For listeners new to Indian classical music and those who know it well
Listen to Indian classical music
Listen to Indian classical music on kalasudha.com, in the live and studio recordings and concert videos that KalaSudha makes with its artists. Then hear the music live.
What KalaSudha records and where to hear it
KalaSudha records and produces Indian classical music with its artists and releases it worldwide. The catalogue holds studio recordings and live recordings from KalaSudha concerts, including the Kala Festival, as albums, EPs and singles. Its concert videos are single pieces filmed at those concerts.
The recordings are on the releases page and the videos on the videos page, both on kalasudha.com. Artists include the raga pianist Deepak Shah, the sitar player Dr Lovely Sharma, the singer Tejaswini Digamber Vernekar and the tabla player Ustad Akram Khan. For calm listening, the releases include meditative music by the Indian slide guitarist Pandit Debasis Chakroborty.
For teachers and students of GCSE, A level and IB music, the recordings and videos are listening examples of raga and tala. A raga is the melodic framework a musician improvises within. A tala is a rhythmic cycle.
Ways into Indian classical music with KalaSudha
Where to start listening
Start with one raga at its traditional hour, and with its alap, the slow opening with no beat. For calm listening, try Yaman, an early-evening raga whose mood is peace and devotion.
How to start listening
- Choose a raga for the hour. In the Hindustani tradition of north India, each raga has a time of day, its samay. Bhairav and Todi belong to the morning, Yaman to the early evening. A recording lets you choose the hour.
- Start with the alap, the slow opening with no beat, where the musician sets out the raga note by note.
- Stay for the composition, where the tabla joins and the tala begins.
- Try a tabla solo: a recital on the tabla, a pair of drums, over a short melody repeated in every cycle.
- Hear the music live at a KalaSudha concert.
Videos
Watch KalaSudha concert videos
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Indian classical albums should a beginner start with?
A beginner can start with any Indian classical album that opens with an alap, the slow opening with no beat, in a raga for the hour. A raga is the melodic framework a musician improvises within. Yaman, for example, is an early-evening raga.
Next, try a composition with tabla, then a tabla solo, a recital on the tabla drums. KalaSudha's releases include recordings by artists such as the raga pianist Deepak Shah and the Indian slide guitarist Pandit Debasis Chakroborty.
Where can I stream live recordings of Indian classical concerts?
You can listen to live recordings of Indian classical concerts on kalasudha.com, where KalaSudha releases music recorded at its own concerts, including the Kala Festival. The releases page lists them beside KalaSudha's studio recordings.
KalaSudha's concert videos, on the videos page, show single pieces filmed at its concerts.
Where can I find recordings of Indian slide guitar?
Recordings of Indian slide guitar by artists such as Pandit Debasis Chakroborty are on kalasudha.com, in KalaSudha's releases and concert videos. They include live recordings from KalaSudha concerts, among them the Kala Festival.
The releases page lists the albums and EPs. The videos page has pieces filmed on stage, some in duets with tabla or with guitar.
Where can I watch full Indian classical concerts online?
Indian classical concert videos on kalasudha.com show single pieces filmed at KalaSudha's own concerts. Each piece is sung or played on instruments such as the sitar or the bansuri flute.
To hear a full concert, come to one. KalaSudha presents concerts such as the Kala Festival and London Ragas, a monthly baithak in London: a small, seated concert with the audience close to the musicians.
Which Indian classical recordings suit someone exploring world music?
Someone exploring world music can start with Indian classical recordings on an instrument they already know, such as the piano or the guitar. KalaSudha's releases include ragas recorded by the raga pianist Deepak Shah and the Indian slide guitarist Pandit Debasis Chakroborty. A raga is the melodic framework a musician improvises within.
From there, try the sitar or the bansuri flute in KalaSudha's concert videos.
Which Indian classical ragas are good for meditation and relaxation?
Indian classical ragas whose mood, or rasa, is peace or devotion suit calm, meditative listening. A raga is the melodic framework a musician improvises within. Two examples are Yaman, an early-evening raga, and Bhairavi, an early-morning raga. Both carry a mood of peace and devotion.
Start with the alap, the slow opening with no beat. KalaSudha's releases include meditative music by the Indian slide guitarist Pandit Debasis Chakroborty.
Which ragas are played in the morning and which in the evening?
In Hindustani music, Bhairav and Todi are morning ragas, while Yaman and Marwa belong to the early evening. This classical tradition of north India gives each raga its own time of day, called its samay. A raga is the melodic framework a musician improvises within.
Other hours have their own ragas. Madhuvanti belongs to the late afternoon, and Darbari Kanada to late at night.
Where can a music teacher find Indian classical recordings for the classroom?
A music teacher can find Indian classical recordings for the classroom on kalasudha.com, in KalaSudha's live and studio recordings and its concert videos. The videos let a class watch a sitar, a bansuri flute or a tabla played on stage.
After a KalaSudha school visit, teachers keep the classroom material, such as lesson notes, listening lists or recordings.
Choose a recording to start with
Press Browse recordings to find the live and studio recordings KalaSudha makes with its artists and releases worldwide.