Bollywood Music Controversy
When I was a student at the Ali Akbar College of Music in Northern California, we were told that Indian film music was a cultural curse that prevented the major
Teed Rockwell
Orientophobia
Fear evolved long before rational intelligence. Consequently, a creature who fears but cannot think very well will make many errors, and it is better for those
Sliding into Ragasphere
BEYOND THE RAGASPHERE. Music by Debashish Bhattacharya. Available from Riverboat/World Music Network at www.debashishbhattacharya.com/beyond-the-ragasphere.html
Islam and Music
The Web is now abuzz with the story of three teenage Kashmiri Muslim girls, who were forced to disband their newly popular rock band “Praagaash” because of
Islam and Music
The Web is now abuzz with the story of three teenage Kashmiri Muslim girls, who were forced to disband their newly popular rock band Praagaash because of threat
Who Owns Bhangra?
Wikipedia relies on what is sometimes called the “Wisdom of Crowds” to enable conflicting opinions to gradually evolve into a consensus. Sometimes, however,
Amjad Ali Khan comes to Stanford
The Stanford University music department has 90 faculty members. Not surprisingly for a Silicon Valley school, there are 14 professors in the center for compute
The Blessing and the Burden
Philosopher Patrick Grim says that we have two kinds of heroes: those who are both enviable and admirable, and those who are only admirable. We admire the Beatl
Kirtans East and West
In yoga centers all over America, people gather with a few instruments, usually harmonium, guitar, and/or tablas, and sing kirtan: Musical chanting of the Hindu
Thinking Outside Pandora’s Box
When I first found myself wanting to play Indian classical music I was, like many young lovers, scared of commitment. It was bad enough when I was a rock and co
Remembering a Legend
When Bhimsen Joshi passed away in January 2011, newspapers and magazines all over India ran his picture on the cover with no caption except the dates that set t
The Cowboy and the Yogi
When I first came to the SF Bay Area, I knew only one thing about India: its music was amazing. Critics would often refer to these astonishing structures of mel
