Author: D P Mukerji
Publisher: Rupa
Year: 2002
Language: English
Pages: 54
ISBN/UPC (if available): 8171676529
Description
For someone curious, yet pessimistic about Hindustani music, this book could work as a reasonably good starter. Its sociological connection in the development of music, going back to British rule in India, makes for interesting reading.
Apart from a disproportionate agrandisation of Rabindranath Tagore's contribution to Hindustani music, the author has explained in a concise and accurate manner the structure, terms and forms of Hindustani classical music. Some translated compositions and explanations of the notation system employed in the discipline further aid in the familiarization process.
Indian Music is a product of not just an arrangement of sounds but of Indian History itself. This book is an authoritative treatise on the whole range of what constitutes Indian music, be it classical or folk type. The author traces not just the history behind the evolution of particular styles of music but also explains what each style is all about.
He also mentions the corresponding or equivalent terminology employed in Western music. The essential ingredients of the execution of any typical piece of Indian music are clearly spelt out. The author dwells at length on the composition of various 'ragas'. There is also an explanation of the notation system at the end of the book as well as English translations of some compositions.