Independent University, Bangladesh

School of Engineering and Computer Science

Department of Physical Sciences

Assignment on
Cultural Heritage of Bangladesh

MUS 102 (Sec 01)

Submitted To:
Dr. Shahnaz Nasrin
Instructor
Department of Music

Submitted By:
Name: Rakib Ahmad
ID: 2130227
Department: CSE

Date of Submission: 10 / 08 /2021

 Cultural Heritage of Bangladesh
Introduction:

Bangladesh owns an enriched cultural heritage since before its independence. At present, Bangladesh
has four Intangible Cultural Heritages in UNESCO's list– Baul song (2008), traditional art of Jamdani
weaving (2013), Mongol Shobhajatra (2016) and traditional art of Shitol Pati weaving of Sylhet (2017).
Besides, Bangladesh has a rich, diverse culture. Its architecture, dance, literature, music, painting and
clothing thoroughly resonates its deeply embedded heritage. The people of Bangladesh have been
blessed with versatile cultural development in recent decades which has taken hold of the ovations from
the spectators of overseas as well.

Development of Music: Music has always played a significant role in the lives of the people and
Bangladesh has a very gorgeous musical heritage by the way. In yesteryears, prayers used to affect the
structures of the songs and still, current folk songs represent the way - praising certain gods and their
creations. Bangladeshi musical development has been well clinched by the rulers of the time. At present,
Bangladeshi music is wide-ranging and unique.

In reality, our music has been developed from classical genre to modern genre. In between, the main
genres are: Classical music, Rabindra sangeet, Nazrul geeti, folk songs, adhunik gaan and modern music
with western influences.

Classical music can be distinguished based on “raag”. Besides, both Rabindra sangeet and Nazrul geeti
represent prayer, love, seasonal terms or patriotism. However, the style of Nazrul geeti tends to
integrate revolutionary thoughts as well as spiritual and philosophical themes. Additionally, folk songs
relate the certain lifestyles of several types of people such as farmers, fishermen, crafters etc. They have
survived from generation to generation and often include words of worship to various Bengali gods.
Moreover, Adhunik gaan fundamentally known as of more modern music that is often loose
characteristics and values of the area where it was originated. The style began to emerge just before the
revolution and is stylistically simple so that anyone – irrespective of education level – can appreciate its
worth. While these songs are still called ‘Adhunik gaan’ which means ‘modern songs’ many of them are
now quite old. In the late 80s, new demands were being made on music that current trends could not
meet, and a more western influence started to be exerted on musicians. This led to the emergence of a
number of Bangladeshi artists who chose to lean more towards world-wide trends. Pop and rock took
the country’s youth by storm and are still being enjoyed today. Some mainstream rock has made its way
to radio stations and CD shops in Bangladesh while a large underground rock movement also exists.

Development of Instrument: Bangladesh has a good number of musical instruments actually of her
own. Originally, our native musical instruments include, Bashi (bamboo flute), Dhol (wooden drums),
Ektara (a single stringed instrument), Dotara (a four stringed instrument), Mandira (a pair of metal bawls
used as rhythm instrument), Khanjani, Sharinda etc. Now-a-days western instruments such as Guitar,
Drums, Saxophone, Synthesizer etc. are being used alongside the native instruments. These instrument
have been developed as the music has been emerged day by day

Development of Dance: Dance is a psycho-physiological expression of mood and emotion. Dance and
inner emotion share a common thread. Temporally, dance in Bangladesh may be explained in four
phases, such as dance in ancient Bengal; dance in medieval Bengal; dance during colonial era and dance
in post-colonial era.

Classical forms of the sub-continent outweigh in Bangladeshi dance. The folk, tribal and Middle Eastern
traits are also common in our country. Among the tribal dances, mainly popular are Monipuri and
Shaotal. Tribal dancers are in this habit of dancing that requires specific grammar or regulations.
Besides, Bangla songs like Jari and Shari are presented accompanied with dance of both male and
female performers. Eventually, with the demand of modernization, nowadays, dancers have been
adopting newer forms and styles of dances.

Development of Festival: A chain of festivals varying from race to religion are observed here. Though
the celebration styles have been evolved year by year which displays rejuvenation. Some of the Muslim
rituals are Eid-e-Miladunnabi, Eid-ul-Fitr, Eid-ul-Azha, Muharram etc. The Hindus observe Durga Puja,
Saraswati Puja, Kali Puja and many other pujas. Christmas (popularly called Borodin in Bangla) is
observed by the Christians. The Buddhists’ main festival is Buddha Purnima. Besides, there are some
common festivities, which are observed countrywide by people irrespective of races e.g. Pahela
Baishakh (the first day of Bangla year), Pahela Boshonto etc . National festivals are Independence Day
(26th March), 21st February (the National Mourning Day and World Mother Language Day), The Victory
Day (16th December), Rabindra & Nazrul Jayanti etc.

Conclusion:

The main foundation of every country and every society is in its culture. Culture is not something that
we can create in a day, week or month. The development of culture in a society is an extensive process.
Understanding our cultural heritage can give us a better understanding of our personal identity and
promote unity in our society. It can play an essential role in our community by linking the past, the
present and the future generation, a basis for building a strong nation and national identity. Bangladeshi
traditions are now on the way of decline. It is our responsibility to cherish our culture and develop the
next generation to preserve our long traditions. If we are not able to preserve our ancient culture, our
country might find its sheer existence in hazard.