#hindustani classical song

[zindagi-se-darte-ho]

Interesting Topics to Research On for Bored AF People (desi version)

The Bengal Sultanate

Dominance of taka in Silk Route Trade

Tibetan Buddhism

Chamba Rumal

Pashupati Seal

Zeb-un-nissa Begum

Rasa theory of Natyashastra

Gargi-Yajnavalkya Dialogue

Saraswati (River and Goddess)

Rudraveena

Atman-Brahman Relation and Mahavakyas

70's Bollywood fashion

Paintings of Raja Ravi Varma

Dhrupad

History of Chai/Cha

Mother Goddess Mohenjo Daro

Chanakya

Prakrit Language

Baro-Bhuiyan

Chicankari

Brajabuli

Tantra

Shipton–Tilman Nanda Devi expeditions

Banaras

Annamalaiyar Temple

Chola Dynasty

Pala Empire

Terracotta Temples of Bengal

[thatstolenpayal]

I have never shared how i sound singing hindustani classical ever. I had a huge gap of around 3 years due to academics, and now that i’m back at it..

saavan ghan garaje, is a bandish from raag miya malhar, a wonderful creation of Miya Tansen ji, one of the nine gems in the court of Akbar. He is believed to have been able to bring rains by singing this raag. This raag is associated with rain, and its rejuvenating effects, and is one of my favourites.

I may not sound too good due to the severe lack of practice, but I am trying to get back at where I was 3 years ago.

[ishadash92]

January grooves:- monthly song collection(wrap)-2024

Photo by Skitterphoto on Pexels.com January feels like an extended chapter of last year; when the new year arrives, most people aren’t eager to start anew. Instead, they cling to the past, their hearts conflicted between celebrating and reflecting on memories. Whereas, music plays a poignant role, setting the tone for the month with a blend of Hindustani classical, ragas, instrumentals, and…

[bolllywoodhungama]

Padma Bhushan winner and legendary classical musician Ustaad Rashid Khan passes away : Bollywood News — Bollywood Hungama

Many musicians like Sonu Nigam, Vishal Dadlani, Shekhar Ravjiani, Papon, took to social media to express their heartfelt condolences.

Ustaad Rashid Khan, the legendary name in the world of Hindustani classical music, passed away on January 9 after his long battle with prostate cancer. The legendary singer, belonging to the Rampur-Sahaswan Gharana, was reportedly admitted at a hospital in Kolkata owing to his ill health. Post the news of his demise, many celebrities from the Indian music world like Sonu Nigam, Vishal Dadlani, Papon, took to social media to express their heartfelt condolences.

Padma Bhushan winner and legendary classical musician Ustaad Rashid Khan passes away

As per a report in Hindustan Times, a source opened up about the demise of Ustaad Rashid Khan and revealed that despite the efforts of the doctors, the singer passed away on Tuesday evening. The source was quoted saying, “We tried our best but failed. He passed away at around 3:45 PM”.

Followed by the news, popular playback singer Sonu Nigam took to Instagram to share a photo of the legendary singer in concert and penned his heartfelt feelings saying, “My dear Respected Elder Brother and the Pride of Classical Music of our Country Padmabhushan Ustad Rashid Khan Sahab. Aise koi jaata hai kya bhai? Akele akele? Saddened beyond words. Allah aapko jannat me aala makaam de. You’ll be missed always. Om Shanti.”

Vishal Dadlani also took to his Instagram story to express his condolence saying, “What a loss! This is terrible news!” His music partner and friend Shekhar Ravjiani also posted, “The world of music is poorer today… we have lost one of the most precious people to have lit up our world with his immense talent and more importantly his beautiful soul… Rest In Peace Sir”.

Among others, singer Papon also posted an emotional message saying, “I don’t feel like posting this but here it is! The worst news ever! My bhai in the real sense! The most amazing human being and by far the best classical voice ever for me, the maestro of rooh aawaaz and gaayaki left us just like that! Bohat kuch karna thaa aapko aur! This is not done! This is really not done! The biggest lost for Indian music! I don’t know what to say .. words can’t say what I mean! This is just so wrong! Aapunak bohut miss korim …”

I don’t feel like posting this but here it is! The worst news ever! My bhai in the real sense! The most amazing human being and by far the best classical voice ever for me, the maestro of rooh aawaaz and gaayaki left us just like that! Bohat kuch karna thaa aapko aur! This is not… pic.twitter.com/UZXbFPRcTz - papon angaraag (@paponmusic) January 9, 2024

Musician Harshdeep Kaur added, “Extremely sad news… Ustad Rashid Khan Ji passes away… this is a huge loss to the world of music. He will always be remembered for his excellence in music and his voice will reverberate in our hearts forever. Rest in Peace #RashidKhan Saab”.

Extremely sad news… Ustad Rashid Khan Ji passes away… this is a huge loss to the world of music. He will always be remembered for his excellence in music and his voice will reverberate in our hearts forever ???????? Rest in Peace #RashidKhan Saab ???????? pic.twitter.com/4kbact6kBT - Harshdeep Kaur (@HarshdeepKaur) January 9, 2024

[monicascot]

Sanware Tore Bina | Bandit Queen | Raag Jog | Covered by Karthik Mohan

Sanware Tore Bina is a song from the Movie Bandit Queen, set in Raag Jog, it is about a heart that yearns to be with the loved one. Raag Jog has similarities with Naatai raga in Carnatic music. Where Naatai is used in devotional and up beat songs, Raag Jog's notations have a more melancholic vibe. Original Song: Sanware Tore Bina Music Director:Nusrat Fatheh Ali Khan Movie: Bandit Queen

[kemetic-dreams]

Spiritual jazz (or astral jazz)[1] is a sub-genre of jazz that originated in the United States during the 1960s. The genre is hard to characterize musically but draws from free, avant-garde and modal jazz and thematically focuses on transcendence and spirituality. John Coltrane's 1965 album A Love Supreme is considered landmark in the genre.

Origins

Pharoah Sanders in 1981.

Critics usually associate spiritual jazz with the 1960s but the beginnings of the genre can be traced to the 1940s and 1950s in works such as Black, Brown and Beige by Duke Ellington, Zodiac Suite by Mary Lou Williams, and Jazz at the Vespers by George Lewis.

During the 1960s in the United States, the civil rights movement was occurring, causing societal change and political movements. As a result, African-American people gained more freedom to celebrate their culture and to express themselves religiously. This led to a desire to push the conventions of jazz, with some artists choosing to search for transcendence and spirituality in their music.

John Coltrane's 1965 album A Love Supreme is generally considered the genesis of spiritual jazz though Coltrane can be heard developing the sound on the song "Spiritual" recorded four years earlier. Treblezine wrote "Spiritual jazz begins, essentially, with John Coltrane," while Pitchfork wrote "This musical exploration [of spirituality] was epitomized by tenor saxophonist John Coltrane". A Love Supreme and other works by John Coltrane inspired other jazz musicians to create music searching for transcendence. For example, Pharoah Sanders and Don Cherry were considered to have taken inspiration from Coltrane's spiritual works.

After John Coltrane's death in 1967, his wife Alice Coltrane and Sanders—both who had previously played with Coltrane—were some of the first to continue the sound of the genre. Coltrane's 1971 album Journey in Satchidananda combined spiritual jazz with influences from Hindustani classical music, after her journey into spirituality with help from Swami Satchidananda. Journey in Satchidananda used ragas, harps, sitars, and ouds to achieve its sound. Pharoah Sanders took inspiration from Arabic, Indian, and Afro-Cuban music to create early spiritual jazz albums, including Tauhid (1967) and Karma

[somerabbitholes]

I always come for book recs but this time I'm here for sogs/artists recs. Do you or any of your followers have any hindi/Urdu/any regional language non-bollywood song recs? My playlists are lacking!

hi! here's what i have, and i hope everyone adds onto the list. i would also love more music!

just a bunch of gazals

marathi music

vaguely classical maharashtrian stuff

music in a bunch of languages other than english

hindustani classical (instrumental)

kumar gandharva

this is called home, which is just some old music that's almost always playing at my home

[orgasming-caterpillar]

DOYH: Music Taste

Ranveer Kashyap

classical music is life (both Hindustani and Carnatic)

Lata Mangeshkar, Muhammad Rafi and Kishore Kumar fanboy to the core

will occasionally turn on a qawwali (doesnt want to admit that he's obsessed)

is very picky in english songs, but likes Hozier, Sleeping At Last, and Frank Sinatra

Raghav Patil

knows how to play acoustic and electric guitar

had a rock/punk phase in high school (only with music tho) and still likes them

boy's got Arctic Monkeys and Mother Mother in his blood

fell in love with retro bollywood music after he plugged into one of ranveer's playlists

he is… SO DRAMATIC. Like,, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan level of dramatic. Played Zaroori Tha in his head while crying in chapter 17

Madhuri Gaikwad

oh she's THAT girl

has a beautiful voice, wants to be like her favorite (Asha Bhosle)

can recite every hindi item song by heart, especially old bollywood ones. Chikni chameli? Ek do teen? Badi mushkil? Chane ke khet mein? She knows them all.

surprisingly, she also knows a lot of aartiyaan and mantras, catch her singing Madhurashtakam at any time of the day.

Manorama Shankar

MARWADI SONGS

is lowkey embarrassed by them usually, but push her onto the dance floor in a rajasthani wedding, and she's killing it on every single beat.

has a gym playlist

has a whole playlist of bollywood loverboy songs for madhuri, sings them at random times to make her blush

Shrishti Kaur

HOZIER LESBIAN

mitski too

hates mainstream bollywood songs

likes hard vocals, more for practicing than for listening because she likes pushing her limits

[pearlgisa]

qala and the style over substance argument

so, i watched qala (dir. by anvita dutt) immediately when it came out - a story that exposed the music industry and the position of women in it, especially focusing on the toxic nature of indian classical music? it was like they made the film for me (someone who's spent a good chunk of their life trained in hindustani classical music). however, i was sorely disappointed.

in essence, qala, along with other films that did commercially well that came out in bollywood last year, solidified my understanding that the audience of today's generation of movie-watchers genuinely puts style over substance and in fact, uses it as a way to defend their favourite movies from criticism. the recent resurgence of praise for om shanti om of all films, only strengthened this opinion.

my criticisms for qala are in plenty, yet i will choose to expand on the ones that strike out the most to me, all of which range from the lightest to the harshest criticism:

the choice of music

the acting

the direction + writing

the handling of the serious issues that are the main theme of the film

before you read ahead, please know that there are spoilers.

in indian classical music, there are two distinct forms: hindustani (or, north indian) and carnatic (or south indian) music. each have their differences and similarities and even someone who hasn't trained can tell them apart upon listening. within hindustani music - which is the genre of music that qala learns from her mother - you have many different styles of singing, ranging from shastriya sangeet (classical form of singing) to laghu sangeet (semi-classical and sometimes, light music). of course, this categorization also has its roots in religion and caste. shastriya sangeet has forms of singing like dhrupad (the oldest form and a strictly devotional medium), khyal (the most common one, telling tales or speaking of human emotions), bhajan (also a devotional medium), etc.

laghu sangeet has forms of classical music like the thumri, a form of singing popularized and invented by courtesans. the lyrics were sensual, romantic and more explicit. of course, owing to these, they were looked down upon. even the british had a huge role in diminishing the status of indian women performers. the "other woman" concept was specifically one that they propagated and the rise of the "perfect housewife" phenomena began since the seventeenth century. the extreme effect of that? the courtesans lost out on their patrons and were forced into prostitution.

hence, that was the primary history behind qala's mother, urmila, shaming her into never being a performer, i.e, in a more derogatory term, a "singing girl". a courtesan, essentially. which is accurate, considering the film is set in the 1940s. if a girl was too "out there in the world", i.e, her achievements being publicised in newspapers or her getting recognition for her academics, her future marital prospects were ruined. and the "shame" that befell the family if she was learning music or dance was worse. a significant number of the prominent female musicians that emerged from this era of pre-independence to post-independence were unmarried. or they had many patrons and salacious rumours regarding their love life were in plenty. the film pakeezah (1972) explores such themes quite well. and the many renditions and retellings of devdas also serve as a good example of the stature of performing women.

however, it's the music itself where it goes wrong for me. the choice of songs as well as qala's singing (of course, all of qala's songs are sung by the amazing sireesha bhagavatula), is in a style all too similar to laghu singing. the years of egregious training, no matter how much her mother dismissed her, would've developed a voice which would've sounded a lot more like what a lot of classical singers would sound like, unless they were singing a lighter form of singing. and it isn't a matter of pitch or using falsetto. qala's mom is referred to as a master of qawallis, which is a sufi form of devotional singing (and comes well under hindustani music too). even the lyrics of qala's songs, while full of very obvious foreshadowing, do not match the overall orthodox classical upbringing that the film portrays.

while bhagavatula has an amazing voice well versed in classical music (especially since she sings bhajans so often), considering the time that qala was set in, you would've expected a sound similar to something along the lines of noor jehan or even roshan ara begum. instead, it sounds a lot like a mix of semi-classical instrumental with a more pop-based voice. which is easier for our generation to digest and consume, however, it comes at the cost of a sound which is very typical of the 50s-70s era of bollywood.

one that qala does right are the costumes. they do their job well. not the sets as much, which i will get into later. at some points, they are well in line with the rest of the era of the film, other times it just sticks out like a sore thumb. here's where the "symbolism" comes in.

one of the most jarring examples is the song qala sings at the first performance, a very light classical song just by the sound of the vocals. even the song jagan sings is very contemporary at its core. despite the characters having an allegedly strict, traditional schooling of music (jagan's voice is devoid of the typical heavy accent or dialects that those who are from underprivileged backgrounds tends to have), the songs at hand present a very modern take on qawallis, despite bollywood being a flourishing ground for many iconic qawallis. therefore, the compositions sometimes falter at some points specifically because of the vocal choices. choosing to do away with alaaps, especially in qala's part, less aakar and more bariki, are all signficant details that feel jarring to someone who's lived in the world of classical music as long as qala. otherwise, there are some signature sounds retained from the era that the film is set in.

and while still on the topic of singing, a very important issue that i find least addressed is the acting of it. despite there being little vocal variations in the compositions, the actors don't show that they are singing. and in the film specifically revolving around music, that's an extremely important detail that i find amiss. hardly opening the mouth, the movement of the lips, the posture as well as the hand gestures (yes, a very important detail!), are all obvious flaws. a recent film that does that does those details well is the disciple (2020). the first scene of urmila teaching qala singing displays urmila wearing an elaborate piece of nose jewellery that covers half of her mouth, and that's when they're doing rehyaas (practice), not a performance. it's huge details like these that don't sell the film to me.

the acting is quite underwhelming and here is where disagreements with my opinions might enter. i find trupti dimri's rendition of qala extremely, for lack of politer words, exasperating. she tends to show the same expressions for all of her problems, i.e., there is no great difference between her feeling anger or feeling despair or feeling depressed or feeling cheated or just plain exhaustion. qala's character is a complex one and difficult to act, which is a concession i will give, however, the hype around her is a little unnerving when the audience is given such an unremarkable delivery of dialogues and emotion. it comes off as school-play acting at times. swastika mukherjee, who plays urmila, is quite two-note with her acting, which sometimes suits her character and sometimes just feels very low-effort. babil khan has his moments, yet there is such less versatility. you'd think the babil of qala's hallucinations and the one who existed in real life would have some distinct characteristics (which they do), but they never come off as that. it feels so half-hearted at times.

the whole point of symbolism is that it's subtle at heart and not on the face. qala has on-the-face symbolism, which is an irony in itself. the black swan scene, the frosty room in the beginning, the ghostly jagan, etc. almost made me bump my nose into a wall. it comes off as pretentious at best, as if the viewer is stupid. it is also very off-putting in some scenes. for example, the black swan scene - there is very little buildup and it feels very predictable in the sense that "it all goes downhill from here". however, there is one scene which i like, which is the gargoyle one (a very traumatic scene, for those who recall, it is the one right before ghodey pe sawaar gets recorded for the final time). i think that is the most effective filmmaking in the entire film. the best thing about symbolism is always the subtlety. it makes the viewer keep coming back to pick up on something they might have missed in the first watch, it helps them pick up the pieces along the way instead of being able to tell the twists thirty minutes before they are revealed.

and one of the most egregious crimes of the entire film is the direction. here is where we get a little more technical (but just briefly, do not worry). the way it cuts from one scene to the next is like watching a poorly edited reel put out by the team of an out-of-touch marketing firm. the editing could have been better at many places. the writing falls flat specifically when it comes to the characters. i'm pretty sure on paper, the script must've been a delight to read. the story has so much potential - considering that it's based on two books, where there might've been even more depth given to the characters - it isn't new in any way but it offers a different, feminist perspective of the indian music industry. yet, the characters are paper thin on screen - in their ambitions, psychology and sociology. hence, urmila suddenly turning a new leaf in the last ten minutes of the film is something that feels wrong, because all along, she has been portrayed as a heartless mother. qala's actions make sense because her character has nearly always been rooted in self pity and rage. jagan is nothing without music. there is very little dimension to them apart from me summarizing their characters in one sentence with less than thirty words each.

that is why, the film feels even more half-hearted when it speaks of the issues that it centers around. all of these elements add up and make for a tiring watch. i gave qala a second chance, to be fair and omitted some of my pettier criticisms, yet the more serious ones remain. to a certain extent, it does aestheticize depression, which i have a huge issue with. however, baby steps as always with bollywood. it's no dear zindagi considering it is set in a different period with a different ending. however, the writing of the characters could've been so much better. a little more exploration of urmila's intentions would've given her so much depth. a few more interactions between qala and jagan might've given qala the chance to befriend him and not just see him a rival, thus intensifying the decision she took. the characters do not feel human, they are strictly white or black and qala being the anti-hero feels very off since it requires better writing and a stronger plot. and of course, much better acting.

however, qala re-opened up discussion of a nearly-always forgotten discourse - that of the position of women in music. and for achieving that bare minimum, i give it full credit. however, when there have been films with much better writing, characterization and cinematography in bollywood itself, with a similar theme, qala needs to be seen for what it contains than what it displays. just because it glitters, doesn't mean it's gold.

[bollywoodirect]

Today marks the 42nd death anniversary of Bharat Vyas, the writer of the timeless prayer song “Aye Malik Tere Bande Hum” and many other classic songs in various films. Bharat Vyas was a leading lyricist of the golden era of Hindi film music, writing songs for movies in the 1950s and 1960s. He was well-known for his work with the famous director V. Shantaram, penning lyrics for many memorable songs. Some of his notable films include Navrang, Goonj Uthi Shehnai, Rani Rupmati, Do Aankhen Barah Haath, Kavi Kalidas, Saranga, Janam Janam Ke Phere, and Stree. Born in Churu, Rajasthan on December 18, 1918, he moved to Bombay after finishing his studies in Calcutta. Bharat Vyas began his Bollywood career as a lyricist with Duhaai (1943), writing all nine songs for the film. The music of Duhaai caught the attention of producer-director W. Z. Ahmed, who owned Shalimar Pictures. At Shalimar, Bharat Vyas wrote 12 songs for the film Prem Sangeet. His major success at Shalimar was Man Ki Jeet (1944), where his song “Aye Chand Na Itarana, Aate Hein Mere Sanyya” became a big hit. He developed a close working relationship with composer Khemchand Prakash, creating musicals like Ziddi, Bijalee, Tamasha, and Muqaddar. The 1950s were the most productive years for Bharat Vyas. He collaborated with top directors like Bimal Roy, V. Shantaram, and Vijay Bhatt. During this time, he wrote some of the most beautiful songs for films like Chandralekha, Parineeta, Toofan Aur Diya, Do Aankhen Barah Haath, Sahara, Anhulimal, Suvarna Sundari, Kavi Kalidas, Navrang, Goonj Uthi Shehnai, Rani Rupmati, Saranga, Janam Janam Ke Phere, Hum Hindustani, Stree, and Boond Jo Ban Gayi Moti. He also tried his hand at film direction with Rangeela Rajasthani (1949) and a few other Rajasthani films. Despite his success with many social films, Bharat Vyas became typecast as a lyricist for historical and mythological films, with most of his work in the 1960s falling into these genres. He continued to work through the 1970s and early 1980s, but the number of films he worked on decreased during this period. Bharat Vyas passed away in Mumbai on July 5, 1982. At the time of his death, he was working on a project to present the Ramayana in poetic form, set to music by Shyam Sagar. He was also directing two Rajasthani films. A brilliant poet, Bharat Vyas is remembered for his pure Hindi. Anyone with an appreciation for the language can quickly recognize his genius.

[zindagi-se-darte-ho]

The Natyashastra, an essential text on performing arts in ancient India, lists 8 sthayibhavas or stable emotions.

I found reading about them very interesting and wish to take you through them with a few moodboards, of these moods essential for every Indian art form.

1. Rati (रति): Love, Romance, Attractiveness.

2. Hasya (हास्य): Mirth, Laughter, Jocosity

3. Soka (शोक): Sorrow, Misery, Despair

4. Krodha (क्रोध): Anger, Fury, Vex

5. Utsaha (उत्साह): Excitement, Eagerness, Anticipation

6. Vismaya (विस्मय): Astonishment, Perplexity, Surprise

7. Bhaya (भय): Fear, Terror, Fright

8. Jugupsa (जुगुप्सा): Disgust, Abhorrence, Detestation

[pandora15]

চারিদিকে এত English এর মাঝে একটুখানি বাংলা লেখা বা পড়ার আনন্দই আলাদা। তাই না?

At least, I think so.

Much to my own shame, my Bangla knowledge is extremely limited, even more so by the fact that I learned the alphabet a long time ago and barely remember how to write simple sentences.

I tried my best, but ultimately had to put this in Google Translate, which I feel like partially defeats the purpose of your ask, so I'm sorry! Not just for having to do that, but for answering in English because, again, I can barely formulate sentences in Bangla. I can understand it well when people speak it to me, but speaking it and reading/writing it is really tough for me.

Anyways,

Yes, I absolutely agree. Even though I know so little of the language, I think it's absolutely beautiful. I'm very proud to be Bengali. And reading or writing what little I know does feel really nice :)

I hope to get back in touch with the Bengali/Indian part of me once I have a bit more time — I used to take Hindustani Classical Music lessons when I was a child and I learned a lot of Bangla songs, especially Rabindra Sangeet from my old teacher. I have a lot of memories that I cherish from that time, like learning to pronounce Bangla words and understanding what these songs actually mean while expanding my knowledge of music. My voice isn't what it used to be (thanks, puberty), but I think I still have it in me, and my love of music always reigns eternal.

Anyways, this probably isn't the answer you were hoping for, but I hope this gets across what it means to me to be Bengali, even though my language skills are horrendous 😅

[jukti-torko-golpo]

Soooooo I feel brave again. And incredibly touched by some of the compliments I have received. And this time it is audacious. I have attempted classical. LMFAAAOOO.

This is a mashup of 3 songs btw.

I learnt hindustani classical for exactly 3 years and then quit...which I kinda regret ngl. But IMMENSE RESPECT for anyone who can sing.

Disclaimer : I still CANNOT sing.

Suffer :

@callonpeevesie @kermithermit @shaonharryandpannisim @jasmineiros @herawell @cynicalities @paneerlajwanti @ragalata @beingdevipdf @adoginthemanger @burningqueentimemachine @kingweaslee @seekerbrave @peace-punch-captainhunch @laad-governess @medhasree @a-confusedmess @vaijayantheee @the-slythering-raven @travalerray @strawberryphrogg @cipher-dorito @salt-n-caramel @your-favourite-skittles @azureblupdf @lovechildofamyrosagina @dhyanshiva @inexhaustible-sources-of-magic @balladofableedinggod2112 @medusasprotegedaughter @cosmicdreams1111 @chaoticaindica-deactivated20230 @prachi1729 @caffeinated-pingu @fineliine @lookintomyfuckineyes @jalebi-weds-bluetooth @blankdimaag @cat-alkali-hates-themself @brutalrebelkid @jugn00 @himasikta @roshanee @just-another-godless-god @kaal-naagin @sanskari-kanya

[b-sai-des]

A New Frontier: South Asian Fusion

In terms of any actual formal music knowledge, I come from the side of Carnatic music, the Indian classical music style, having been learning the mridangam for around ten years under my guru, Sri T.S Nandakumar. I am always eternally grateful for all that he has done for all of us students, and one of the many things I admire about sir is his willingness to explore unconventional avenues with the mridangam. The mridangam is a two-sided barrel drum usually played as an accompanying instrument in a Carnatic piece that may feature vocals or violin, and veena as well. Nandakumar sir is a renowned accompanying artist, but he’s also given his students many opportunities to perform like chamber concerts and arangetrams. One really unique thing he’s done is a large orchestra of mridangams and other Carnatic percussion instruments at the Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival, which he’s done for multiple years and encouraged even younger students to practice and perform there. It’s unusual for the mridangam to take such a center stage like that, where you have around 100 players playing together in an epic display alongside veena and violin. It was also cool to see Nandakumar sir bringing in western drums into those performances as well, along with drum pads there and in other performances. Having that exposure from a young age really opened my eyes to the potential of Carnatic music elements in contexts that you don’t normally see, and I got curious about what else is capable. Carnatic music for example utilizes many, many different talams (time signatures) apart from just 4:4 (Adi in Carnatic music), and it would be really interesting to see how that could be utilized more generally.

South Asian fusion is a huge, diverse space that’s hard to really pigeon-hole because of how many types of South Asian music there are (Carnatic is just one, there’s also Hindustani, Sufi music, folk music, Bhangra, etc.), along with different genres that they are mixed with like jazz, rock, pop, etc. You had mingling in the past, like Ravi Shankar and The Beatles. Later on it grew, definitely a more recent phenomenon and likely accelerated due to immigration and assimilation in the west. Younger generations are really at the forefront on it  – you see a ton of high school and college clubs doing Indian music or dance fusion. Rutgers has many, including RU Dhol for example. Some of these student clubs lean more on the side of Bollywood-oriented stuff, and there are times that can overshadow other ways to explore the genres – my sister sometimes talks about how the South Asian fusion club she’s part of really neglects classical dance forms like Bharatanatyam or Kathak. In that club it’s seen as the less hip thing, and people will say “it’s cool that you’re so confident to perform that” rather than actually having an interest in it and the people who want to share it. Then again, I'm talking about high-school pettiness here – it's not like this everywhere. RU Dhol combines South Asian instruments and styles of playing with western equivalents. This performance places electric guitars next to the Indian classical violin style in a really fun way.

One of my biggest experiences with South Asian fusion is with Brooklyn Raga Massive. My aunt is a Bharatanatyam teacher, and in 2018 or so she had collaborated with a theater director for a production of Jungle Book, where her students performed Bharatanatyam in a song. After the show, we had met some of the other musicians involved in the show, since my cousin learns Carnatic singing, my sister Bharatanatyam, and I mridangam, and we talked to a percussionist who was part of Brooklyn Raga Massive. He had told us about them – they do daily events at a Prospect Heights venue along with bigger events and performances, and he encouraged us to come on a Thursday where they hold an open mic jam session. We definitely got excited about this, and we went one evening.

The venue was a real hole in the wall type bar with a small stage and seating area in the back, and there was a decent and rather diverse crowd of people. Dim lights and creaky wooden floors, very aesthetic. It’s interesting because now they’ve grown immensely as an organization, and I don’t believe they still have events at this place. It was really cool to see the really different talents displayed there – one woman performed a really interesting singing performance which now I can’t pinpoint what style it was. You also had more traditional classical instruments like tabla and sitar. What’s really cool is that even though I was only in eight grade and my cousin was only in ninth grade, they gave both of us the opportunity to play with them, and they were super friendly and inviting, even despite any mistakes or hesitation I had. There were no judgments, just the spirit of experimenting and playing. I still look at that night with a lot of fondness. 

What I played that day, it was really incredible to get that opportunity and for it to be so low-key and welcoming. My cousin is also there on the stage (dressed in white), he’s an incredibly skilled Carnatic vocalist.

Recently I was inspired by all this and for my midterm assignment for the class I’m writing this for, I made a music track with mridangam and electronic effects in Ableton (free trial came clutch). I initially spent a lot of time worrying about doing it right and perfectly planning everything, but it only came together when I just let go of that and just messed around, re-arranging recordings of me playing and layering effects. Just doing it was fun, and I learned a lot from it.

shameless plug to my video

There’s a free-ness with something like this that’s a really different experience from traditional Carnatic music. At the same time, there’s a level of playfulness with Carnatic music too, as when you’re playing on stage you don’t practice with the other artist beforehand, and what happens there is often unexpected and exciting, and I’m reminded of that when I see jazz music too. To me says a lot about the inherent commonalities in what makes music so rewarding to make and experience.

[monicascot]

Nalinakaanthi Raagam | Manavyalakincharadate | Indian fusion classical cover |Karthik Mohan

I have been looking forward to producing this song for the longest time. Composed in Nalinakaanthi, it is one of the most beautiful Carnatic songs composed by the great saint Thyagaraja. The true poetic nature of such songs can be understood and felt only in the language in which the song was written, in this case, Telugu. The song is sung in praise of Lord Rama who decided to incarnate himself on the earth and taught us the path of self-virtue and righteousness so we can free ourselves from the cycle of birth and death.

[rachayita98-blog]

That's How I Know Taylor Swift

It was the summer of 2009, I was in the 5th grade. My sister had come home for her vacation. Her friend came over to exchange home assignments and also transfer some new music collection to our PC. Those were the days of PCs and pendrives. I had this curiosity to sit by the PC when someone was working on it and observe carefully whatever was being done–the files transferred, the keyboard shortcuts used and the entire technological mechanism seemed enthralling to me since always. As her friend, whom I called Dada (Brother) was doing his work, I kept staring at the monitor and kept tracking all the new music folders that were being pasted on our PC. Dada asked, " Do you listen to Western music? I have some cool collection". My sister was least interested because she was a Hindustani Classical singer and listened to Hindi songs only. My eleven-year old mind was open to some novelty. I said "Transfer whatever new music you have". My sister was crazy about the Twilight movie which was a huge phenomenon back then. She read the novel in her hostel and became a fan of Edward Cullen a.k.a Robert Pattinson. But it was difficult to watch the movie without the subtitles, obviously.

Having exchanged their assignments which was to be submitted to their school after the vacation, Dada left – left me fascinated to explore the brand new music, the Western music!

I was also being trained in Hindustaani Classical music along with my sister but I was always highly intrigued by the west; never quite had any exposure to it....and this was my golden opportunity to unlock the treasure!

I sat down and began my treasure hunt. My sister got busy with her projects and I, opening every folder that was created on the PC on a lookout for the music files. And finally found a folder which contained songs by various Western artists whose names I had never even heard of. There was Akon, Enrique, Owl City, Elvis Presley, Bryan Adams and all these were so, so new to me. I began playing those songs one by one and was so deeply moved by their musicality. But I couldn't comprehend the lyrics. We had BSNL broadband back then which gave 1 GB of data for monthly usage. It was a huge thing, I must say. I Googled and discovered azlyrics.com and lo! My work was half done. I played those songs on Windows Media Player and read the lyrics from the Chrome browser. And that was my entry to the world of Western music.

Akon 's "I'm So Paid" was a regular on-loop on my Philips mp3 player. Also, listened to "Lonely" and other hits by Akon. And then, I grooved to Summer of '69, Blue Suede Shoes, I Want It That Way, Somebody's Me, and several other superhits by various Western artists of the time.

One day, I found a folder that had some songs by female artists. There was a song titled "Butterfly Fly Away" and "I Miss You" by Miley Cyrus. Well, I had no idea who she was but I played those songs anyway. These songs were comparatively easier to understand and sing along. So, reading the lyrics from the browser tab, I began singing along. And that's how I learnt singing Western song!

Now, I was greedy to explore more female artists from the Western world. And then I found a video folder. God I tell you, that was the hidden treasure unlocked!

I found the music videos of Taylor Swift!!!

There were videos of Crazier, White Horse, Teardrops on my Guitar, Love Story, You Belong With Me and a few other. I was so deeply fascinated and enthralled and moved and touched by her voice that I decided she's going to be the Inspiration to my Western singing....and there was no looking back.

To understand her music, I didn't need azlyrics.com because she was so fluent and easy on her diction and pronunciation that I quickly understood and caught up with her songs. The soft melody in her voice and the beauty in her lyricals were just incredible to me. I instantly fell in deep love and admiration for Taylor Swift.

Next up, I began Googling other songs by her– her albums , latest releases and also her photos for my desktop wallpaper! She was my obsession, my guide, my mentor, my friend and most of all, my Guru. She was and is with me through the best of times and the darkest of phases. She has been my constant.

She taught me to be Fearless and to Speak Now without being so conscious of the Reputation built in people's minds. She left a Blank Space in my heart which is only to be filled by her. She inspired me to survive through the darkest Midnights and make it up with any Bad Blood. She has my heart and soul, and I know it All too Well.

Fun fact: I performed her songs playing the guitar in school and college events. Crazier being the first one, followed by Safe and Sound, Red, and several more to go!