Indian Music?

[Opus106]

Here's a blog that I follow: http://sriramv.wordpress.com/

He writes a lot on Carnatic music and has also authored quite a few books. He regularly contributes to newspapers, also. It's usually of a historical nature, unless he is writing about the concerts or lecture-demonstrations he attends.

Do read the posts from December-January (Season Tales) where you can get a feel for the "Madras Music Season." I'm sure you'll find a lot of parallels about those in attendance at concerts, both in the West and in the East, these days.

[arkiv]

Do you like veena?

http://www.youtube.com/v/PIJLzg6egIQ


http://www.youtube.com/v/_AYCO5kNqf0

[snyprrr]

I used to have a guitar cd by Bhaat. There was a giant collection of cds on the Nimbus label. I remember I went through quite a few of them searching for my masterpiece...yea, I don't have them anymore, but all of a sudden...

I remember the ONE scale/mode/raga that I hit on which most resembled Western scales was the "Bhirav" "Ahir/Ahai Bhiarav" or "Bhia Bhiarav", or SOMETHING like that. Anyone can confirm?

My favorite rendering of Indian music must have at least the lead instrument, the drone, and the tabla. So much of what I heard sounded very spare, but the ones with the full compliment/obbligato surely cast a spicy chick pea.

What about the singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan? Is he Indian or Pakistani? Jeff Buckley's Elvis.

[bwv 1080]

I used to have a guitar cd by Bhaat. There was a giant collection of cds on the Nimbus label. I remember I went through quite a few of them searching for my masterpiece...yea, I don't have them anymore, but all of a sudden...

I remember the ONE scale/mode/raga that I hit on which most resembled Western scales was the "Bhirav" "Ahir/Ahai Bhiarav" or "Bhia Bhiarav", or SOMETHING like that. Anyone can confirm?

My favorite rendering of Indian music must have at least the lead instrument, the drone, and the tabla. So much of what I heard sounded very spare, but the ones with the full compliment/obbligato surely cast a spicy chick pea.

What about the singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan? Is he Indian or Pakistani? Jeff Buckley's Elvis.

Ahir Bhairav is not a western scale, the scale is analogous to mixolydian with a flat 2nd (e.g. C Db E F G A Bb C)

There is another scale / raga named Bhairavi which is the same as phrygian mode (e.g. E to E on the white keys)

But the major and minor scales are used alot, Alhaiya Bilaval uses the major scale (with an occasional flatted seventh on descent) and Kanada (derived from Carnata or Carnatic, not our neighbor to the North) uses the minor scale

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan is a Pakistani Qawwali singer - it is a genre of Sufi devotional songs and not considered part of the Classical tradition

Confusingly there is a Pakistani Khyal singer (which is a classical tradition of singing ragas) named (Ustad) Fateh Ali Khan

[Opus106]

One of The Greats of Carnatic music apparently composed to the tunes of nineteenth century English military bands.

No classical music fan, I was delighted with what I heard that evening. There was an invocation to Lord Ganesha set to a French air still heard in the taverns of Montreal and Quebec. There was a Viennese waltz whose words paid homage to Lord Siva in Kanchi. And 'God Save the Queen' had words expressing words of devotion to the Goddess of Music.

I know the Americans sing 'My Country 'Tis of Thee' to the tune of 'God Save the Queen'. The Germans too have a patriotic song to the same tune. There was a group in Bombay, who, when George V arrived for the Delhi Durbar, greeted him at the Gateway of India with a poem in Marathi set to 'God Save the King'. And, in those pre-Independence days in Ceylon, the anthem at the end of the film came in handy for groups of schoolboys after the city's famed Big Matches to sing vilification against the Crown in Sinhalese to the same tune. But none of that was the case that evening in Madras.

It was Kanniks Kannikeswaran from Cleveland, Ohio, revealing what his research had found. Namely that a tenth of Muthuswami Dikshitar's compositions were Sanskrit religious lyrics written to the popular tunes the British military bands played in the Madras of his time. Dikshitar, one of the Musical Trinity of Tanjore, lived in Manali for a while and, later, travelled through much of India, the only one of the trio to do so. Everywhere he went he listened to the airs, ditties, folk tunes, and anthems the British military bands played at public performances in the evenings, and out of that listening there came the 39 'colonial interludes', compositions that are a part of his 400 classical compositions.

A few of these had been put down in staff notation by a member of the Manali Muthukrishna family who were patrons of the Dikshitar family. The origins of others were tracked down by Kannikeswaran, interacting with Western musicologists. What he found was that with recitals of these classical compositions, both solo and in choral performance, he was able to get many young Indian-Americans — and not a few Americans — interested in Carnatic music. "This is the stuff that appeals to Fourth Graders", he had found. Which is no doubt why I enjoyed it — particularly the film clip of a concert of this music presented by a chorus of 90 Indians and 60 Americans. And, all this to the accompaniment of Celtic orchestral instruments — which is what many of the military bands of those days used. These instruments, and tunes such as these, can still be heard in the Appalachian region of America, he stated, States such as West Virginia, Virginia, southern Pennsylvania and Tennessee. And the search for the link between Appalachian music and Tanjore Carnatic is where Kannikeswaran is next headed.

After the talk, Carnatic music historian V. Sriram told me that besides Muthuswami Dikshitar, there were other instances of British-Indian connections in the music field. Ghanam Krishna Iyer sang on Sir Thomas Munro (a song that is now lost). The Madras Jubilee Gayam Samaj, a body that was formed in 1883 mainly to facilitate interaction between the English and the natives on Carnatic music, translated Tennyson's Ode to Victoria, and performed it for the benefit of the Governor and his Lady. Later, in the Gandharva Gana Kalpavalli book, there is a mangalam (benediction) dedicated to King George V and Queen Mary. In 1911, immediately after the grand Coronation Durbar in Delhi, the Muthialpet Sabha organised a competition among musicians for the best song on King George; Ramanathapuram 'Poochi' Srinivasa Iyengar got the gold medal for his Satatamu Brovumayya, which is a prayer to Rama to protect King George.

In the 1930s, Papanasam Sivan composed Devi Vasante on Annie Besant, which is even now sung in Besant School. There is also a Sanskrit hymn in her praise on her release from internment. This also, rather ironically, praises King George. Besides these, there is the George Deva Shatakam, a set of 100 verses on King George V, composed in 1911 by Mahamahopadhyaya Lakshmana Suri, father of Sangita Kalanidhi T.L. Venkatarama Iyer (Justice, Supreme Court of India) and uncle of Sangita Kalanidhi Harikesanallur L. Muthiah Bhagavatar.

"It would be great if some of these songs were performed in public, but today's view of Carnatic music is that all such music as I have mentioned is the praise of mere mortals and, so, inferior," Sriram adds with a tinge of disappointment at the lack of appreciation of the historical context.

S. MUTHIAH

http://www.hindu.com/mp/2009/07/20/stories/2009072050130400.htm

The other two of the "Trinity of Tanjore"/Trinity of Carnatic Music, are ShyAmA ShAstry and ThyAgarAja, who is as big a musical personality as Bach is to the west.

[Opus106]

BTW, all these embedded videos are seriously hurting Firefox's performance.

[arkiv]

Three excelent percussionits: Thiruvarur Bhaktavatsalam (Mridangam), G. Harishankar (Kanjira) and E. M. Subramaniam (Ghatam)

http://www.youtube.com/v/WJbiILmfuPc

[Opus106]

Three excelent percussionits: Thiruvarur Bhaktavatsalam (Mridangam), G. Harishankar (Kanjira) and E. M. Subramaniam (Ghatam)

I sometimes tend to go into a trance-like state when listening to a thani avarthanam, which is like a "cadenza" for percussionists. And the body language of the musicians can sometimes be entertaining to watch, too. It's sort of like a friendly competition of who can perform better.

BTW, epicous, an FYI: that singer is no less a personality than M. L. Vasanthakumari, who is considered as one of the greatest singers of the last century. This concert, however, must have been recorded during her last years.

[arkiv]

Yes, considering her dates (1928 -1990), maybe the video is from the 80's.

[jowcol]

I'm a huge fan of the Hindustani tradition.  My fave is Shivkumar Sharma, who plays Santur-- which is similar to the Hammered Dulcimer, which is the instrument I play.  He singlehandedly adapted the instrument and playing style to support the classical tradition, and seeing him perform is a humbling experience.

In my experience, most westerners have trouble dealing with the Alap-- the free meter opening of a raga.  (It can be torturous to play as well-- technically it's simple, but requires a huge amount of concentration.)  I usually recommend albums that have a shorter Alap for beginners.  However, once you "get it", you may feel it's the best part.

Kudos to BWV 1080 for his excellent information.  It's important to remember these scales are are natural, and not-equal tempered.  This makes the drone more "pure", and provides a degree of richness to the sound that you would not have playing with equal tempered instruments.

A couple suggestions on starting:

The Shivkumar Sharma album Call to the Valley http://www.amazon.com/Call-Valley-Shivkumar-Sharma/dp/B000005H0H may be the best starter-- it has more variety of instrumentation, and nothing runs too long.  It was a big crossover seller in its day.

If you are more curious about Shivkumar Sharma, this is probably the best album to start with him alone.  Two 35 minute Ragas with different moods and playing styles on both.
http://www.wyastone.co.uk/nrl/world/5110a.html


For sitar, you may want to try Viliyat Khan.  I don't think he has Ravi's touch on the Alap, but his rhythmic sense in incredible.

Most anything with Zakkir Hussein on tabla is worth getting.  (He and Elvin Jones get my nomination for best percussionists of the 20th Century-- Your mileage may vary.)

Nancy Kulkarni has adapted the cello to classical playing.  The one album I have of hers  (Raga Bageshree)  is exceptional .  Here is some info on her.
http://www.authenticyoga.org/nancy.html

The harmonically static aspect of the music may be a challenge at first.  I discovered that listening during a drive or walk helps get you to the point where it seems more natural, and better yet, puts you into a much deeper psychological state. 

Playing this music will definitely help your improv skills, and the Alap in particular will really sharpen up your phrasing. 

[arkiv]

which is similar to the Hammered Dulcimer, which is the instrument I play.  

Is mexican salterio similar?

http://www.youtube.com/v/2T61JwX40CA

[jowcol]

Is mexican salterio similar?

http://www.youtube.com/v/2T61JwX40CA

Similar , except that the Santur and Dulcimer are played  with wooden mallets.  The Salterio (Psaltry) is played with a plectrum.

[arkiv]

carnatic plus hindustani

http://www.youtube.com/v/42W5Q5kJmZk

Shashank Subramanium (carnatic flute)
Purbayan Chatterjee - (sitar)
Patri Satish Kumar - (mridangam)
Sukhwinder Singh - Pinky (tabla)

[arkiv]

Do you like odd rhythms?

Rupak rhythm 7/8 .
It has seven matras (beats) in three vibhags (divisions).

http://www.youtube.com/v/jYCASUWy24M

[jowcol]

A really nice online resource on rhythms in Indian classical is here:

http://www.ancient-future.com/india.html

In addition to the common ones, it has some unusual ones with 1/2 beats.  Both written and midi examples.

And yes, I love the odd rhythms...

[rhomboid]

Exquisite contours.

http://www.youtube.com/v/ZDsjQvt2g6o