History of Music in Nepal

Nepal music refers to different musical genres of Nepal and it has more than fifty ethnic groups and the music of this country is highly dispersed phenomenon. Though genres such as rock, classical music, folk and pop exist, a large number of such genres are yet to be classified. Many bands of music in Nepal exist with a large number in Kathmandu, which is the most present ones that focused in rock and pop. Rap has been known to appear on the charts from time to time.

source of picture: en.wikipedia.org

During the medieval era, Newari music was built and flourished. The kings of Malla were known for the interest of the arts. The drama that was made in that period was accompanied by music. Many of the guthis of Kathmandu valley originated during that period. These guthis maintain the musical genres built during that period. Dapa music is a type of Newari bhajan music that is believed to have initiated in that period.

The history of the modern Nepal is a very short one. In the year 1908, maestro Seturam Shrestha became the first Nepalese musician to produce a song on gramophone disc. In 1952 Nepal got their first radio station known as Radio Nepal and since then the station has been help to promote many important artist in the field, some of the prominent artists include Shiva Shankar, Natikaji, Narayan Gopal, Dharma Raj Thapa, Arun Thapa and others and the female arena includes Koili Devi, Tara Devi, Gyanu Rana, Mathema and Aruna Lama.