''Ravi Shankar's Festival from India'' is a double album by Indian musician and composer

Ravi Shankar Ravi Shankar (; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury; 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitar, sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known expert of Hin ...

, released on

World Pacific Records Pacific Jazz Records was a Los Angeles–based record company and label best known for cool jazz or West coast jazz. It was founded in 1952 by producer Richard Bock (1927–1988) and drummer Roy Harte (1924–2003). Harte, in 1954, also co-founde ...

in December 1968. It contains studio recordings made by a large ensemble of performers, many of whom Shankar had brought to the United States from India. Among the musicians were

Shivkumar Sharma Shivkumar Sharma (13 January 1938 – 10 May 2022) was an Indian classical musician and santoor player who is credited with adapting the santoor for Indian classical music. As a music composer, he collaborated with Indian flautist Hariprasad ...

Jitendra Abhisheki Ganesh Balawant Nawathe (21 September 1929 – 7 November 1998), better known as Pandit Jitendra Abhisheki, was an Indian vocalist, composer and scholar of Indian classical, semi-classical, and devotional music. While he distinguished hims ...

, Palghat Raghu,

Lakshmi Shankar Lakshmi Shankar (née Sastri, 16 June 1926 – 30 December 2013) was an Indian singer and a noted Hindustani classical music, Hindustani classical. Born into a south Indian Hindu family, she became an outstanding Hindustani music, Hindustani voc ...

Aashish Khan Aashish Khan (5 December 1939 – 14 November 2024) was an Indian Indian classical music, classical musician and player of the sarod. He was also nominated for a Grammy Award in 2006 in the 'Best Traditional World Music Album' category for his ...

and

Alla Rakha Alla Rakha Qureshi (29 April 1919 – 3 February 2000) was an Indian tabla player who specialised in Hindustani classical music. Widely revered as one of history's most iconic players of the tabla, he was a frequent accompanist of sitar player ...

. The project presented

Indian classical music Indian classical music is the art music, classical music of the Indian subcontinent. It is generally described using terms like ''Shastriya Sangeet'' and ''Marg Sangeet''. It has two major traditions: the North Indian classical music known as ...

in an orchestral setting, so recalling Shankar's work as musical director of

All India Radio All India Radio (AIR), also known as Akashvani (), is India's state-owned public broadcasting, public radio broadcaster. Founded in 1936, it operates under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broa ...

in the years before he achieved international fame as a soloist during the 1960s. After recording the album in Los Angeles, Shankar's ensemble – also titled the Festival from India – toured America during June and July 1968. Some of the performers subsequently taught at Shankar's Kinnara School of Music, instructing Western students in the intricacies of Indian music. Shankar revisited the Festival from India concept in 1974, when

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician, singer and songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Culture ...

sponsored a program of European concerts titled

Ravi Shankar's Music Festival from India Ravi Shankar's Music Festival from India was an Indian classical music revue led by sitarist and composer Ravi Shankar intended for Western concert audiences and performed in 1974. Its presentation was the first project undertaken by the Materi ...

History

Having achieved international fame over 1966–67,''World Music: The Rough Guide'', p. 109. Ravi Shankar spent the early part of 1968 in India filming a documentary of his life, ''

Raga A raga ( ; , ; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a musical mode, melodic mode. It is central to classical Indian music. Each raga consists of an array of melodic structures with musical motifs; and, fro ...

'', and writing his first autobiography, ''My Music, My Life''. Both of these projects allowed him to reflect on his status as an ambassador for Indian culture and on the criticism that he received from purists and some fellow musicians in India, who accused him of betraying his roots and commercialising

. In a 2007 interview, Shankar continued to refute such criticism, citing his adherence to the guru-shishya tradition, whereby he had nurtured the development of his protégés

Harihar Rao Harihar Rao (January 21, 1927 – January 13, 2013) was an Indian-born American musician, noted for playing tabla and sitar. He was born into a prominent musical family in Mangalore, India. He moved to the United States in 1964, residing in Pasa ...

, Amiyo Das Gupta, Kartick Kumar and Shamim Ahmed after moving to the United States. He also highlighted the 1968 Festival from India revue as one of many musical ventures where he had brought over other Indian classical performers that were little known in the West. Before beginning his international career in 1956, Shankar had been musical director of

and head of the national orchestra, the Vadya Vrinda. Subsequently, in between his engagements in the West, he had continued to compose and perform orchestral productions, such as ''Nava Rasa Ranga'' in 1964. While in India making ''Raga'', Shankar was filmed rehearsing with a large cast of musicians in a

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

studio. For his Festival from India orchestra, Shankar then asked the following performers to join him in California: his sister-in-law

(vocals),

(

santoor The Indian santoor instrument is a trapezoid-shaped hammered dulcimer, and a variation of the Iranian santur. The instrument is generally made of walnut wood and has 25 bridges. Each bridge has 4 strings, making for a total of 100 strings. It ...

), Sharad Kumar (

shehnai The ''shehnai'' is a type of oboe from the Indian subcontinent. It is made of wood, with a double reed at one end and a metal or wooden flared bell at the other end. It was one of the nine instruments found in the royal court. The shehnai is sim ...

and flute),

Sabri Khan Ustad Sabri Khan (21 May 1927 – 1 December 2015) was an Indian sarangi player, who was descended on both sides of his family from a line of distinguished musicians. Early life Sabri Khan was born on 21 May 1927 in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, B ...

(

sarangi The sārangī is a bowed, short-necked three-stringed instrument played in traditional music from South Asia – Punjabi folk music, Rajasthani folk music, Sindhi folk music, Haryanvi folk music, Braj folk music, and Boro folk music (the ...

), Miskin Khan (

tabla A ''tabla'' is a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent. Since the 18th century, it has been the principal percussion instrument in Hindustani classical music, where it may be played solo, as an accompaniment with other instruments a ...

and percussion),Shankar 1999, p. 203.

(vocals) and Palghat Raghu (

mridangam The ''mridangam'' is an ancient percussion instrument originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is the primary rhythmic accompaniment in a Carnatic music ensemble. In Dhrupad, a modified version, the pakhawaj, is the primary percussion in ...

). His students Das Gupta and Ahmed contributed on tambura and sitar, respectively, while Rao's brother Taranath, although a skilled tablist, played tambura. In his second autobiography, '' Raga Mala'', Shankar writes that for most of these players, the 1968 Festival from India was "their first big break in the West". According to Shankar's recollection, the other personnel were

(

sarod The sarod is a stringed instrument, used in Hindustani music on the Indian subcontinent. Along with the sitar, it is among the most popular and prominent instruments. It is known for a deep, weighty, introspective sound, in contrast with the sweet ...

) and Fakir Mohammad (

dholak The ''dholak'' is a two-headed hand drum, a folk percussion instrument. The dholak is most commonly recognised in countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, but can also be found amongst the Indo-Diaspora in countries s ...

and tambura), together with musicians who had regularly accompanied Shankar during his

raga A raga ( ; , ; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a musical mode, melodic mode. It is central to classical Indian music. Each raga consists of an array of melodic structures with musical motifs; and, fro ...

recitals in the West:

(tabla),

Nodu Mullick Nodu Mullick was a musician and instrument-maker from Calcutta, India. Pandit Ravi Shankar commissioned multiple sitars from him, and they were Shankar's primary performance instrument starting in 1961. Mullick accompanied Shankar on tanpura ...

(tambura and swarmandel) and Kamala Chakravarty (vocals). The ensemble's instrumentation also included

veena The ''veena'', also spelled ''vina'' ( IAST: vīṇā), is any of various chordophone instruments from the Indian subcontinent. Ancient musical instruments evolved into many variations, such as lutes, zithers and arched harps.

and

kanjira The kanjira, khanjira, khanjiri or ganjira, a South Indian frame drum, is an instrument of the tambourine family. As a folk and bhajan instrument, it has been used in the Indian subcontinent for many centuries. The Kanjira's emergence in Sout ...

. Some of the performers would subsequently teach at Shankar's Kinnara School of Music, the students of which included

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

musicians

Jim Morrison James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 – July 3, 1971) was an American singer, songwriter, and poet who was the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band the Doors. Due to his charismatic persona, poetic lyrics, distinctive vo ...

and

Robbie Krieger Robert Alan Krieger (born January 8, 1946) is an American guitarist and founding member of the rock band the Doors. Krieger wrote or co-wrote many of the Doors' songs, including the hits " Light My Fire", " Love Me Two Times", " Touch Me", and " ...

the Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, comprising vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most influential and controversial rock acts ...

Collin Walcott Collin Walcott (April 24, 1945 – November 8, 1984) was an American musician who worked on jazz and world music. Early life Walcott was born in New York City, United States. He studied violin and tympani in his youth, and was a percussion stud ...

and

Russ Titelman Russ Titelman (born August 16, 1944, Los Angeles, California, United States) is an American record producer and songwriter. He has to date won three Grammy Awards. He earned his first producing the Steve Winwood song " Higher Love", and his se ...

Recording

With his orchestra assembled in Los Angeles, Shankar recorded a double album, titled ''Ravi Shankar's Festival from India''. The sessions took place at

World Pacific Pacific Jazz Records was a Los Angeles–based record company and label best known for cool jazz or West coast jazz. It was founded in 1952 by producer Richard Bock (1927–1988) and drummer Roy Harte (1924–2003). Harte, in 1954, also co-founde ...

's studio and were produced by

Richard Bock Richard W. Bock (July 16, 1865 – June 29, 1949) was a German-born American sculptor known for his collaborations with the American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. He was particularly known for his sculptural decorations for architecture and mili ...

, the record label's founder. Shankar later admired the album as "a highly satisfactory recording" with "many varied items, ranging from classical to folk in style".Shankar 1999, p. 204. Following the opening "Vedic Hymn" (sung by Abhisheki), its content included Shankar's orchestral adaptations of ragas such as

Kirwani Kirwani is a musical scale in Hindustani classical music. It is an Indian raga specially suited for instrumental music. The scale is the same as the harmonic minor in western music. There are shades of Pilu in Kirwani. This raga is said to hav ...

Malkauns Malkauns, known also as rag Malkosh, is a raga in Indian classical music. It is one of the oldest ragas of Indian classical music. The equivalent raga in Carnatic music is called Hindolam, not to be confused with the Hindustani Hindol. Accor ...

and Vasanta;

thumri Thumri () is a vocal genre or style of Indian music. The term "thumri" is derived from the Hindi verb ''thumuknaa'', which means "to walk with a dancing gait in such a way that the ankle-bells tinkle." The form is, thus, connected with dance, dram ...

and

bhajan Bhajan is an Indian term for any devotional song with a religious theme or spiritual ideas, specifically among Dharmic religions, in any language. The term bhajanam (Sanskrit: भजनम्) means ''reverence'' and originates from the root w ...

vocal pieces; and dhun and other traditional folk tunes. The range of instruments also allowed for a blending of the two disciplines of Indian classical music, with sitar, sarod and tabla being the mainstays of the Hindustani (or North Indian) system, while veena, mridangam and kanjira are commonly associated with the Carnatic (South Indian) system.

US tour

After the completing the recording, the ensemble undertook a US tour. Among their first engagements, the Festival from India performed at the

Greek Theatre A theatrical culture flourished in ancient Greece from 700 BC. At its centre was the city-state of Athens, which became a significant cultural, political, and religious place during this period, and the theatre was institutionalised there as par ...

in Los Angeles over 24–30 June. Although Shankar lists Aashish Khan as the only sarodya in the ensemble, a report in the '' Van Nuys News'' included Khan's father (and Shankar's brother-in-law)

Ali Akbar Khan Ali Akbar Khan (14 April 192218 June 2009) was an Indian Hindustani classical musician of the Maihar gharana, known for his virtuosity in playing the sarod. Trained as a classical musician and instrumentalist by his father, Allauddin Khan, ...

among the performers at the Greek Theatre. The newspaper's reviewer, Stephen Braitman, also wrote that, with the sitar "probably the most familiar nstrument to the audience, the orchestra's music "spanned nearly every conceivable combination of sound", and following the inspired interplay between Shankar's sitar and Ali Akbar Khan's sarod, the performers received "a screaming, shouting, standing ovation". The opening concert marked the first time that Shankar and Khan performed together in the US. The ensemble played at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

's Frost Amphitheater on 5 and 6 July, as part of the university's Summer Festival. ''

The Stanford Daily ''The Stanford Daily'' is the student-run, independent daily newspaper serving Stanford University. ''The Daily'' is distributed throughout campus and the surrounding community of Palo Alto, California, United States. It has published since the ...

'' reported that Shankar had gathered "some of the finest musicians of India for this tour" and gave the total number of players as 22. While detailing the varied program, the newspaper highlighted Ali Akbar Khan's presence, along with that of flautist N. Ramani and veena player

Doraiswamy Iyengar Mysore Venkatesha Doreswamy Iyengar (1920–1997) was a Carnatic musician and one of the greatest exponents of the veena in modern Indian history. Early life Doreswamy Iyengar was born to a Tamil brahmin family in Gaddavalli, a village in H ...

. Later in the year, the Festival from India played in New York, where their show was reviewed in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' by Narayana Menon, head of All India Radio. Menon praised the energy created by Palghat Raghu and Alla Rakha, on mridangam and tabla, respectively, as the two drummers evoked a musical and cultural exchange between the two disciplines of Indian classical music.

Release and legacy

World Pacific Records released ''Ravi Shankar's Festival from India'' in December 1968. Described by Shankar as "a beautiful cover jacket", the album's gatefold cover was designed by Jan Steward. Among other Shankar projects, Steward created the artwork for a book accompanying ''Anthology of Indian Music'', a double LP issued by World Pacific in 1969 containing Shankar's spoken history of Indian classical music. Reviewing the ''Festival from India'' album in December 1968, ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' magazine said that after his past successes, Shankar was now "test nghis own market power with a double disk LP, featuring a festival of haunting, hypnotizing instrumentals". The reviewer added that while the price of the double album might adversely affect its commercial performance, "his influence will only grow." In his Raghu obituary, in 2009, music critic Ken Hunt noted that the ''

Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the principal historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP), a University of Oxford publishing house. The dictionary, which published its first editio ...

'' had adopted a quote from the 1968 ''New York Times'' review in its definition of "mridangam or mridanga". He also admired Raghu's performance on the studio version of "Raga Mishra Gara" as "a North–South drum meeting with Alla Rakha". Following sitarist Shamim Ahmed's death in 2012, Hunt similarly cited his playing on Shankar's ''Festival from India'' – in this case, a duet with Aashish Khan – as a career highlight. Shankar returned to the Festival from India concept in 1974, when he staged a similarly titled revue sponsored by

. The latter, whose introduction of Indian influences to

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

' sound had led to Shankar achieving mainstream popularity during the late 1960s, said that he had wanted to present such a revue since 1967, after hearing the sitarist's orchestral work ''Nava Rasa Ranga''. Shankar's 1968 studio album was later issued on CD by the specialist reissue label

BGO Records BGO Records (Beat Goes On) is a British record label specializing in classic rock, blues, jazz, and folk music. In 1965, Andy Gray opened Andys Records and set up a market stall in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. Year by year he opened up more shops. ...

Track listing

All selections traditional, adapted by

. ;Side one # "Vedic Hymn" – 2:38 # "Raga Yemen in Teental (16 Beats)" – 4:40 # "Raga Kirwani Alap-Jor-Gat in Teental (16 Beats)" – 12:57 ;Side two #

"Raga Ragehwar Jhaptal (10 Beats), Teental (16 Beats)" – 7:45 # "Raga Puryadhanashree Khyal in Slow Ektal (12 Beats) & Fast Teenal (14 Beats)" – 7:42 # "Thumri in Manj Khamaj, Talchanghar (14 Beats)" – 4:45 ;Side three #

"Thumri in Mishra Khamaj, Tal Keherwa (4 Beats)" – 3:30 # "Raga Malkauns, Rupaktal (7 Beats)" – 6:06 # "Raga Vasanta,Tal Rupakam (6 Beats)" – 5:40 # "Raga Mishra Gara, Teental (16 Beats)" – 7:41 ;Side four #

"Dhun, Tala Kaharva (8 Beats)" – 4:25 # "Sur Das Bhajan Raga Desh in Dadra (3 Beats)" – 4:35 # "Punjabi Folk Song" – 2:22 # "Doh Bahar" – 10:50

Personnel

–

sitar The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form in 19th-century India. Khusrau K ...

, direction *

– vocal *

– vocal * Kamala Chakravarty – vocal *

–

– tabla *

–

* Palghat Raghu –

* Sharad Kumar –

* Shamim Ahmed – sitar * Miskin Khan – tabla, percussion *

– tambura, swarmandel * Amiyo Das Gupta – tambura * Fakir Mohammad – tambura * Taranath Rao – tambura

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * * ''World Music: The Rough Guide (Volume 2: Latin and North America, Caribbean, India, Asia and Pacific)'' (2000). London: Rough Guides/Penguin. . {{Authority control 1968 albums Ravi Shankar albums World Pacific Records albums Albums produced by Richard Bock (producer)