Book Review: Svaranjini and Svaraangini

Padmavibhushan Dr. Prabha Atre is a very well known Hindustani vocalist who represents the Kirana Gharana.  She recently released two books on Hindustani Classical Music called Svaranjini and Svaraangini, published in 2007 by B. R Rhythms, a New Delhi based publication that specializes in books on performing arts.

The beautifully hard bound books feature musical compositions in more than 90 ragas which are written in Hindi. The books also feature more than 20 semi-classical Thumri, Dadra and Bhajan compositions. The outstanding feature of the books is that they come with Cds in the MP3 format so that students of music and rasikas can listen to the audio version of the compositions. Students of music who are interested in understanding how to notate compositions in the traditional way will also benefit from listening to the compositions while following the notation in the two books Svarajini and Svaraangini.

In both books, the musical compositions are organized by the time of performance of the ragas, namely, morning, afternoon, evening and night. There is variety in the rhythmic cycles they are set to. Most compositions are set to 7 beat cycle roopak, 10 beat cycle jhaptaal, 12 beat ektaal and the popular 16 beat teentaal. The lyrics are mostly devotional and the compositions capture the essence of the ragas.  

Dr. Prabha Atre learned in the Guru-Shishya tradition under illustrious mentors such as Shri Suresh Babu Mane and Shrimati Hirabai Barodekar. She has distinguished herself as a highly creative composer steeped in tradition and yet innovative in outlook. Her compositions reflect a high order of intellect and analytical acumen without compromising on musical appeal.

A well rounded artist, Dr. Atre holds several commercial recordings to her credit and retired as head of music department of S.N.D.T University after dedicating several years of her life in the esteemed educational institution. Prior to that, she worked in the public sector at All India Radio, Mumbai.

Dr. Prabha Atre will be visiting Boston in early April and is scheduled to perform at the 2008 Learnquest Music conference scheduled to be held between April 9 and 13.  You will be able to buy the book, meet the author and listen to her music as well. Please visit www.learnquest.org/conference2008 for more details. For inquiries about the book, please write an email to info@brrhythms.com 

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