RFD: Indian music

There's a slew of early nineties bhangra on Multitone and other labels I've got around, really good pop drawing together from a variety of sources. I expect Timbaland had a few copies himself. ;-)

know anything? yes, a bit. i'm far from considering myself an expert but i do know a bit about it. what do you want to know in general? instruments? forms and structures? i want to ask this first because this could become a very long post otherwise.

icm is probably most comparable to jazz, modal onwards. there are no chord changes, which is often the hardest thing for western ears (or "honkies," as i call them) to get around. there is a drone, plucked and resonated on an instrument called the tambura. rhythms are more intricate and elaborate than western ones. fine microtones are used. you need to listen to the rhythms and the subtleties of pitch to get into it.

while there is a drone, the music does not work entirely in the same way as minimalism. on the one hand, it does sort of hold you in an ethereal state but it's not a steady trancey state in the same way. there is development, climax, and resolution in the elaboration of the rhythms and in melodic development and improvisation.

a common type of piece will typically begin with a slow unmetred section where the pitches that will be used are introduced and then move into a rhythmic section, which grows more intense and improvisational.

some karnatak artists:

vocal: vocal music is more important in k music. even instrumental pieces are based on songs. i saw sudha raghunathan a couple weeks ago. she was very good. a light but versatile voice.

m. s. subbalakshmi is probably the most renowned performer and you should hear her if you're going to get into k vocal music. her un concert from 1983 is probably in print.

nagamani srinath is an incredible singer whom i saw in concert last summer. she has a bit of a more "leathery" voice than sr. a lot of character and incredible range and versatility. she can do some sort of meredith monk-ish freak-outs.

dr balamuralikrishnan is a male singer. he has a deep, forceful voice.

veena: the only artist i'm really familiar with here is dr s balachandar, who has played some really beautiful, touching, exciting music. i have the _dikshitar krithis_ album, which is great. violin: lalgudi jayraman is the man to check out. some truly evocative music. a lot of people seem to admire l subramaniam but i heard one album and it was wank.

flute: search dr ramani.

hindustani:

i know less about this style.

vocal: pandit bhimsen joshi has a fascinating voice. it's sort of light and sleepy but can shift into intense spazz-out sessions that would scare diamanda galas.

sitar: well, ravi shankar is famous but don't hold it against him. he has a lot of great music that is easily available. avoid any western collaborations. the one with phil glass is especially abject.

vilayat khan is another performer to listen to here.

flute: search hariprasad chaurasiya. his collaborations with sharma, a santur (a gorgeous bell-like hammered dulcimer) player, are especially nice.

I've been listening to the Doob Doob O'rama compilation a lot lately. It seems like a good place to start for Bollywood soundtrack stuff. I still find the trebly sound hard to get used to.

I've been snapping up Bollywood compilations at a rate of knots and now want to try a few full soundtracks to see how those work for me. Right now I'm really in love with the stuff though.

Bollywood music - I absolutely love a very small percentage of it, and absolutely hate the shrill female parts that plague most of it.

So, I'll leave a few recommendations and ask for further ones.

One . The soundtrack to Gadar is absolutely brilliant. There are a few songs on there, and then some songs get repeated over and over. Start here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9fAELKr_Bo

two Then there is a track from Yadein, with a cool beat to it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLsecMB75p0

Yes, bordering on shrill, but for the most part pulls away. And if you've heard any of the worst stuff, this is almost a tenor vocal.

The other one I really like is the Kronos quartet, where they rework all the Bollywood classics with Asha Bhosle.

Is there anything contemporary that compares to these that anyone else might pass on?

Can anyone recommend me some traditional Indian folk music? I mean I've heard tons of Bollywood and love it but that's totally not what I'm looking for. I want the trance-like sitar noodley stuff that goes on for long periods of time and remind you of something like Spacemen 3.

There is a tremendous amount of stuff out there that touches on Indian folk sounds. Particular titles aren't coming to me at the moment, but off the bat I'd say search the Sublime Frequencies catalog. One of the more interesting Indian things I've heard is Debashish Bhattacharya's 'Hindustani Slide Guitar' which provides interesting interpretations of Indian ragas(classical/sacred pieces).

Thanks! Yeah, I feel like there's so much and I'm SO unacquainted with it that I just have no clue where to start.

Ravi Shankar

Ravi is amazing, definitely more in the classical end of things than the folk end. Sitar music, with its extensive use of microtones, can severely expand one's musical head.

TBH I don't even know if it's actually "folk" and not "classical"! I am just sort of assuming. I just know it has sitar and it's a lot of moving up and down the scale and has this droney trancelike effect and I could just listen to it for like hours on end and not get bored.

I mean have you guys heard Spacemen 3's "Dreamweapon"?

Yes "Dreamweapon" is amazing. Check out these sites for further research:

http://www.poetseers.org/lin/free_indian_music_downloads/

http://www.chandrakantha.com/articles/indian_music/sitar.html

http://www.roopverma.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sitar_in_popular_music

Maximum India Festival coming to the Kennedy Center in W. DC. Whom should I go see:

http://www.kennedy-center.org/programs/festivals/10-11/india/events.cfm?genre=MUS

Shrinivas, totally. I would go see him live if I had the chance.

Then again, I could see you being more into some of the dance-oriented folkloric stuff listed.

You're right.

U. Shrinivas is tonight 6 to 7 US Eastern time. It will be streamed on the Kennedy Center's website. Wow, was watching a youtube video of him last night. His mandolin playing is practically psychedelic with reverb and more.

Emily Wax, The Washington Post's outgoing India bureau chief, looked over the festival's schedule and offered these recommendations. (For complete listings of events, visit kennedy-center.org/india.)

Music

The Manganiyar Seduction

Recently, my husband and I braved New Delhi's thick Saturday night traffic to take our seats on the grounds of the Purana Qila, a Mughal-era fort. We were there to listen to the Manganiyar Seduction, three dozen Muslim musicians, performing a blend of sultry Sufi and Hindu mystic songs in one continuous one-hour piece.

It turned out to be one of the most magical nights of my four years in India. The musicians are stacked in red boxes - four high, nine across - that light up to reveal the players as they perform. As more musicians join in and the music builds, so does the intensity of the light. March 19 and 20.

Dance

Madhavi Mudgal and Alarmel Valli in "Samanvaya: A Coming Together"

They are known as India's divas of dance. Their exquisitely bejeweled faces appear in oil paintings at performance halls across India. While Michael Jackson-style dancing has taken over much of Bollywood, two of India's foremost dancing queens are keeping classical dance relevant and exciting. March 2.

Literature panel

Imagining the City

More than ever, India's youths are abandoning the country's poorer rural areas for the promise of independence and social mobility in cities such as New Delhi and Mumbai. Few people know the innards of an Indian city as well as Suketu Mehta, author of "Maximum City." Mehta and other panelists will share the energizing story of India's urban dreams. March 13.

Film

"Does Gandhi Matter?"

The festival's film series highlights the artists and activists who shaped India's self-image. The documentary "Does Gandhi Matter?" promises to be a provocative exploration of attitudes among present-day Indian youths toward Mahatma Gandhi, India's founding father. Are Gandhi's messages against violence and materialism still relevant as a younger, more urbanized India surges ahead? March 16.

Kaleidoscope

Mapping India's Crafts

For my money, India has the best shopping in the world. Each region produces its own delicious fun. From the North's kitchy renderings of hand-painted Indian trucks to the South's elegant brass oil lamps, all of India's crafts are infused with their own history and meaning. Watch live demonstrations and pick up a funky chachka or a tribal tapestry with a story. Ongoing; ends March 20.

Watched some of Shrinivas and band's set streaming on the K. Ctr. site. Good but slightly more mellow than I hoped for.

I need to get over to the K. Ctr and see the art, eat the food, and see the music and dance going on through the 20th. A few performers are going to NY or touring after this, but many are not.

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/clicktrack/2011/03/in_concert_u_shrinivas_at_mill.html

Interesting Mark Jenkins take on Shrinivas and the whole Maximum India festival

I need to video stream "Rhythms of Rajasthan" from last night's Kennedy Center Millennium Stage gig

W. Post classical critic not wowed by the results created with tabla player Zakir Hussain and vocalists Shankar Mahadevan and Hariharan playing with the National Symphony Orchestra.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/03/04/AR2011030400118.html

From the orchestra's point of view, though, the problem with this kind of world-music crossover initiative is that the orchestra ends up sounding nerdy. Although Indian classical music represents a tradition as rich and complex as that of Western classical music, it's not a language the orchestra speaks fluently, and it would take a composer more deeply versed in the language of the symphony orchestra to create an equivalent that worked.

I didn't see this, and I don't know enough about either genre to comment, but maybe someone else who does might want to weigh in.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHZJIqZJ5vE

Final weekend of Maximum India. I still have to watch some more of the 1 hour gigs archived on the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage portion of their website.

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/performance-and-dance/2011/03/18/maximum-indias-final-three-days/#more-43662

This is making me want some tamarind flavored pilaf.

Can you get that where you currently live?

So while I missed a bunch of Maximum India events because of being busy with family, I am going to this:

Saturday offers the first of two sold-out weekend presentations of “The Manganiyar Seduction.” Combining a “Hollywood Squares” look with the visuals of Amsterdam’s red light district windows, this effort places 43 Rajasthan Indian folk and classical players in 36 red-curtained boxed rooms stacked nine across and four high

Wow. That sounds great.

Can you get that where you currently live?

There are some Indian restaurants here, so maybe, but not conveniently. I've hardly tried any of the Indian places here.

The Maginyar Seduction was awesome. The production has previously been to London, Sydney, and New York City, but the 2 DC gigs were the first US ones outside of last November's NY shows.

Spelling--Manganiyar Seduction

Muslim musicians from the Thar desert region of India

Did anyone see that production in London, NYC, Australia, New Zealand or Singapore? I was wowed.

I also liked a smaller group of Rajasthan musicians who did an hour free set earlier in the fest. And I confess to knowing nothing about the Rajasthan area of India and its musicians till this festival.

I guess I'm the only one who saw it. :(

A booking agency just e-mailed me that in 2013 they will be bringing the Manganiyar Seduction to the US for an extended tour. Hopefully they can get visas. They've had hassles everytime from officials sure that these mostly all Suni Muslim musicians are terrorists

I've got some v energising Rajasthani folk records, some good stuff

I just discovered that style and like it

Whoa, iTunes has like 20 Hariharan albums on sale for $5.99 apiece!

Should I get Ghazals or Great Ghazals? I mean the latter seems like it's the greater album but sometimes the originals are best.

Did you decide?

Nope. I really really just want more music with this vibe:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeaVRC453M0

Can't figure out which album that's from though!

making a mix for a friend's conference and they've asked for 'lively indian music', i'm thinking something kinda modern and slightly westernised, can anyone recommend me a good compilation of this? (vague, i know!)

I dont know of any comps but if you find one please let me know!

Maybe something like this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujnV4bNhnFc&noredirect=1

will do! the mix i'm making is first half indian music going into a 2nd half of 'bloke-rock' which will be a mission to make not sound mental

can someone help me out?

Love: Daler Mehndi, Colonial Cousins, some various Gurbani/Ghazals albums but I still prefer to go more into the pop realm. I feel like there's a ton of good crossover stuff out there but I have no knowledge of this scene.

Basically, looking for more music like this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWNGyeeJJqc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Rz6JfgCJtk

Can anyone recommend a decent book on North Indian classical music? Looking for cultural history, definition of terms, biographies of notable players, etc.

my knowledge of indian music pretty much beins and ends with sampled material. except for this one album of indian classical that my rad friend brought me back on a cassette tape when he visited india once-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCjf7Nl6dqg
shivkumar+rahul sharma - "wanderlust (ode to nature)" (late 90s?)

If there’s anything in particular you’re looking for this is probably one of the only areas where I may be useful

If you just want Indian/Hindustani classical the India Archive Music label by Lyle Wachovsky is great and totally overlooked — most of the recordings are from like ‘89-‘00 so in some cases the artists are past their prime (there are a ton of Vilayat Khan recordings on this label but he was in his 60s/70s at that point, for example — they’re still really good, though!) but the sound quality is pristine and the liner notes are indispensable in pretty much every case. Apparently Lyle paid these artists really well out of his own pocket, like I want to say 10 grand per session I saw somewhere (no way he recouped that in sales), but he then went broke himself in recent years.