Ravi Shankar - The Sounds of India

This 1960s classic is a perfect introduction not only to Ravi Shankar's brilliant work on the sitar, but also to classical Indian music in general. Shankar offers brief, informative explanations of Indian ragas, scales, rhythms, song structures, and time signatures to set the stage for each spiritual piece he, Chatur Lal (tabla), and N.C. Mullick (tamboura) perform. Though Western listeners may not be able intellectually to pinpoint the subtle purposes of the various ragas' rhythms and movements, unconsciously listeners will feel them vividly. For instance, the plodding tension created by the 2/3/2/3 rhythm in "Máru-Bihág" well reflects the raga's poetic metaphor of separated, longing lovers. The loose, playful improvisation on "Sindhi-Bhairavi" mirrors the passionate romance of lovers. Overall, classical Indian music is diverse and complex, but The Sounds of India simplifies it beautifully for those interested in exploring it and its greatest ambassador. --Karen Karleski Amazon.com essential recording

Great for Christmas

I played this album one year on Christmas and my wife asked if it was a family tradition to listen to Ravi Shankar on Christmas. I said starting this year it is. So now we start off Christmas morning with this worderful record and continue on to other magical ragas. December 24, 2008

Lesson in Sitar

Quite disappointing CD. There's some dis-jointed sitar music which is interjected by instructons and historical lessons by Mr Shankar. Difficult to enjoy in the normal sense. September 23, 2007

Classic Ravi Shankar

This is Classic Ravi Shankar. The bonus is that this production has a tutorial that introduces the music to a novice listener. Highly recommended. July 24, 2007

The Sounds of India

I have enjoyed Ravi Shankar since the 70's, when he was "in." In my opinion, he still is. He is a master of the sitar and his explanations of the music was the only thing that I did not care for. I would much preferred that that brief time had been spent in playing more beautiful music. But, I would recommend it to anyone who likes the sitar as I have never heard anyone who has a command of it like Ravi. April 9, 2007

Mera Bharat...actually 4.73 stars

I owe a lot to this album. I was just seventeen years old in 1993, in southwest Kansas when I bought it. Believe me, southwest Kansas, though I love the land, is devoid of culture outside of farmer/rancher/Mexicano. It was the first foreign music I heard, though I heard the sitar a few times in Beatles music. I bought it on a whim. It was a real daring thing for a Mexican/American in middle America. The minute I heard the first tones, I was hooked, and the rest is history. Shortly after that, I bought Vidwan: Music of South India -- Songs of the Carnatic Tradition. Since then, I have gotten countless Hindustani and Carnatic CD's, as well as music from Nepal. I wrote my senior term paper about Hindustani Music, started learning Hindi, started eating Indian food, began playing the tabla, and as a dream come true, I went to India with my wife in 2005 for two months. I guess you could say I fell in love with India, and it all started with this album. Shows you what music can do.

Onto the review - I love the main intro as well as the intros to each of the ragas. The music is very good, and although the developments of the ragas are short, they adequately express the beauty contained within the ragas. There are, of course, better albums out there, but this is very good intro to the world of Hindustani Music. Buy this and you will be pleased. For a kick, buy it with Vidwan: Music of South India -- Songs of the Carnatic Tradition, so as to get a real feel of both the Hindustani and Carnatic traditions. Both of them were released in 1968, both are very classy, and both are available on this site.

Try it out, it'll take you far like it has me... March 24, 2007

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