''West Meets East, Volume 2'' is an album by American violinist

Yehudi Menuhin Yehudi Menuhin, Baron Menuhin (22 April 191612 March 1999), was an American-born British violinist and conductor who spent most of his performing career in Britain. He is widely considered one of the greatest violinists of the 20th century. ...

and Indian

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 ...

virtuoso

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 in 1968. It is the second album in a trilogy of collaborations between the two artists, after the

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

-winning ''

West Meets East ''West Meets East'' is an album by American violinist Yehudi Menuhin and Indian sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar,first released in the United Kingdom by His Master's Voice in January 1967. It was recorded following their successful duet in June 1966 ...

'' (1967).Reginald Massey
"Ravi Shankar obituary"
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', 12 December 2012 (retrieved 3 December 2013). The release followed Menuhin and Shankar's duet on 10 December 1967 at the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

in New York, celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the

Universal Declaration of Human Rights The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the Human rights, rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN Drafting of the Universal D ...

.Shankar, ''Raga Mala'', p. 184. As part of his

utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...

n ideal, international human rights was a cause long supported by Menuhin in his work, while for

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 ...

, this

Human Rights Day Human Rights Day (HRD) is list of minor secular observances#December, celebrated annually around the world on 10 December every year. The date was chosen to honor the United Nations General Assembly's adoption and proclamation, on 10 December ...

recital marked the first time that a performance had received a worldwide television broadcast. Reflecting the celebrity status afforded the sitarist during this period, particularly as a result of his association with

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 ...

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 ...

, Shankar's activities were filmed for a documentary on his life, released as ''

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 ...

'' in 1971, and his autobiography ''My Music, My Life'' (1968) became a bestseller. Although ''West Meets East, Volume 2'' was another popular success for Menuhin and Shankar, their work together drew further criticism from purists in India, who considered that Shankar was westernising and thus diluting Indian classical music.

Recording and musical content

The follow-up to ''West Meets East'' was announced in February 1968, when ''

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'' magazine reported that Menuhin and Shankar had been recording new material together at

Angel Records Angel Records was a record label founded by EMI in 1953. It specialised in European classical music, classical music, but included an occasional operetta or Broadway score. and one Peter Sellers comedy disc. The famous Recording Angel trademark ...

' New York studios. While their first album continued to top that magazine's Best Selling Classical LP's listings, Shankar had also achieved mainstream success with the recently released '' Live: Ravi Shankar at the Monterey International Pop Festival'', which peaked at number 43 on the ''Billboard'' Top LP's chart – the highest US chart placing he would achieve throughout his career. Angel released the new Menuhin–Shankar set on 15 July that year. The album peaked at number 3 on the Classical LP's listings. ''West Meets East, Volume 2'' contains a version of the piece played at the United Nations, an interpretation of Raga Piloo.Lavazzoli, p. 63. According to Shankar's comments in a March 1968 issue of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' magazine, they recorded this selection "just a few days ago".Sue C. Clark
"Ravi Shankar: The ''Rolling Stone'' Interview"
''

'', 9 March 1968 (retrieved 3 December 2013). As at the recital, Menuhin and Shankar were accompanied by

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 ...

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 Kamala Chakravarty, Shankar's female companion, on tambura.Sleeve credits
''West Meets East, Volume 2'' LP (

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...

, 1968). The second piece is "Raga Ananda Bhairava", performed by Shankar with his regular accompanist and instrument-maker,

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 ...

,Shankar, ''Raga Mala'', p. 159. on tambura, and Rakha again on tabla. Side two in the original LP format consists of Menuhin and his sister

Hephzibah Hephzibah or Hepzibah ( or ; ) is a minor figure in the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible. She was the wife of Hezekiah, king of Judah (reigned 715 and 686 BCE), and the mother of Manasseh of Judah (reigned 687–643 BCE). Biblical ...

performing Bartók's Sonata No. 1 for Violin and Piano.

Track listing

All selections by Ravi Shankar except where noted. Side one # " Raga Piloo" – 14:44 # "Raga Ananda Bhairava" – 15:37 Side two #

"Sonata for Violin & Piano No. 1" (

Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as Hunga ...

) – 33:13

Personnel

– violin *

–

Hephzibah Menuhin Hephzibah Menuhin (20 May 19201 January 1981) was an American-Australian pianist, writer, and human rights campaigner. She was sister to the violinist Yehudi Menuhin and to the pianist, painter, and poet Yaltah Menuhin. She was also a linguist ...

– piano * N.C. Mullick – tambura * Kamala Chakravarty – tambura

References

Sources

* Peter Lavezzoli, ''The Dawn of Indian Music in the West'', Continuum (New York, NY, 2006; ). * Reginald Massey, ''The Music of India'', Abhinav Publications (New Delhi, NCT, 1996; ). * Ravi Shankar, ''My Music, My Life'', Mandala Publishing (San Rafael, CA, 2007; ). * Ravi Shankar, ''Raga Mala: The Autobiography of Ravi Shankar'', Welcome Rain (New York, NY, 1999; ). * ''World Music: The Rough Guide (Volume 2: Latin and North America, Caribbean, India, Asia and Pacific)'', Rough Guides/Penguin (London, 2000; ). {{Authority control 1968 albums Ravi Shankar albums Yehudi Menuhin

Recording and musical content

Track listing

Personnel

See also

References

Sources