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Anoushka Shankar On BBC Radio 4 MELODIC INSTRUMENTS
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Senior Member 1,744 posts ragamala Senior Member 1,744 posts
ragamala
I am always perplexed as to why discussions of favourite players - or not - turn sour.

The accusation that Anoushka Shankar should have queried the interviewer's description of her as arguably the world's number two sitar player is ludicrous enough - I mean who on earth would expect her to say something like "excuse me, I'm not, there's a girl from Leicester in the UK who plays far better than I do"?? I suspect even if it had been made during the interview Ms S might have made a discrete pause and coloured a little. You don't jump down the throat of an interviewer.

In fact, if anyone has actually LISTENED to the interview it is patently clear that Anoushka didn't have any opportunity to comment AT ALL.

Here's the transcript of the opening announcement of the programme excerpt -
Quote:
Now if you're Ravi Shankar's daughter, there is a fair chance that you'll play the sitar, and Anoushka Shankar did. But no-one could have predicted that she'd become quite so good at it, winning a recording contract at 16, and a Grammy nomination at 22. She's now, arguably, the world's second best sitar player. When I m,et her I asked her about her life-long love affair with all things musical, and what it's like to collaborate with all sorts of different musicians, including the likes of Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull, and why she just brought out an album which fuses sitar with Spanish flamenco.
From this it is patently clear that the announcer's comments were recorded for the programme after the interview with Ms Shankar. Maybe some months after the interview, as there was a long gap between interview and broadcast, as I pointed out earlier. So the idea that Ms S went along with the suggestion that she's number two is bs.
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trippy monkey 4,281 posts
trippy monkey
This was on yesterday morning as part of Woman's Hour between 10.30 & 10.45 for 10 mins.

http://www.mediafire.com/?5s33b71bflbb5en

The first part of the 'yap', if you like, was personal stuff & then on to the actual music.
It was interesting to see how she's progressed technique AND musically-wise.

What made me go WHAT!!!! was when the idiotic interviewer said, along the lines of, if her father, Pt Ravi Shankar, is viewed as the best sitar player today, whoops already!!!, then SHE is arguably the 2nd best!!
How she came up with THAT pile of #### is beyond me & just shows how far we all still have to go in bringing ICM to the masses!!!

ANYWAY
Enjoy it!!

Nick
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ragamala Senior Member 1,744 posts
ragamala
Thanks for drawing this to attention, Nick.

Curiously enough, , I am not a habitual listener to Woman's Hour so missed it.

Not "if" Ravi was the best - Ravi is "indisputably" the best according to the presenter.

I thought it was quite a good little interview, really.
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coughcapkittykat Senior Member 295 posts
coughcapkittykat
Thanks for this Nick, looking forward to hearing it.
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nicneufeld Senior Member 1,566 posts
nicneufeld
I'll have to give this a download, thanks. I saw her live broadcast concert from Spain a while back, and while the Indo-flamenco fusion was not something I loved (nor did I really hate it), on one of the earlier (somewhat more pure) ragas she was impressive in her playing, to me. Much more a "fretty" style player than gayaki, some of the fast lines on the lower strings were pretty sweet.

But LOL, yes that poor interviewer. Seriously though, in the West normal people (barely) know one sitarist...Ravi Shankar. So this interviewer met another one, so its only natural to think she's second best, since I'll wager that person couldn't have named another sitarist...
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trippy monkey 4,281 posts
trippy monkey
nic
YES!!!!!!
Her father was always FAR more 'frettier' than anyone else. A way for NON Indians to be able to appreciate him more???? Her playing is pulling away slightly from her father & has been for a while now.
She also softened off her weird part American accent too. Where DID she start that from????
She'll NEVER be a gayaki player as her fingers aren't flexible enough!

Your last paragraph, unfortunately, is too true even now for comfort.

Nick
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ragamala Senior Member 1,744 posts
ragamala
nicneufeld wrote:
Seriously though, in the West normal people (barely) know one sitarist...Ravi Shankar. So this interviewer met another one, so its only natural to think she's second best, since I'll wager that person couldn't have named another sitarist...
Come on guys, let's not get too snooty about this. We might have made a fetish out of ICM, but ......

How many here could name 3 or 4 top western classical pianists, 3 or 4 top opera baritones or sopranos?

Realistically, the presenter relies on researchers. And what researcher is going to bring up the likes of Shahid Parvez or the rest when this is only a ten minute interview. This is Woman's Hour, remember, not a classical music programme. I think there was a good balance in the questions which brought out the personal side....

And Anoushka answered the questions well. And yes, Nick, she does seemed to have poshed and de-americanised her accent, doesn't she?
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trippy monkey 4,281 posts
trippy monkey
Sorry Alan but what forum is this?

Nick
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ragamala Senior Member 1,744 posts
ragamala
trippy wrote:
Sorry Alan but what forum is this?

Nick
One where sitar freaks can look down their noses on the rest of humanity? I hope not. :twisted:
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trippy monkey 4,281 posts
trippy monkey
I noticed you edited your post?!!?!?

Nick
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ragamala Senior Member 1,744 posts
ragamala
trippy wrote:
I noticed you edited your post?!!?!?

Nick
Correct, I added the second part
"Realistically, the presenter relies on researchers. And what researcher is going to bring up the likes of Shahid Parvez or the rest when this is only a ten minute interview. This is Woman's Hour, remember, not a classical music programme. I think there was a good balance in the questions which brought out the personal side....

And Anoushka answered the questions well. And yes, Nick, she does seemed to have poshed and de-americanised her accent, doesn't she?
"

I'm not sure how this affects your post if you only saw the first part of mine?

My point re WCM musicians is simply this. No-one can be criticised for having a lack of knowledge or experience in a particular field. There are always going to be cognoscenti who are surprised that "the common man" (to use a common Indian expression) is not as well versed as they are in a narrow field of knowledge.

Crikey, in a world such as ours there are worse crimes than not knowing the names of a few top sitar players.
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Sanjeeb Senior Member 513 posts
Sanjeeb
trippy wrote:
This was on yesterday morning as part of Woman's Hour between 10.30 & 10.45 for 10 mins.

http://www.mediafire.com/?5s33b71bflbb5en

The first part of the 'yap', if you like, was personal stuff & then on to the actual music.
It was interesting to see how she's progressed technique AND musically-wise.

What made me go WHAT!!!! was when the idiotic interviewer said, along the lines of, if her father, Pt Ravi Shankar, is viewed as the best sitar player today, whoops already!!!, then SHE is arguably the 2nd best!!
How she came up with THAT pile of #### is beyond me & just shows how far we all still have to go in bringing ICM to the masses!!!

ANYWAY
Enjoy it!!

Nick
Thanks for posting this and your upfront opinion.
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nicneufeld Senior Member 1,566 posts
nicneufeld
Sorry, didn't mean to sound like I was maliciously slagging off the presenter, I haven't even watched it yet! I don't blame -anyone- for not knowing a bunch of sitarists...my hobbies and interests are my own, as earnestly as I may wish others shared my appreciation! I just got a chuckle out of the logic of figuring Anoushka must be the second best sitarist ever, since, well, to most people meeting her, she's only the second sitarist they've ever heard of! So I didn't mean it malevolently or terribly critically, just chuckled at what may have been the logic by which the presenter pegged her for the silver medal of sitar...

Anyway, its enough of a reward to be able to appreciate this music. My tastes have always been strange enough I've never felt angry or frustrated with anyone for not sharing them with me.

To broach a brief technical question...Nick mentioned gayaki and finger flexibility. Does she bend with flattened (straight) fingers like her father seems to? Is that what you were referring to? I'm trying (under the patient remonstrance of my Ustad who certainly exemplifies or even embodies gayaki-ang) to shed the bad habit of occasionally straightening fingers for a bend.
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David Russell Watson Senior Member 362 posts
David Russell Watson
trippy wrote:
She also softened off her weird part American accent too. Where DID she start that from????
She spent her teens in California.

David
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nicneufeld Senior Member 1,566 posts
nicneufeld
Oh yes, it was a very strong Southern Californian accent that all my cousins in LA have, when she was younger.
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ragamala Senior Member 1,744 posts
ragamala
nicneufeld wrote:
Sorry, didn't mean to sound like I was maliciously slagging off the presenter, ..

I've done a bit of that in my time! And ranting about BBC, I remember once a young interviewer embarrassed RS by talking as if George Harrison and Yehudi Menuhin were still alive.....

It may be this one
http://www.mediafire.com/?3v2ci44me35m6t4
nicneufeld wrote:
I haven't even watched it yet!
nic, you won't find it very visually interesting.

P.S. For another Woman's Hour interview from 2006 - see the one I've just posted on the vocal forum. And no, I don't take my apron off and sit down to listen. And least not on a regular basis... :wink:
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