South Asia : The Indian Subcontinent (Garland Encyclopedia of World Music, Volume 5) [Hardcover]

Alison Arnold (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0824049462 | ISBN-13: 978-0824049461 | Publication Date: November 1999 | Edition: Har/Com

In this volume, sixty-eight of the world's leading authorities explore and describe the wide range of musics of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Kashmir, Nepal and Afghanistan. Important information about history, religion, dance, theater, the visual arts and philosophy as well as their relationship to music is highlighted in seventy-six in-depth articles.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Following the format of this ten-volume series (e.g., Africa, LJ 9/1/97; South America, Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, LJ 4/15/99), these works on world music contain articles by numerous scholars and cover many ethnic groups; 98 languages and language families are named in the index to the volume on Europe. After the two unifying introductory chapters by Rice (chair, ethnomusicology, UCLA), James Porter (Scottish ethnomusicology, Univ. of Aberdeen, Scotland), and Chris Goertzen (music, Earlham Coll.; Fiddling for Norway: Revival and Identity), articles in the Europe volume cover broad topics, such as European popular and art music and world and immigrant music in Europe. The geographic section explores the unique nature of individual European musical cultures as well as six transnational ethnic groups (e.g., Jews, Travellers) and 44 separate national cultures. Most of the 70-plus articles treat history, current practice, and scholarship, thus giving prospective researchers solid overviews and leads on individuals and institutions with expertise in each musical culture. As with the other volumes, an accompanying CD includes musical examples that are not available commercially. What results is an important one-volume addition to the literature on European traditional music for libraries owning the other volumes in the series or specializing in European anthropological subjects. In the Southeast Asia volume, another solid continuation of the series, 68 authors examine the vast subject of Indian music. As with the other volumes, this offers overview chapters (introduction and discussion of broad issues) preceding sections on each musical region or country. With myriad languages, religions, and national histories, the Indian subcontinent has a rich cultural heritage and much cross-cultural pollination to explore. Areas closed to scholars for political reasons or simply not yet studied still need research, but traditions in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka are represented. Both influences originally from outside of IndiaDsuch as film musicDand the worldwide diaspora of Indian peoples are also treated. Issues include the different roles of men and women in some South Asian musical cultures, the intersection of music, theater, and dance, and musical iconography and organology. Scholarly but colorful in its treatment, this book is aimed at serious students of ethnomusicology, upper undergraduate level and above. For large public and academic libraries owning the other volumes and for libraries specializing in South Asian subjects. [Volumes in this series on the Middle East and on the United States and Canada will be released in fall 2000 and on East Asia in 2001.DEd.]DBonnie Jo Dopp, Univ. of Maryland Libs., College Par.
-DBonnie Jo Dopp, Univ. of Maryland Libs., College Park
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

This unique and thoroughly researched resource provides a dynamic and in depth perspective on world music.... It strikes a balance between wonderful illustrations and comprehensive, scholarly entries. Each regional volume includes a CD sampler of that region's music. This source will have wide appeal to both the novice and expert.
–Dartmouth Medal, 2003

The editors and other authors of this volume are to be congratulated for their contributions to our understanding of musical thought and practice among the many peoples from the Indian subcontinent. Especially praiseworthy are the scope, clarity, and sensitivity....Pictures.with their captions, offer valuable information and insight....This volume is an excellent accomplishment by top scholars....[and] the book's vast scope and its incorporation of several hitherto muffled areas of inquiry stand to open new paths and repave old ones in both South Asian studies and ethnomusicology.
–Journal of American Musical Instrument Society, 2001

A valuable work for serious music researchers.
–American Reference Books Annual, 2000

Refreshingly unacademic in tone, and illustrated with nearly 300 black and white photographs, this South Asia volume of the Garland Encyclopedia is a wonder and a joy to behold....
–India-West

Besides reference, this highly readable and useful book is essential for South Asian music studies..
– Choice , June 2000

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1104 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; Har/Com edition (November 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0824049462
• ISBN-13: 978-0824049461
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.1 x 2.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,919,659 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic resource, November 14, 2002

By 

Erika Mitchell (E. Calais, VT USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: South Asia : The Indian Subcontinent (Garland Encyclopedia of World Music, Volume 5) (Hardcover)

This is a very informative collection of articles covering many aspects of South Asian music. It includes articles about North and South Indian classical traditions, folk traditions, dance, and popular music. There are also many articles about the role of music in society, women in music in South Asia, and South Asian music worldwide. Each region of South Asia is also covered with individual chapters. Many of the musical concepts and structures are exemplified in the accompanying CD; the relevant CD tracks are clearly noted in the text.

Living in Dubai, I have found myself immersed in South Asian culture, and recently started studying carnatic music on the veena, simply because it was here. Lacking all knowledge of the contexts in which the veena is played, I found myself floundering in my studies. The first teachers I worked with here either haven't had enough English or enough music theory studies to explain the music. I searched on the Net for information about carnatic music, but found that most of the information was written by Indians for Indians, using terms that I don't understand or can't make sense of. What makes this book different is that it is written for Western audiences, and the Indian terms are fully explained. As a result, this book has been a tremendous resource for me in explaining the music theory that I was struggling with, as well as the context of the music in Indian society. I've never read an encyclopedia cover to cover before, but once I got started reading this one, I couldn't stop.