The 'other' music

The collaboration story of the Indian and western music is not very old. Until the mid 1950s all Indian music was contained under just two genres, Classical and Film music. Later on the genre of Devotional music, that included Bhajan and Qawwali, was seperated from the Classical genre, as musicians started using western instruments in the compositions. Fusion became a genre in the year 1955, when Sarod maestro Ali Akbar Khan performed with western musicians in the US. During the 1960s, various other legends including Sitar maestro Ravi Shankar and Tabla wizard Alla Rakha also worked with their western counterparts. This trend of Indian fusion music was appreciated and adopted by the majority of people, especially westerners. The 'other' music had finally arrived.



In the 1970s Fusion music started transforming rapidly. New sub-genres of Fusion music like Indo Jazz, Indian Funk, Vedic Metal, Raga Rock captured the imagination of music lovers all around the globe. Indians expatriates of the West Indies created their own genre of Chutney music, a heady mix of Reggae and Bhojpuri. Along with improved economic conditions of the western world came its bye-product, mental stress. Indian Yoga tradition, which until then was considered to be a practice followed by the superstitious natives of the subcontinent gained popularity in the west. With Yoga came Yoga music, sometimes referred to as Ambient music. The psychedelic properies of Indian music was rediscovered again. The sub-genres of Chillout music, Lounge music and New Age music started taking shape. Musicians all over the world found Indian content, both vocal and instrumental music, a perfect infusion. By this time, an absolutely new genre, World music had also arrived.

TJ Rehmi - Dil Mai Durad :  



Bally Sagoo - Dil Cheez :  





Thievery Corporation - Transcendence :  



Indian Vibes - Mathar (Discovery of India Mix) :  



This blog is a good opportunity for me to present and introduce to you such experimental music. Music that has Indian content, in some form or the other, or that of other parts of the subcontinent including countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal only will find place here. The songs, although of full length, will be highly compressed, just good enough for sampling purpose only. Normally Fusion music is recorded under sophisticated studio environment, often with special sound effects, that can be best heard only with the original CDs or in superbly encoded digitised form. So if you like the music here go ahead and buy it. The only problem is, you won't find it in every music store down the street.