Zakir Hussain
M.R.C.S.
Original 1991 LP edition. Singer, harmonica virtuoso, and keyboardist Karen Mantler has inherited her father, Michael Mantler's sense of whimsy and her mother, Carla Bley's musical fearlessness -- not to mention her electric-shredded-wheat hairstyle. Although Mantler's debut album was produced by Bley and new husband Steve Swallow and features fellow avant-jazz offspring Eric Mingus as co-lead vocalist and Jonathan Sanborn on bass, 1989's My Cat Arnold isn't quite jazz, but it's not exactly pop …
Raga Lalit / Raga Bairagi Bhairav
2024 Stock. Ravi Shankar's son, Brij Narayan, learned to play the sarod, an Indian plucked guitar with a softer sound than its sister, the sitar. He trained with both his father and Ustad Ali Akbar Khan.
The eerie Lalit and the peaceful Bairagi Bhairav are played here in the early morning. Lalit is given a 25-minute alap that is played slowly and without accompaniment, and the great Zakir Hussain plays the two pieces for 25 minutes. The shorter Bairagi Bhairav is a treat, full of memorable, beau…
Rag Madhuvanti, Rag Misra Tilang
2024 Stock. Shivkumar Sharma's contribution to the Indian classical tradition is that he introduced the Santúr (hammered dulcmimer) to the classical Indian repertoire. That is no small feat, considering the conservative attitude that these performers take towards musical performance. "Sharma is credited with bringing this folk instrument, normally associated with the Sufi music of Kashmir, into Indian classical music. Indian music involves several of the elements I’ve been discussing in this lis…