CH – Raga CDs of the Months (08/11): Evening & Night Ragas – Violin/Sitar (part 2)

Part 2 of “evening and night ragas” is completing the last broadcasting show on 25th July 2011. In part 1 (broadcasted on 07/25/2011 @ Radio RaSA) the promotion initiative IMC – India meets Classic presented the violin as a Western instrument, which found its way into the North Indian (Hindustani) and South Indian Music (Carnatic) … and herefore some raga examples, e.g. the evening raga Yaman, the night ragas Rageshri and Durga and the raga Maru Behag, a mixture of an evening and night raga.

In part 2 IMC – India meets Classic continues its path following the violin in India and its exceedengly importance for Indian Classical Music… In comparision with the violine the sound picture of evening and night ragas on the sitar is being opposed. Together with the violinist Kala Ramnath the sitar maestro Purbayan Chatterjee presents in a jugal bandi, the Indian form of a duet, the late evening raga Bageshri and here about an interpretation of the rhythmic lively and light vocal style Tarana. An All India Radio release presents Purbayans guru and great ideal Pandit Nikhil Bannerjee in a Sitar solo of the evening raga Desh.

date of broadcasting …

8th Aug 2011 replaced because of technical Studio updates
15th August 2011 – 10:00 p.m. CET (04:00 EST) @ Radio RaSA
(premiere: 27th November 2006 @ Tide 96.0 FM)
broadcasting plan | streaming (Internet Radio & Mobile Radio) | podCast

The violin has been accepted in the northern part of India at all, but in a smooth way. As no other instrument from the Western area the violin has established deeply in the South Indian Music style. Presentation forms and performances we know today had been developed in the golden age of the South Indian Classic between 1750 and 1850 (e.g. compositions of Thygaraja, Dikshitar and Syama Sastri). The violin was introduced into the South of India by Baluswamy Dikshitar in the early 19th century.

As representatives of the South Indian Music IMC – India meets Classic presents in part some violinists, e.g. Dr. N. Rajam. She has the biggest impact onto the Indian Classical Mucis of all female violinists in India … and combines the North Indian style with the South Indian form, too. On her CD RADIANT she presents the midnight raga Malkauns, which exists as Raga Hindolam in the Carnatic Music, too. Both belong to the Bhairavi Thaat System, the ascendenting and falling scales existe each of 6 notes (swaras): Sa – ga – ma – da – ni – Sa.

Dr. N. Rajams daugther, Sangeeta Shankar, did many different music art works of both traditions (Hindustani, Carnatic) together with her mother. IMC – India meets Classic presents Sangeeta as a solist together with the tabla virtuoso Ustad Zakir Hussain playing the late night raga Bageshree.

The brothers and violin duo Ganesh & Kumaresh are two of the leading artists of the South Indian Music (Carnatic). Ganesh and Kumaresh develope the violin play techniqually to a very expressive form … with their CD SUNDARAM (= beauty) they document the South Indian form Ragam Tanam Pallavi by an individual composition of Ganesh, which is according to the evening raga Vasanta in South India. Vasanta is one of the eldest Ragas in India, performed since more than 1000 years. Typically for the South Indian Vocal and Instrumental Music Ganesh and Kumaresh are being accompanied instead of the Tabla by the Mridanga, the traditional drum of India and the Ghatam, a vessel like sound body made of clay.

Reference: IMC – India meets Classic seperatelly will have in one of its next special features a deeper focus onto the Indian violin and its figure for fusion, jazz and world music and presents some extra ordinary violin players, e.g. Dr. Lakshminarayana Shankar, known as L. Shankar, his brother L. Subramaniam, titled in his home country as the “The God of Indian Violin, “The Paganini of Indian Classical Music or his pupil (Shishya) S. Harikumar and others …