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| English: Ravi Shankar performs in Delhi with his daughter Anoushka in March 2009 (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Philip Glass and Ravi Shankar met for the first time in Paris in 1965. Philip Glass was studying music with Nadia Boulanger, Ravi Shankar was recording a score for Chappacqua, the movie of Contard Rook. Philip Glass was earning pocket money doing notation and was assisting the sound engineer in the studio where Ravi Shankar recorded his sitar parts.
Ravi Shankar and Philip Glass spoke together, and Shankar answered many questions about Indian classical music and raga compositions.
This 1990 collaboration was a way to push this early dialogue a step forward. Passages is a rare instance of classical music reciprocity, each composer presenting thematic materials to the other as raw material from which the finished pieces were fashioned. Passages offers two Glass compositions on themes by Shankar, two Shankar compositions on themes by Glass as well as one piece from each composer completely of his own devising.
Tracks 1,5,6 Composed by Ravi Shankar
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| Philip Glass in the WNYC studios on December 12, 2007. He talked to Leonard Lopate and you can listen to the interview here. (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
1 Offering 9:40
2 Sadhanipa 8:31
3 Channels and Winds 7:56
4 Ragas in Minor Scale 7:32
5 Meetings Along the Edge 8:05
6 Prashanti 13:37
This beautiful album is another project of Private Music, the Peter Baumann's company in the 80's and early 90's. It is an interesting complement to Tana Mana.
Peter Baumann, founder of Private Music, (who had been a member of the Minimalist / Rock band Tangerine Dream and an admirer of all of the above) responded enthusiastically when the record company's President/CEO, Ron Goldstein, suggested in the summer of 1989, that they bring the now-famous Philip Glass back into musical contact with the ever expanding world of Ravi Shankar.
Musicians: Vocals Ravi Shankar and S.P. Balasubramanyam and the Madras Choir. Orchestral group from Madras. Soloists: Ronu Mazumdar, Flute; Shubho Shankar, Sitar; Partha Sarathy, Sarod; Partha Sarathy, Veena; T. Srinivasan, Mridangam & Drum Speech; Abhiman Kaushal, Tabla.
Musicians: Strings: Tim Baker Violin; Barry Finclair Violin, Viola; Mayuki Fukuhara Violin; Regis landiorio Violin; Karen Karlsud Violin; Sergiu Schwartz Violin; Masako Yanagita, Violin, Viola; Al Brown, Viola; Richard Sortomme, Viola; Seymour Barab, Cello; Beverly Laudrisen, Cello; Batia Lieberman, Cello; Fred Zlotkin, Cello; Joe Carver, Bass. Woodwinds: Theresa Norris, Flute; Jack Kripl, Flute, Soprano Saxophone; Jon Gibson, Soprano Saxophone; Richard Peck, Tenor, Alto Saxophone; Lenny Pickett, Tenor, Alto Saxophone. Brass: Peter Gordon, French Horn; Ron Sell, French Horn; Keith O'Quinn, Trombone; Alan Raph, Trombone. Gorden Gottleib: Percussion. Jeanie Gagne: Voice. Michael Riesman: Piano.
