24 February 2010

We ain't just whistling Dixie. A couple of South Indian ragas (Kirwani and Hemavati = postponed to next week) that have been adopted by musicians in the North.

Set #1 - 8:00am - 9:30am

1. Raga Ahir Bhairav
G. S. Sachdev - bansuri flute, Zakir Hussain - tabla
Flights of Improvisation
Lyrichord, LYRCD 7416
24:55

2. Raga Kirwani (rec. 1980)
L. Subramaniam - violin, V. Kamalakar Rao - mrdangam [double-sided drum], Joanne Foresta & Sushama Unnikrishnan - tanpuras
Le violin de l'Inde du Sud
Ocora, CD HM83
59:49

Set #2 - 9:30am - 11:00am

3. Raga Kirwani
35:05

4. Hori Thumri
10:01

5. Rajasthani Folksong
8:33

6. Bengali Folksong
7:48

Tracks 3-6
Debashish Bhattacharya - guitar, Subhashish Bhattacharya - tabla
Reflection of Love
Rageshree Music Institute, CD RMI 109

7. Bhajan: Ram Dhun (rec. 1990)
Amjad Ali Khan - sarod, Sukhvinder Singh Namdhari - tabla, Asawari Pawar - tanpura
Touch of Class
Audiorec Records, ACCD 1009
11:24

17 February 2010

GET UP! GET UP! AND STOP SHOUTING! Four meditative morning ragas on your breakfast tray.

Set #1 - 8:00am - 10:00am

1. Raga Lalit (rec. 1987)
Ram Narayan - sarangi, Suresh Talwalkar - tabla, Neil Sorrell & Elizabeth Haddon - tanpuras
Nimbus Records, NI 5183
73:43
(Scale: C Db E F F# Ab B. Play time: Before sunrise. The "odd", scrunched-together intervals suggest instability in the natural world at the transition between night and day.)

2. Raga Ahir Bhairav (rec. 1991)
Kishori Amonkar - voice, Sultan Khan - sarangi, Balkrishna Iyer - tabla
Music Today, CD A-91006
30:00
(Scale: C Db E F G A Bb. Play time: Daybreak.)

Set #2 - 10:00am - 11:00am

3. Firaq Gorakpuri & Vithal Rao: Shaam-e-gham [Evening of Solitude] (rec. 2000)
Kiran Ahluwalia - voice
Kashish/Attraction: Ghazals & Punjabi Folk Songs
Kiran Music, KM-2001
8:01
(How is this possible? A song called Evening of Solitude based on the early morning raga Ahir Bhairav?)

4. Raga Komal Rishabh Asawari
Santanu Banerjee - voice, Gauri Shankar Karmakar - tabla
Bliss: North Indian Classical Vocal
Rageshree Music Institute, CD RMI 110
38:55
(AKA just plain Asavari. Scale: our old friend, the Phrygian mode, C Db Eb F G Ab Bb. This raga skips Eb and Bb in ascending melodies. Play time: Late morning.)

5. Raga Vibhas (rec. 1980)
Ashwin Batish - sitar, S. D. Batish - tabla
Morning Meditation
Batish Records, BR4001CD
16:02
(AKA Bibhas. Scale: C Db E G Ab. Play time: Daybreak.)

10 February 2010

Tune in this Wednesday morning for "Malkauns Cubed" or "Say It With Five Pitches Like Sandy Koufax". Ragas with smaller initial intervals get played first.

Set #1 - 8:00am - 10:00am

1. Raga Bhupal Todi (rec. 1987)
Ram Narayan - sarangi, Suresh Talwalkar - tabla, Neil Sorrell & Elizabeth Haddon - tanpuras
Nimbus Records, NI 5119
30:53
(Scale: C Db Eb G Ab. Play time: Early morning)

2. Raga Bairagi (rec. 1998)
Debashish Bhattacharya - guitar, Subhasis Bhattacharjee - tabla
Rainbow: Seven Colors of Seven Instruments
Neelam Audio & Video, NICI 103
10:47
(Scale: C Db F G Bb. Play time: Morning)

3. Raga Bhupali (rec. 1995)
Shivkumar Sharma - santur, Hariprasad Chaurasia - bansuri flute
The Valley Recalls
Navras Records, NRCD 0067
69:29
(Scale: C D E G A. Play time: Early morning)

Set #2 - 10:00am - 11:00am

4. Raga Durga (rec. 1991)
Hariprasad Chaurasia - bansuri flute, Fazal Qureshi - tabla
Written on the Wind
Audiorec Classics, 766032 1008-2
27:07
(Scale: C D F G A. Play time: Night)

5. Raga Malkauns (rec. 1990)
Zarin Daruwala - sarod, Vibhav Nageshkar - tabla, Sujan Salkar & Ram Pratham - tanpuras
Ornate Strings: Sarod
Gramophone Company of India, CD-PSLP 5370
24:43
(Scale: C Eb F Ab Bb. Play time: Late night)

03 February 2010

Malkauns II. Please refer to last week's playlist for the stages of moral development.

Set #1 - 8:00am - 9:00am

1. Raga Kaunsi Kahnara (rec. 1989)
Hariprasad Chaurasia - bansuri flute, Sabir Khan - tabla, Uma Mehta & Kulwinder Singh - tanpuras
Nimbus, NI 5182
64:13
(Alternate spelling is Kaunsi Kanada.)

Set #2 - 9:00am - 10:00am

2. Raga Malkauns
Hariprasad Chaurasia - bansuri flute, Shib Shankar Ray - tabla
The Raga Guide Disc 3
Nimbus Records, NI 5536/9
2:40
(This performance happens to be transcribed here.)

3. Raga Malkauns
45:16

Set #3 - 10:00am - 11:00am

4. Raga Pilu
8:30

Tracks 3-4
Amit Chatterjee - sitar & voice, Polash Gomes - tabla
The Singing String
Rageshree Music Institute, CD RMI 103

5. Ragas Pilu & Kirwani (rec. 1991)
Amjad Ali Khan - sarod, Zakir Hussain - tabla
Moment Records, MRCD 1005
46:05