Indian Classical Ensemble (Yr3, Sem1)

Date for Entry: (Monday 9 September 2019)

Actual Date of Online Entry: (Monday 21st March 2022)

[WRITTEN AS REPORT]

RAAG MALKAUNS.

* Monday 9 September 2019 *

The course began with a classical piece called Raag Malkauns. Mr. Maharaj showed us a recording of an Indian Classical class in the degree program playing the piece for a Music of the Diaspora Concert. If I had been able to get a copy of that recording, I would have been able to write out the entire song.

    I would not have minded if we were going to play the full thing but I would have loved to have this for my archives. The transcription for this piece did not need any amendments. Only two to three classes were taken to complete the song.

Link(s):

1. Handwritten Sargam PDF.
2. Version 2.** [Request by Email.]
3. Version 3 - Final.

 

AIGIRI NANDINI.

* Monday 30 September 2019 *

    On this day Mr. Maharaj gave us a new piece of music to do. It sounded like another classical piece and I was excited. Only the verse and chorus were given for that first part and it was notated on the Sunday before the next class. There was a class where a dance lecturer came to class that night and we learned that this piece was going to be played for her dance group at one of their performances

    Version 2 was done and that was used upstairs in the Cheeseman Building on a Tuesday afternoon at 1 PM in the dance studio. I took my tenor pan and went there to play the music. Mr. Maharaj did not have our individual harmonium class again so I waited to play with the dancer. Not many people were there for that first rehearsal. It was only me and then Brandon came late. I met Anil with the harmonium lady (Miss Priyanka) who sang so beautifully.

    When I took my first play with them, I did not know all the things I had to wait for and no one told me exactly what to do. It felt as I they would expect me to know those things and improvise if needed as if it was like in some of the performances on YouTube. It was a very long piece of music. I did not even look at the dancers yet because I was trying to get what the lady was singing and playing. Apparently, there were some different things that Mr. Maharaj gave us that she was not doing. So, I took out my pencil and began to make notes and corrections to my score.

    I knew that by the night came I would have plenty, plenty of things to do over, and I was right. I got Anil to send me a recording of the whole piece. It took me from 7 PM to 3:30 AM straight to write out the entire song as a melodic line. I was so tired I wanted to fall down. I had to wake up early on Wednesday and get the music printed.

    Version 3. A bigger number of students were there present today. Everyone got the score from me by email. I did not want to do that yet because I wanted to make sure that it was suitable and corrected. I knew all that hour of work the night before was too much and that I WAS going to miss out on things. I let happy with version three.

    The pages were filled with systems and it was better for me. I did a run-through of the piece on the Tenor pan. Anil was playing at the table and Miss Priyanka was on her harmonium. Some of the others were behind me looking into the score. Sir came in later with his violin to join us. We were not in the brighter studio but the darker one. Mr. Maharaj didn’t take any look into the score versions this time but I was glad to have something like this being able to work out. Versions four and five came and the fifth one was then used for the “Festival of Movement” concert.

Link(s):

• Versions 1-3 [Including Sargam].** [Request by Email.]
• Mr. Maharaj's Version - Final.
• My 'Score Guide' (Version 4) - Final.
• Festival of Movements - Program.
• Miss Mahadeo's Lyrics (Pictures).
• "Aigiri Nandini" - Audio Recording with Score.**

 

VE MAAHI.

* Monday 7th October 2019 *

Not much time was spent on this piece. It was learned faster and we were able to move to another piece. I cannot remember why I did not write in the Sargam to the Western notation score.

Link(s):

1. “Ve Maahi” Handwritten Sargam PDF.** [Request by Email.]
2. “Ve Maahi” (Version 1-3).** [Request by Email.]
3. Version 4 - Final.
4. Recording.**

 

GATA RAHE MERE DIL.

* Monday 12th November 2019 *

The nice thing about this piece was that it was fun and only took two classes to put together. I liked how Mr. Maharaj added the African Drum. The sound of the instrument made it even better.

Link(s):

1. Version 2 - Final.
2. Recording.**

BACHAPAN KI MOHABAT HO.

* Monday 18th November 2019 *

During the vacation time, I met up with Mr. Maharaj in Studio Four to help him transcript a piece of music. He had the whole piece written out. I did ask him to play it out on the piano and recorded it on the phone. It did not take me more than half an hour to work out on Musescore. The piece was used at the Recital for this semester. Unfortunately, Sir did not remember to do this piece all semester long and had then asked me to play it as a solo and I took the offer.

Link(s):

1. Handwritten Sargam.** [For Request by Email.]
2. Versions 2.** [Request by Email.]
3. Versions 3 - Final.
4. Video Recording.

JAB KOI BAAT BIGAD JAAYE.

* Unknown/Forgotten Date *

This piece began as a transcription that Mr. Maharaj shared with the class. I got a copy online but had to write it over for some other reason. This piece was completed within one class session because the notation was already done and everyone was reading the online description from the projector. It was just a matter of arrangement based on what Sir would have liked repeated from the music and how the class would end.

Link(s):

1. Versions 2 - Final.
2. Recording.**

HEY SHIVA SHANKAR.

* Sunday 24th November 2019 *

In the last two classes before the ensemble's recital, we were given a listen to another piece done by Ms. Mahadeo from the "Aigiri Nandini" piece. I was not sure if the entire class was going to have to learn it so, I took a recording of the song and tried my best to have a score done for the other students.

    These two pieces of music done by Ms. Mahadeo provided the opportunity to be creative in producing 'score guides', which was an adoption of the listening map lesson from a teaching course in the Music Certificate. The notation will not be one hundred percent accurate but gives the reader an idea of what is to come in further sections.

Link(s):

1. 'Score Guide' Notation - (Version 2).
2. 'Score Guide' (Version 2) - Recording.**

END OF TERM RECITAL.

* Monday 25th November 2019 *

    This was the end-of-semester recital for the first semester of the academic year. All pieces done and uploaded via a link in the entry were performed. There were also individual pieces done by myself were also done from my Individual Harmonium class. Other available recordings from this event would be presented in their special section above.

    This was my first time playing the Harmonium in front of a live audience. It was scary because I had to prepare an introduction to "Yaad Kiya Dil" and I did not remember to do it. Instead, I started with the verse and continued with the rest of the piece. Other accompaniments for this piece were done by Anil on Tabla and Brandon on his keyboard. From the recording, I saw a nice little drummer was helping too.

    The second was a tenor pan item to play "Backpan Ki Mohobatta Ko". This was a piece that Mr. Maharaj had to meet up with me in the summer in DCFA to write out. We did not get to that piece for the ensemble to play so he gave it to me as a solo for the recital.  Mr. Maharaj joined the three of us on another Harmonium for the tenor pan song.

    The Ensemble also played the "Aigiri Nandini" that Ms. Paul's dancers did for the "Festival of Movement" concert earlier in the semester. They started off the recital. The 'Hey Shiva Shankar" piece was performed in the second half of the recital. I did not go to play the tenor pan part after working so hard on the transcription because I did not find myself confident enough. I still gave Ms. Mahadeo a copy of the music that I made for her.

    We did not have an official programme for the recital but I kept a copy of the list that Mr. Maharaj wrote out before it started. On this Night Nadara and Dad came to the show. They said that they enjoyed it and Mr. Maharaj told me that the tenor pan piece went really good. 

    The video recordings were recorded on Saturday 6th August 2022 and became a DAPHA Project.

Link(s):

• Individual Harmonium Class - Journal Entry.
• Photographs from Recital & Programme.
• "Yad Kiya Dil" - Video Recording.

Daryl Zion M. Ali