Colorado College Music Department
presents
Rajeev Taranath, sarod
Accompanied by Abhiman Kaushal, tabla
September 4, 2014 7:30 pm Packard Hall
An evening raga, to be announced by Rajeev Taranath
Alap (invocational portion of the raga development without drum accompaniment)
Slow and fast Gat (raga development and compositions) with tabla drum accompaniment
Intermission
An evening raga or ragas, to be announced by Rajeev Taranath – with tabla accompaniment
Please turn off electronic pagers, alarm watches, and cell phones.
This evening’s selection of ragas and talas will be chosen at the time of performance by Rajeev Taranath from the repertoire of ragas he has mastered over decades.
The Classical Music of North India (Hindustani Classical Music) Ragas are traditional Indian classical melodic forms, which include a fixed series of notes in ascending and descending order. The soloist begins to render a raga with alap, the invocational solo without drum (tabla) accompaniment. When a slow rhythm is first introduced, it is without fixed meter. The alap follows 17 distinct sections, which gradually increase in tempo. Alap reveals the artist’s maturity and vision, for the music unfolds in sequences, which demand complete concentration and great mastery of abstract melodic ideas. When the tabla enters, the rhythmic cycle or tala, begins. The tala is composed of a fixed number of beats with the primary beat of importance being the first beat of every cycle, also know as the sum. The solo artist selects the tala and tempo according to the raga and its mood. Traditional cycles of 10, 12 or 16 beats are most often chosen. As often as not, the tabla player is not told which tala is being played, but must discern the meter and cycle by listening to the melodic theme which the soloist has just begun to play. The theme is known as the gat. Like the alap, the gat follows distinct sections and gradually increases in tempo until it reaches a climax know as jhala.
Improvisation in North Indian Classical Music
While a notation system for North Indian classical music was developed in the 20th-century, notation is generally only for reference and to remember the gats or bandishes (musical themes or songs) of the ragas. North Indian music is taught orally. Unlike Western music, which is often taught and can be understood through sheet music and sight-reading, Indian music is an oral tradition. The use of microtones and subtle ornamentation are integral and require a trained ear. In this sense, notation would not fully convey the complexity of the music. Study with a master teacher involves the student’s gradual internalization of the possible movements and feelings characteristic of each raga. This is complimented by years of rigorous technical training and the cultivation of performance skills. The musician slowly crafts the ability to simultaneously summon ideas within the established rules of raga and to execute them. Therefore, although performance is considered improvised, the musician constantly draws on the experience of many years of learning the musical ideas of any given raga. Performances then, are never written and can never be rendered the same way twice.
Rajeev Taranath Master Musician of Indian Classical music
Rajeev Taranath's sarod improvisations mixed the spiritual and the spirited...the raga began with introspective meditation and proceeded into an exuberant rhythmic celebration. –Edward Rothstein, New York Times, 1982
Rajeev Taranath is making music that moves sublimely from brooding introspection to climaxes of breathtaking excitement. –New Classic/Online World Music Magazine, 2003
Taranath's sarod pulls heart-strings...the audience was moved by the strength and emotional intensity of the music. –Express, New Delhi, 2001
Rajeev Taranath is one of the world's leading exponents of the sarod, the lyrical and richly textured relative of the lute. A distinguished disciple of the late legendary maestro Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, he is the recipient of India's highest government award in the arts in 1999-2000 and has received critical acclaim in the Indian and international press for his musicianship. His concerts are noted for masterful, nuanced classicism matched with passion and emotional depth. Distingished by the discipline with which he develops the melodic patterns of a raga , or classical melody, and a texturally rich and powerful tone, Rajeev Taranath’s performances offer the listener an understanding of the tremendous scope of the profound tradition of North Indian classical music. Concert engagements have included performances for major Indian music conferences, internationally for universities, western conservatories and chamber music series, world music festivals, and many concerts for Indian cultural organizations dedicated to the presentation of high caliber Indian classical music.
Website: http://www.rajeevtaranath.com
Abhiman Kaushal, tabla accompaniment Abhiman Kaushal is an outstanding tabla artist who is much sought after for his sensitive accompaniment and intense solo playing. He represents the Farukkabad and Lucknow styles of tabla. Having been initiated into the art by his father R. B. Kaushal, who was a disciple of the legendary Ustad Amir Hussain Khan, Abhiman later continued his training under the famous Ustad Sheikh Dawood of Hyderabad, India, and the Ustad's senior most disciple, Pandit B. Nandkumar. Abhiman has accompanied most of the leading musicians, singers and dancers of North Indian classical music. He has toured around the world performing in prestigious venues. He has numerous recordings and world music collaborations. He has recorded a soundtrack for National Geographic, for the movie Zoolander and has performed for MTV's Aerosmith icon show in front of a live audience. Recently he was the featured solo musician for the acclaimed electronic dance drama Ramayana 2k3, which won rave reviews in Los Angeles and New York City.
Website: http://abhimankaushal.com/
The Instruments:
The sarod is an instrument considered to have originated in northern India in the 16th-century. Like its relative, the lute, it has a hollow body carved out of a single piece of wood, usually teak. The belly of the sarod is covered in goatskin. The fingerboard is a smooth fretless steel plate which provides minimal friction to the sliding fingers and allows for uninterrupted long glides over the tonal spaces. The twenty-five metal strings have different purposes: some are used to carry the melody, some provide emphasis and rhythm, others provide resonance. The sarod has an immense tonal range and can express sharply contrasting moods.
The tabla is a set of two drums. The smaller, right-hand drum, the dayan, is usually made of rosewood and is played with the fingers and palm of the right hand. The larger left-hand base drum, the bayan, is now usually made of metal and is played with the fingers, palms, and wrist. Between the straps and the drum bodies are pieces of wood with which the tension can be altered to control the tuning. The tabla is the traditional accompaniment to the main instrumentalist or vocalist in a classical recital. Sensitive musical interaction between the two artists is often one of the highlights of a concert.
Upcoming in the Colorado College Music Department
World Music Lecture “Return to Innocence” and Taiwanese Aboriginal Music Chun-Bin Chen, Visiting Professor of Ethnomusicology Wednesday, September 10, 4:00 pm, Packard Hall