Music And Movies

(Vieux Parka Toure) How different cultures and countries across the world use various ragams has always fascinated me. I had earlier posted about how Mohanam in available almost throughout the world and also about Azebaijani Todi . Yesterday late at night, my twitter friend Vipin Nair (@MusicAloud) sent me a clip of African music asking me if the ragam played was Madhyamavathi, Sree Ragam or Brindavana Saranga. (Vipin had got that clip from his friend @aiyerravi ) When I heard the clip, I was amazed by the playing of the guitarist (Vieux Parka Toure). The playing was crisp and every note sounded so clear. And very importantly, I heard a lovely Brindavana Saranga. This was a revelation to me. I have heard Madhyamavathi in various settings but Brindavana Saranga, to me, has been confined to Carnatic and Hindustani music.   Following some threads from the youtube clip, I came upon some Algerian music. In this I could hear Madhyamavathi. Ragas like Suddha Saveri, Suddha Dhan...

After he saw my post on Raveeendran's "thamburu kulir", my friend Sanjay mailed me. "I was expecting a tribute to Bhimsen Joshi", he said in his mail. I replied back saying that I had not heard Bhimsen Joshi enough to write a comprehensive tribute. Then I realized I was wrong. While it is true that I have not heard Bhimsen Joshi much, it is also true that he was a major figure when I grew up. Especially when we were slowly getting sucked into the beauty of classical music. I was also wrong because this blog is not just about my experience alone but about shared experiences. While I write about my experience with Bhimsen Joshi's music, I would request others to share their experience as well. During our college going years, Bhimsen Joshi had already become a cult musician. I would define a cult musician as someone who is praised even though the person praising has never heard his / her work!!! Whenever we heard the name Bhimsen Joshi, we would go, "Wow...