NEW DELHI: From sarod virtuoso Alam Khan, son of the late legend Ali Akbar Khan, to musician and queer transmasculine activist Rumi Harish, “The Call of Music” explores the journeys of eight distinctive voices in Hindustani music — ranging from acclaimed performers to unsung torchbearers.
Written by Hindustani vocalist Priya Purushothaman, the book explores the personal journeys of dedicated music practitioners, offering readers a behind-the-scenes look at the creative process of music-making while also shedding light on the pervasive influence of social class within the realm of classical music.
It is published by Hachette India.
“I wondered about all the stories I wouldn’t get to hear or read, out of sheer lack of access or documentation.
This compelled me to seek these individuals and see if they would give me the privilege of sharing a slice of their lives, coming together as something akin to an ethnographic survey of select Hindustani musicians in the twenty-first century,” Purushothaman, who also authored “Living Music: Conversations with Pandit Dinkar Kaikini”, said in a statement.
From the narrow lanes of Kashipur to the sweeping hills of San Rafael, the artists profiled in the book emerge from vastly different worlds.
Yet, each has devoted their life to music with “unflinching conviction and artistic courage”.