India

Page 2

Sitar
Early 1930s recordings of classical sitar by Enayat Khan

Enayat Khan was an iconic musician of the early 20th century, representing the fifth generation of the Etawah gharana…

May 3, 20201 comment
Poetry
The Ektara: traditional music instrument of the Bauls, wandering minstrels from Bengal

Bauls are the wandering minstrels of the Indian subcontinent whose history traces back to the 15th century as mentioned…

April 16, 2020
Meditation
Mantra of Avalokiteshvara: meaning and purpose of popular Buddhist chants

Avalokiteśvara is one of the central figures of Buddhism whose name is often associated with several mantras chanted by…

March 29, 2020
Sitar
The first-ever concerto for sitar and Western orchestra was dedicated to glorious music teacher Allauddin Khan by his most successful pupil

Released in 1971, Concerto for Sitar & Orchestra was the first-ever recording to feature Indian classical music in a…

March 18, 2020
Music Theory
Microtonality: the variety of approaches to microtonal music in world cultures

In theory, microtonal music describes a piece that contains one or more intervals measuring below a semitone. Although…

February 19, 2020
Sarod
Sakhawat Hussain's sarod cast a magical spell rooted in the Afghan rubab traditions

Sakhawat Hussain Khan was an Indian musician whose outstanding performing technique on sarod could serve as a starting…

February 12, 2020
Technologies
Gauhar Jaan: India's first-ever recorded musician

The first-ever recording of Indian music was made by Fred Gaisberg, an American musician and engineer traveling around…

January 7, 20201 comment
Poetry
The best Qawwali lyrics performed by prominent singers of the century

Phool Khil Jaaye by Abida Parveen and Asrar Shah Mere dil ki banjar zameen pe Oh maula Mere dil ki banjar zameen pe…

December 23, 2019
Nadaswaram
Krithi lyrics in Tyagaraja's songs defined South Indian classic tradition of the 18th century

Tyagaraja was a South Indian poet, musician, and composer whose devotional and philosophical songs—written mainly in…

December 4, 2019
Sitar
The world's first sitar recording by Imdad Khan

In 1904, the Gramophone Company sent its team to India in order to record the best Hindustani classical musicians and…

November 3, 20192 comments
Guitar
Ry Cooder & Vishwa Mohan Bhatt: the unlikely fusion of two guitar greats

A Meeting by the River—is one of the most striking cross-cultural works of the 1990s which brought Grammy Awards for…

October 16, 2019
Sarod
The mohan veena: classic instrument developed by Radhika Mohan Maitra is a child of veena, sarod, and sitar

Radhika Mohan Maitra was an outstanding Bengali musician who enriched the Hindustani classical tradition by not only…

October 2, 20192 comments
Orchestra
The Flower Duet of Lakmé: the love drama of an Indian girl and a British soldier made airborne

The Flower Duet is a famous operatic duet which popularity has spread far beyond interests of classical music audience…

September 18, 2019
Sitar
The tapped harmonics of Balaram Pathak's sitar

Balaram Pathak was not only one of the most talented Indian classical musicians of the 20th century but also the mind…

August 27, 2019
Veena
Muthuswami Dikshitar: South Indian composer and poet who embellished Carnatic repertoire 200 years ago

Muthuswami Dikshitar was the most influential Indian composer representing Carnatic tradition which is most present in…

July 27, 20192 comments
Orchestra
The many attempts of Romantic composers to adapt Shakuntala love story from Mahabharata epic

The love story of Shakuntala is first mentioned in the oldest Sanskrit epic of the Mahābhārata which could be traced…

July 17, 2019
Veena
Sundaram Balachander: the veena musician and filmmaker who introduced Carnatic culture to the world

The veena is the oldest string instrument of the Indian subcontinent, first mentioned in the Rigveda dating back to…

June 25, 2019
Sitar
1960s clarinet & sitar duo pioneered an ambient genre with the album for spiritual practices

Even though the term ambient as a music genre was coined by Brian Eno only in the 1970s, musical experiments of this…

June 16, 20191 comment
Sitar
The sitar virtuoso who introduced Indian classic to the British parliament

Budhaditya Mukherjee is one of the brightest virtuosos who to this day refines the rich legacy of Hindustani classics…

May 26, 20191 comment
Shehnai
Shehnai oboe and its greatest virtuoso proclaimed the Indian Independence Act of 1947

For several centuries most ceremonial or festive events in India, Pakistan, and Nepal have been accompanied by lively…

April 24, 2019
Sarangi
The Hindustani maestro who arranged the Sārangī fiddle for a classical solo

The sārangī fiddle, mainly used on the Indian subcontinent, is perhaps one of the most complex bowed string instruments…

March 22, 2019
Orchestra
Only 3 Mantras survived from Sanskrit opera Avatara by John Foulds

One of the greatest areas of music history still remaining largely uncharted is the influence of Indian philosophy on…

February 22, 2019
Sitar
Vilayat Khan enriched his sitar technique by giving it human voice

Brilliant sitar player Vilayat Khan is broadly known in India and worldwide as a prominent maestro of the Hindustani…

January 22, 20191 comment
Santour
Azam Ali's magnificent vocal journeys through languages

In recent decades, the mixing of styles and cultures in popular and classical music has grown into quite a common trend…

December 28, 2018
Ravanahatha
The Ravanahatha: from Hela civilization to the primary instrument of Rajasthani folk

The ravanahatha (also known as ravanhatta or rawanhattha) is an ancient stringed musical instrument that is suggested…

December 21, 20181 comment
Violin
The fifth string of the Maihar school lead violin

For more than a century, the tiny town of Maihar—now the de facto cradle of the Indian Classical—has been breathing…

November 23, 20181 comment
Songwriter
Sūrsāgar: ocean of poetry that expanded for five centuries

Sūrdās was a North Indian devotional poet, musician, and saint who lived in the 16th century. His lyrics, addressed…

October 27, 2018
Poetry
Sufi lyrics expanded all over the world thanks to Qawwali songs

Qawwali is a form of Sufi devotional music popular in South Asia. It is part of a musical tradition that stretches back…

October 5, 20181 comment
Sarod
Vasant Rai's fretless guitar arrangements for Indian classical

Vasant Rai (1942-1985) was one of the world's most acclaimed masters of Indian music. Born in Unjha, in the province of…

September 22, 2018
Sarod
Malkauns night music was composed to tame Shiva's dance

Malkauns is one of the oldest music pieces in North Indian tradition that equivalent to Hindolam raga of Carnatic…

September 5, 2018