, and pluralism, as well as music as a means of improving one's relationship with God. Sufi music aims to bring listeners closer to God. The deep urge to dissolve the physical realm and transcend into the spiritual universe, which occurs through the practice of listening to music, chanting, and whirling, and culminating in spiritual ecstasy, lies at the heart of Sufi lyrics. Because music is viewed as a tool for the believer to grow closer to the holy, sound and music are important to the basic experience of Sufism. Sufi music is therefore music created by and for the soul.
Naʽat The other form of Islamic music is Naʽat. The word Naʽat has Arabic origins and translates to praise. A poem that praises the Islamic Prophet Muhammad is referred to as Naat (نعت) in Urdu. First Naʽat dates back to the era of Muhammad and was written in Arabic. It later spread throughout the world and reached various literatures including Urdu, Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashto, Turkish, Seraiki and more. Naʽat-Khuwan or Sana-Khuwan are known as those who recite Naʽat.
Instruments
Chordophones, or stringed instruments Zornā and gayta as aerophones, or wind instruments Būq, or horn Nafīr, or long trumpet Idiophones, membranophones, tambourines, or frame drums
Melodic organization Islamic music is monophonic, meaning it has only one melody line. Everything in performance is based on the refinement of the melodic line and the complexity of the beat. Although a simple arrangement of notes, octaves, fifths, and fourths, usually below the melody notes, may be used as ornamentation, the concept of harmony is absent. Microtonality and the variety of intervals used are two components that contribute to the melody's enrichment. As a result, the three-quarter tone, which was first used in Islamic music in the ninth or tenth centuries, coexists with bigger and smaller intervals. Musicians have a keen sensitivity to pitch variations, often altering even the perfect consonances, the fourth and fifth, somewhat.
History of Islamic prayer Riccold De Monte, a famous travel writer, stated in the year 1228, "What shall I say of their prayer? For they pray with such concentration and devotion that I was astonished when I was able to see it personally and observe it with my own eyes." The origin of the art of prayer in all Abrahamic religions is to glorify God and the same goes for Islam. The Al Salat is the most widely used word to mean institutionalized prayer and is one of the oldest forms of prayer in Islam. Islamic prayer, traditions, and ideals had influence from these Abrahamic religions. The time of origination of Salah came from Muhammad in a cave as he began to worship Allah (God). It is believed that through this act of worship Mohammad interacted with the Abrahamic prophet Moses. Now these "prayers" come in the form of recitations of the Quran and poems written by prophets of the faith.
Spread of Islamic prayer Besides the spread of Islam through Arabia by prophets, it spread through trade routes like the Silk Road and through conflicts of war. Through the Silk Road traders and members of the early Muslim faith were able to go to countries such as China and create mosques around 627 C. E. As men from the Middle East went to China they would marry these Asian women, which led to a spreading of the faith and traditions of Islam in multiplicities. The Crusades in the 9th and 10th centuries encouraged the spread of Islam through the invasions of Latin Christian soldiers and Muslim soldiers into each other's lands. The whole conflict began on the premises of a Holy Land and which group of people owned these lands that led to these foes invading their respective lands. As the religion itself spread so did its implications of ritual, such as prayer.