Play That Banghra Beat (analyse)

Bhangra Beat Music Lesson

Introduction

So play that. The Bhangra beat is an Indian style and it only uses our two notes: C's and D's.

First Section

I'm just going to play the beginning of the song for you. If we practice a few sections, then when you're ready, you can play along with me. Or just put the backing track on and play it yourself.

Lyrics to Remember

There are some words to help you remember the song:
"Play that Bhangra beat."
Just try singing that with me. Here we go:
"Play that Bhangra beat."
This gives us the rhythm of the song.

Identifying Notes

Think about which of those words are on C and which are on D. I'll sing it one more time:
"Play Daad. Bhangra beat."

Pitch Differences

Listen to the difference in the pitch. When we go to that, we're going up to D, so we're going a little bit higher there.

Next Phrase

The next phrase is:
"Play it every week."
(C, C, D, D, C)
I'll play that bit now.

Technique Reminder

You've got to move your tongue and your fingers quite quickly. Don't forget to press down the vowels all the way.

Practice Together

So let's play that whole phrase. Here we go:
1, 2.
Well done!

New Line

The next line is the same tune but has different words. Play it rhythmically with A, D, and C. So same tune, but let's play it anyway. Here we go:
1, 2, 3, 4.
Well done!

Easy Section

The next bit is very easy. Play that rhythm:
Ta, ta, ta, ta.
Play it quite heavily.

Note Breakdown

This happens on C, then on D, and then on C again. So let's play those three phrases:
1, 2, 3, 4. 1, 2.

Chorus Section

Then we do this bit:
"Play that Bhangra beat,"
which is the same tune with different words as the one we played earlier.

Adding Energy

On the chorus section, you get to shout some haze! So you can always add some Bollywood or Bhangra dancing while you're doing that.

Improvisation Section

The next part is the copyback or improvisation section.

Creative Freedom

Improvising is making up your own thing, so just have some fun with C and D and make up your own improvising phrases. You can start off by copying back what I do, and then as you get more confident, you can create your own phrases in the space.