Sitar Power 1 - Fusion of Rock and Indian Music

1. Bombay Boogie

2. Casbah Shuffle

3. Raga Rock

4. Sitharmony

5. New Delhi Vice

6. India Beat

7. Sitar Magic

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist
Ashwin Batish: --------------------- Composer, Performer, Teacher of Music, Recording Artist

Speciality: Sitar and Tabla

Birthplace: Bombay, India

Education: Musical: Training in North Indian classical music from his father Pandit Shiv Dayal Batish

Academic: Associate in Arts (Accounting) - Cabrillo College, Santa Cruz, California; Bachelor of Science (Accounting) - San Jose State University, San Jose, California

Teaching: Master Instructor - Batish Institute of Music & Fine Arts, Santa Cruz, California. Previous Positions: Music Faculty San Jose State University - East/West Fusion. Guest Lecturer - Mills College, Oakland, California. University of California, Santa Cruz. Cabrillo College, California.

Recording Artist: Batish Records, California, U.S.A.

Discography: Morning Meditation (CD/Cassette 1980) The Third Stream (CD/Cassette 1981) In Concert CD/Cassette (CD/Cassette 1984) Om Shanti Meditation - Swarmandal (CD/Cassette 1985) Sitar Power #1 (CD/Cassette 1987) Sitar Power #2 (CD/Cassette July 1994) Ashwin Batish Live at KKUP Radio (CD 2000) Educational Works: Tabla for Accompaniment or Practice 32 or 10 CD set (1991) Ragopedia - Exotic Scales of North India co-author (1989) Sitar Tutor Video #1 - Introduction to the Sitar (1994) Sitar Tutor Video #2 - Begining Sitar Exercises (1994) Changing Your Sitar Strings Video (1999) Tweaking YOur Sitar Video (1999) Tabla Tutor Video #1 - Introduction to Tabla (1994) Tabla Tutor Video #2 - Production of Tabla Bols (1995) Tanpura Tutor Video (1995) Harmonium Tutor Video #1 - Introduction to the Harmonium (Co-Authored with Pandit Shiv Dayal Batish) (1994) Dilruba Tutor Video #1 - Introduction to the Dilruba (Co-Authored with Pandit Shiv Dayal Batish) (1996)

Music Videos: Ashwin Batish at WOMAD - Interview and Highlights (45 min.) Batish Family at UCSC - In Concert (60 min.) S. D. Batish and Ashwin Batish - KKUP Radio Interview/Performance (82 min) Ashwin Batish and S.D. Batish in concert at the Renaissance Fair (52 min.) Music of North India Concert - Ashwin Batish, Sitar and Sham Kane, Tabla In Concert (Part 1) - Ashwin Batish, Sitar and Zakir Hussain, Tabla In Concert (Part 1) - Ashwin Batish, Sitar and Zakir Hussain, Tabla

Performances: Winnipeg Folk Festival, Canada Vancouver Folk Festival, Canada Montreal Jazz Festival, Canada Earthsong Festival, Hamilton, Canada Womad Festival, Toronto, Canada Oxfam Worldfest, California, USA World Music Festival, Michigan, USA Quebec International Music Festival, Canada Nassau Community College Folk Festival, New York Worldbeat Festival, Ottawa, Canada National Arts Center, Ottawa, Canada Club Nu, Miami, Florida New Jazz Festival, Moers, Germany

Product Description
It's powerful, it's magical! .... Stops you dead in your tracks the first time you hear it .... Batish rips on the Sitar" - Tower Records, Pulse.

"Sitar Power is a mind blowing mix of modern funk gadgetry and classical Eastern flavor. This is no novelty. Batish has been called a sitar master by fellow musicians and critics alike." - CMJ, NY

Bombay Born Ashwin Batish rocked the airwaves with his debut album Sitar Power 1 in 1986. This album drew rave reviews for its innovative stance and as one of the pioneering albums in the Worldbeat genre that successfully fused the classical sitar music of India with rock. This re-release on CD is done by popular demand following the recent release of his Sitar Power 2 CD!

This CD was also awarded honorable mention by the National Association of Independant Record Distributors.

Sitar Power 1 - Fusion of Rock and Indian Music

Tracks:

Bombay Boogie
Casbah Shuffle
Raga Rock
Sitharmony
New Delhi Vice
India Beat
Sitar Magic

Album Description

It's powerful, it's magical! .... Stops you dead in your tracks the first time you hear it .... Batish rips on the Sitar" - Tower Records, Pulse.

"Sitar Power is a mind blowing mix of modern funk gadgetry and classical Eastern flavor. This is no novelty. Batish has been called a sitar master by fellow musicians and critics alike." - CMJ, NY

This CD was also awarded honorable mention by the National Association of Independant Record Distributors.

Customer Reviews:

Great music; okay recording.......2006-06-12

This is my first Ashwin Batish album and I'll probably purchase more. I was looking for, and found, music that fuses western "rock" with Indian instruments and tempo. The music is great, though sometimes it definitely lets you know it was recorded in the mid-80s (think: drum machine).

Batish really excels where the music begins to depart from the standard western rock tempo and moves into Indian beats and rhythms but just stopping short of ragas.

One negative comment: the recording sound level leaves a bit to be desired. In fact, on one or two songs the overall input/output goes down so much that you think it's just fading to the end of the song, but then keeps going. It's as if someone were trying to compensate for the natural crescendos in the music by decreasing the input levels. This is why the album got only four stars. Perhaps Batish will one day remaster the album and address this.

All in all, if you're looking to explore this medium, buy this album.

Amazing!.......2001-04-04

Ashwin's work to blend two completely different styles of music is flawless. This album is a must-own! I also reccomend Sitar Power 2, which focuses on blending Indian music with several other styles of western music and is equally entertaining.

Fabulous and Fun!.......2001-03-07

A wonderful blend of traditional instruments and forms with Western melodies and forms. I know NOTHING about traditional Indian music, but this recording inspires me to learn.

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