#indian instruments ie dhol

[lokh]

ok listened to the bloodywood babymetal collab. it's ok

[globalworship]

‘Pure Joy’ (music & art of India)

You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. – Psalm 16:11

Here is a 2-part song from India by an ensemble featuring sitar and flute, and examples of small paintings from Rajasthan (a state in India) that feature women holding or playing musical instruments - visually representing the ‘wives’ of various ragas.

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Niladri Kumar is the son and disciple of a master sitar player, who was himself a disciple of the famed Ravi Shankar. Niladri began learning the sitar at age 4 and gave his first public performance at age 6. He has performed in many countries and won many awards, and is one of the leading sitarists of the younger generation in India. He has released nearly 20 albums so far. He can play ‘completely traditional’ music as well as ‘world music fusion’ and has also scored music for Bollywood films. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niladri_Kumar

His 2010 album is titled ‘Pure Joy’ and it features famed bansuri (bamboo) flute player Rakesh Chaurasia, the nephew and disciple of the world’s most famous bansuri player. Other instruments in this album’s ensemble include guitar, keyboard, a second flute, and tabla (drums).

The album’s 9 all-instrumental pieces are contemporary music based on particular raags in the classical music system of India. The first 8 pieces are in pairs. Here is the first pair, ‘Pure Joy I & II,’ based on Raag Jhinjhoti. Each part is approximately 10 minutes long, here in 2 videos. 

The first part is an ‘alap’ section played in free rhythm, introducing the notes of the raag. The tala rhythmic cycle (marked on the tabla) begins in part two.

If you listen to both parts of ‘Pure Joy’ it will take 20 minutes, and there are no visuals on the screen besides the album cover. You are encouraged to scroll down and view the beautiful artwork from India while you listen.

My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you— I whom you have delivered. – Psalm 71:23

‘Pure Joy I’

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For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord; I sing for joy at what your hands have done. How great are your works, Lord, how profound your thoughts! – Psalm 92:4-5 (NIV)

‘Pure Joy II’

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“Miniature painting developed during the 10th century in western parts of India now the modern state of Rajasthan.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_painting#Western_Indian_Miniature_Painting

Here are some current examples of paintings from Rajasthan which feature women playing musical instruments. Each woman is actually a “ragini” - a visualized “wife” of a raga/raag. Some ragas are named below, others are not. These contemporary paintings range from 4 X 6 to 7 X 11 inches. They are all for sale on Amazon USA.

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This “is a beautiful watercolor painting with all the finesse of a princess dancing to the beat of a Dhol (drum) in the company of a peacock against a lush natural backdrop.  The Ragini paintings are named for an ancient tradition of Indian miniature paintings which reflect the mood of a young maiden who seeks solace and joy in a imagined world of dematerialized landscape and rhythmic ragas. Ragamala Paintings are a series of illustrative paintings from medieval India based on Ragamala or the ���Garland of Ragas’, depicting various Indian musical modes, Ragas. They stand as a classical example of the amalgamation of art, poetry and classical music in medieval India. The paintings depict not just the Ragas, but also their wives, (raginis).”

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Ragini (wife) of Todi raga, posing with a deer

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“Todi ragini evokes both loving tenderness and sadness, usually represented by a young woman daydreaming about her absent love. She is accompanied by deer against a backdrop of vegetation that emphasize the forest setting and her loneliness.” We also see deer on the far-away hills, a pair of peacocks and a brown bird in the trees, ducks and other waterfowl in the river, and lotus flowers.

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No name of this ragini/raga image is given. You can see henna patterns on the woman’s left hand and left foot.

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The ragini (”wife”) of Kakubha raga.

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Another visualization of the Todi ragini.

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A Rajput princess collecting lotus flowers (the lotus is a symbol of purity). No name is given for this ragini/raga image.

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No name is given for this ragini/raga image.

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Todi ragini visualized with a lamb.

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Todi ragini visualized as playing her veena for the animals in a grove  (c1785-1790).

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You’ll notice that 5 of the 10 paintings in this blog post visualize the ragini (wife) of the Todi raga. You can find detailed ethnomusicology information on this raga at http://www.tanarang.com/english/todi_eng.htm

and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Todi_(raga)

From that second website: Todi is nearly always shown as a gentle, beautiful woman, holding a veena and standing in a lovely green forest, surrounded by deer. Kaufman cites the Sangita-Darpana: "With a fair erect body like the white lotus, and delicate like the gleaming dew drop, Todi holds the veena and provides fun and frolic to the deer deep in the forest. Her body is anointed with saffron and camphor." 

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I’d like to recommend this ‘Ragamala App.’ https://www.amazon.com/Reality-Premedia-Services-Pvt-Ltd/dp/B00H5JQ0BC/ref=sr_1_1?s=mobile-apps&ie=UTF8&qid=1496895865&sr=1-1&keywords=ragamala

Ragamala is a collection of of 26 Ragas

All ragas can be explored through miniature paintings, poetry and music

You can explore the structure of all the ragas in the music module

Create your own painting and poetry based on time, mood and season

This app is useful for music lovers, painting enthusiasts, art collectors and poets to learn about Indian culture and ethos.

Learn more at the link above.

[lokh]

Have you seen Bloodywood's new jam with Babymetal yet, it's so good, Su even sings Bhadula's lyrics as well!

oh man i did see it 😭😭😭 unfortunately i am not a fan adfdbfsdf i love that she sang hindi i thought that was super cool and the song itself was fine, but i feel like it was missing what drew me to bloodywood in the first place