MR02: Naad Brahma

In honour of Ravi Shankar’s centenary, episode two in our profile series explores a number of Ravi Shankar’s unpublished recordings, as early as the 1950s – an era where his performance focused uncompromisingly on pure improvisation of raga. Shankar discusses the elements required to merge with the raga and how ‘sadhana’, along with a deep understanding of ‘rasa’ and ‘bhav’ are keys to achieving this experience.

We begin with a gat in Raag Desh, provoking a deep feeling of bihra and longing; an alaap in Yaman Kalyan follows, in which each note feels like a prayerful offering to his Guru, Baba. Next, a sober and contemplative vistar in Parameshwari played amidst the soundtrack of Varanasi’s ghats precedes a melancholy yet playful Pilu, until we conclude our journey with a trademark Ravi Shankar kharaj-pancham alaap in Tilak Kamod.

Meeting Rivers #02 features Ragas Desh, Yaman Kalyan, Parameshwari, Pilu, and Tilak Kamod – mixed and produced by Sach Dhanjal & Kam Bhogal, with audio restoration and mastering by Jazz Bhandal.

Featured by The Vinyl Factory