GURU NANAK COMMUNITY SERVICES FOUNDATION 12 th INTERNATIONAL CLASSICAL KIRTAN COMPETITION 25th December 2016, Sunday Rexdale Gurdwara Sahib Sikh Spiritual Centre, 9 Carrier Drive, Toronto. M9V 4B2.

ICKC-2016 - Rules Kirtan should be shabad-pardhaan, not sangeet-pardhaan. In other words, music should be used to enhance shabad-surat rather than to exhibit musical artistry. The focus of Kirtan should be on the bhaav (emotion) of the shabad. The words of the shabad should be clearly enunciated and should be comprehensible. The words should not be unduly stretched or sung too quickly or dominated by the music. String instruments shall be actually played not only held. Jatha referred hereunder means Team of participants.

To be eligible for 1 st , 2 nd or 3 rd position, following Rules must be followed.

# Rule A The maximum size of the jathas is 5. The minimum size of the jathas is 3. B The shabad in the assigned Raag must be from Sri Guru Granth Sahib or Guru Gobind Singh’s hymn (as stated in Sikh Rehat Maryada, Chapter V, Article VIc; reference - sgpc.net).

C Shabad and Manglacharan shall be sung in the specific variation of the Raag as stated in the title of the shabad. A Shaloke from a different Raag shall not be sung in the assigned Raag as Manglacharan. D Shabad not specified as Partaal in the sirlekh shall be sung only in one .

E Jathas shall not sing musical syllables - sargam (Sa Re Ga -----).

F Sharing members at Kirtan Competition: a. No person can participate in more than two jathaas. b. Jathas in Groups II & III can borrow up to 1 member from lower-age group Jathas. c. Jathas in Group I can borrow up to 1 member from another Group I jathaa. No jatha in Group I can have more than one participant in common with any other group I Jatha.

G Only those members who have participated in the previous Kirtan Competition may participate at the international level.

H At the international level - up to two members of the jatha may be replaced from a jatha of the same or younger age group as follows: • If the original jatha has three members - only one member may be replaced. • If the original jatha has 4 or 5 members - two members may be replaced.

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Kirtan Competition Rules (page 2 of 4)

Rule Penalty 1 The Rahao lines of the shabad must be sung as sthaa-ee. In case there is no Rahao in 40 the composition, then any line of the selection can be sung as sthaa-ee.

2 An electronic box to support/enhance performance of any instrument (, string or 20 otherwise) may not be used. 3 Each jatha may sing only one shabad without Parmaan(s) in the allotted time. 20

4 Singing should be preceded by a short explanation of the gist of the complete shabad. 10 Explanation must be in both Punjabi and English. Explanation regarding the Raag and instruments shall not be provided. Tabla player may explain the Taal (s) used in the Shabad to be recited. 5 The complete Shabad, including all the Padas (if applicable) shall be sung. If the time 10 allotted does not permit reciting the entire Shabad, then only one or more contiguous Padas may be sung but the gist of the entire Shabad shall be briefly explained. Note: For the list of Shabads, please refer to “qqkrw SbdW kw ” at the beginning of Sri Guru Granth Sahib. 6 Aalaap using the words of the shabad is encouraged. Its purpose is to enhance the 5 emotion of the 7 Akaar Aalaap shall not be sung. 5 8 Taan using the words of the shabad may be sung sparingly. 5 Notes: • Penalty points shall be deducted from each judge’s score for not following the respective Rule. • For distribution of marks amongst various elements of Kirtan, please refer to ‘Scoring Sheet’ available at the web-site. • Each judge should provide independent evaluation of each Jatha’s performance. Judges shall not discuss any Ja tha’s performance among themselves. If necessary, judge can note remarks on the score sheet. • Judges’ coordinator shall evaluate the remarks while compiling the results. Judges’ coordinator may consult judge(s) to finalize the results.

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Kirtan Competition Rules (page 3 of 4)

Salutation to Vaheguru by the vocalists. Invocation for Divine Grace. Setting the mood for the shabad. Manglacharan Slow tempo. in the assigned Vadda taal (Vilambit Taal). All age groups Raag Taal for Manglacharan could be different than used for the Shabad. Manglacharan shall be • the sirlekh of the Shabad, or • moolmantar (Ik Onkaar ------Gur Parsaad), or • a Shaloke from the assigned Raag from Sri Guru Granth Sahib.

Instrumental prelude to Kirtan. Shaan Salutation of raag and taal, by all the instruments & to the Bani. in the assigned Setting the mood for the shabad. All age groups Raag Medium tempo. Classical taal (not keherva, dadra or paurhi theka).

the Sthaa-ee and all Antras shall be sung in different Taals. That is Shabads listed in Sri a Guru Granth Sahib Taal used for Sthaa-ee or any Antra shall not be repeated. For under the Sirlekh example- Partaal “Partaal” must be · Taal #1 - used for Sthaa-ee sung as specified · Taal #2 - used for Antra 1 here. Otherwise, the · Taal #3 - used for Antra 2 Jatthas would be · Taal #4 - used for Antra 3 disqualified. · And so on.

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Kirtan Competition Rules (page 4 of 4)

Sikh Heritage String Instrument (SHSI).

At-least one of the instruments played by a jatha shall be SHSI.

SHSI Guru ji’s period Rabab Nanak Dev ji Saranda Guru Amar Dass ji, Guru Ram Dass ji, Guru Arjan Dev ji Israj Guru Arjan Dev ji Taus, Guru Hargobind ji Guru Gobind Singh ji Smaller version of Taus

Percussion Instruments: Jori, Pakhawaj & Mridang shall be encouraged.

www.kirtancompetition.org GNCSF is not for profit community Organization [email protected]