Great stuff: You might find this of interest. It's an album called "Laya" by German percussionist Simon Popp; I love the record but wasn't aware of the meaning of the concept:
I read somewhere that it’s possible to describe any music with Sargam (Indian notation). The staves we have in the west don’t even come close to being able to describe Indian music.
Maud MacCarthy once wrote that notation kills Indian classical music. By that, she meant European classical notation, as Carnatic music has its own form of notation. There are cases where it can help to use European notation to help it make sense to people, but broadly speaking, I think she was right.
Dom thanks so much for this article! I've been listening to both North and South Indian music for many years, but only recently have I actively tried to understand the rhythmic concept. Playing along with the iTabla Pro app has been super useful. The feeling of the pulse, especially in the weird (to Western minds) time signatures, means you have to immerse yourself in it, you can't count it; this seems to reflect their concepts of cyclical time and the yugas as well. Practicing this was immensely helpful just yesterday, when I had to play a piece in 5, and another one in 11/8 that went to 5/8 on the B section. By immersing myself in the "wave," I was able to feel my part instead of trying to count it.
Great stuff: You might find this of interest. It's an album called "Laya" by German percussionist Simon Popp; I love the record but wasn't aware of the meaning of the concept:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4LYRd6zst4
Thanks for putting me onto this, Stephan, I'm listening now; It sounds fascinating.
Fascinating and wonderfully clear. Very helpful to have the videos for each description signposted
Thank you!
A great read. Thanks Dom...
Thanks Poppy!
I read somewhere that it’s possible to describe any music with Sargam (Indian notation). The staves we have in the west don’t even come close to being able to describe Indian music.
I can’t wait to read your article!
Maud MacCarthy once wrote that notation kills Indian classical music. By that, she meant European classical notation, as Carnatic music has its own form of notation. There are cases where it can help to use European notation to help it make sense to people, but broadly speaking, I think she was right.
Dom thanks so much for this article! I've been listening to both North and South Indian music for many years, but only recently have I actively tried to understand the rhythmic concept. Playing along with the iTabla Pro app has been super useful. The feeling of the pulse, especially in the weird (to Western minds) time signatures, means you have to immerse yourself in it, you can't count it; this seems to reflect their concepts of cyclical time and the yugas as well. Practicing this was immensely helpful just yesterday, when I had to play a piece in 5, and another one in 11/8 that went to 5/8 on the B section. By immersing myself in the "wave," I was able to feel my part instead of trying to count it.