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Vocal and Instrumental Ragas from South India

Gayathri Rajapur, Harihar Rao, Dorothy Moskowitz
Vocal and Instrumental Ragas from South India

In the 12th and 13th centuries, Muslim conquests throughout India divided Indian classical music into two systems that persist today, north (Hindustani) and south (Carnatic). In South India the raga—"the collection of pitches a performer may use in a piece—is more closely connected to worship. In both systems the performer tries to make the raga "characteristic of the emotion it seeks to establish" through improvisation—and with the "72 basic scales and more than 500 derived forms" that are available within the South Indian raga system, the performer has a wealth of options. Liner notes include an overview of the South Indian musical system; descriptions of traditional instruments such as the gottuvuadyam, mridugam, and tambura; track notes with notated musical analysis; and pictures of the performers and instruments.

Track Listing

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101
Varna: Shankaraburana Gayathri Rajapur Kassebaum 06:04
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102
Kruti: Bhairavi Raga Gayathri Rajapur Kassebaum 15:07
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201
Hatha Raga Gayathri Rajapur Kassebaum 10:17
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202
Raga Malica with Tilana Gayathri Rajapur Kassebaum 14:21