SINCE 1828
alap
noun
\ a-ˈläp
\
\
variants:
or less commonly alapa \ a-ˈlä-pə
\
or alapana \ a-ˈlä-pə-nə
\
\
or alapana \ a-ˈlä-pə-nə
\
Definition of alap
music
: an improvised, unaccompanied prelude to an Indian raga normally lacking rhythmic pulse and meter that is either played or sung as vocalise
The practice of beginning musical pieces with a seemingly free-form introduction that becomes a metered ensemble performance is common to India in the alap of a raga in classical Hindustani music …— Leonard Brown, John Coltrane and Black America’s Quest for Freedom, 2010
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