Sitar

The sitar crystallized in North India during the Mughal period, emerging from interactions between indigenous lute traditions (notably the veena family) and Persian musical culture (including the setar). By the 1700s, the instrument had acquired frets, sympathetic strings, and a gourd resonator, enabling the sustained, shimmering sonority essential to Hindustani ragas.

Across princely courts and urban centers, gharanas (pedagogical lineages) codified technique, repertoire, and raga interpretation. Instrument makers refined construction, adding more tarab strings and standardizing fret layouts to accommodate nuanced intonation and long meend. Sitarists developed distinct aesthetics—some prioritizing instrumental bravura, others emulating the intricacies of khyal vocalism.

The 20th century produced towering figures—Ravi Shankar, Vilayat Khan, Nikhil Banerjee—who established canonical approaches. Shankar’s architecture emphasized expansive alap–jor–jhala arcs and dramatic rhythmic design, while Vilayat Khan’s gayaki ang translated micro-ornamentation and melodic contour of the voice to the fretboard. Recording and broadcasting disseminated sitar globally, and luthiery stabilized two principal set-ups: kharaj-pancham (with deep bass strings) and gandhar-pancham (lighter, more vocal-leaning).

Sitar entered popular consciousness in the West through collaborations (e.g., Ravi Shankar and George Harrison) and inspired raga rock and psychedelic pop. Indo jazz experiments and worldbeat contexts incorporated sitar timbres, while concert traditions remained anchored in raga purity and improvisational depth.

Contemporary sitarists balance lineage fidelity with innovation—new ragas, rhythmic hybrids, and chamber formats. Enhanced recording, amplification, and global pedagogy broaden the instrument’s reach, while the core grammar of raga, tala, meend, and tihais remains central.