Indian Classical and Western Classical

I have heard some Western Classical music too. It is also made of complex notes and passages, ensembles which could put you in a trance. Rachmaninov's prelude in G# minor and G minor are two of my favorites. Just the piano, but the complex notes grow on you, with sounds you might never know could come out from the piano.

The big difference between Indian and Western Classical for me is that Western classical is scripted, and hence predictable. Take the above example, for example. Rachmaninov's preludes are a defined set of notes, hence the difference in renditions is only due to tempo and touch of the artist and to some extent mood. The notes always remain the same. But if you are listening to some Raag, you never see the artists referring to any notes, coz Indian classical is not scripted, which makes it more unpredictable and hence all the more exciting. It is mainly based on improvisations, with the Raag only defning the basic notes/melody/scale. Thats where the "gharanas" come into play, I guess. The rendition of the same Raag on the same instrument could be miles apart by two artists trained in different gharanas. This variance makes Indian classical music much vaster, and since rules are only guidelines, the music is almost always fresh every time it is rendered.