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Autorickshaw is a world fusion band based in Canada.
On its latest release,
Four Higher, the band displays a wide range of Indian
influences. "Saraswati" is an energetic devotional Hindu song by Suba Sankaran,
backed by bass voices, electric bass and tabla. Other pieces fall into the
category of Indian classical music. There are several ragas performed in various
ways, from the very traditional Raga Purvi to Raga Ganamurthy, which features
spectacular electric bass work, alongside the tabla and other percussion
instruments. On "A Night in Tunisia," Suba Sankaran's vocals head in a jazzier
direction, accompanied by Middle Eastern percussion. On
Four Higher there
are also two live melodic improvisations, a tabla solo by Ed Hanley, a bass solo
by Rich Brown, and a funk jazz piece, Chennai Fife-O.
Canadian world jazz outfit Tasa also draws most of its inspiration from Indian
music. On
Urban Turban the five musicians combine Western instrumentation with Indian
instruments. Tasa uses a powerful rhythm section formed by electric bass, drum
set, Indian tabla and konakol (vocal percussion), which supports bansuri flute,
guitar and saxophone solos, as well as vigorous Qawwali-style and Hindustani
vocals.
Bhangra music has become huge in many countries thanks to the support of
south Asian immigrants. Bhangra comes in many forms, ranging from traditional
versions to productions that add dance beats, electronica, reggae and many other
genres. It is nearly impossible to put it all in one CD. The
Rough Guide to Bhangra Dance is a good compilation and it features some of the stars of Bhangra.
The most famous of the artists included is
Malkit
Singh. It's a good starter,
but it's worth doing additional research if you are interested in Bhangra. You
can begin by checking the previous release in the series,
The Rough Guide to Bhangra.
Bollywood (Indian cinema) star
Asha
Bhosle has been around for many years and
is well known within the South Asian community. She's become better known in the
West thanks to her collaboration with the Kronos Quartet,
You've Stolen My Heart. New York label Times
Square has now released a double CD, entitled
Love Supreme. Disc 1 is dedicated
to newly-recorded Ghazals (romantic poems of Persian origin) in various formats,
including pop, rock, funk and jazz; while disc 2 contains
Bhosle's favorite
romantic duets. There are a few other CDs that focus on
Bhosle:
The Rough Guide to Asha Bhosle,
Best of Asha Bhosle, and
Queen of Bollywood.
Guitarist Nadaka has a recording of instrumental music,
Living Colours, where he blends
classical Indian music with Western sensibilities such as jazz and blues. Nadaka
plays the guitar, an instrument that is played by some Indian musicians, but not
very common in Indian classical music
For a different approach to Indian music, Bollyhood Records released what
they claim to be the first ever Indian-infused Hip-Hop and R&B album. Titled
Bhood, the album contains
exclusive collaborations of Indian and Urban (R&B and Hip Hop) artists, such as
Christion & Bikram Singh, Sumeet & Rich London, G Samra and Jade Foxx, and super
group RDB with heavy hitters Elephant Man and Yukmouth.
The sacred traditions of India are featured in
Devotion (Arc Music). The
compilation includes Hindu devotional songs, Jain, Muslim Sufi, Buddhist chants,
Gujarat devotional, Baul songs, Sikh and Qawwali (Muslim).
The ancient dhrupad tradition of Indian classical music is represented by one
of the masters in the category, singer Alaka Lahiri. Her CD Inde - Dhrupad is
part of the "Voyages" collection by Deben Bhattacharya.
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