The Music and Musical Instruments of Southern India and the Deccan c9.13

c9.13

But yet, though the melodies themselves are so beautiful, it is but seldom that we hear them well sung; indeed, singers of the ordinary type often entirely ruin the effect of the music; for native singers appear to have an idea that the highest form of their art consists in introducing as much grace as possible, whether it adds to the beauty of their songs or not; in fact, they try to disguise the real melody as much as possible by embellishments of their own, and so in nine cases out of ten it is quite impossible to follow either the air or the words of a song, since the singer is only anxious to exhibit what he fondly imagines to be his skill.