SeilerBird
Well-known member
In a previous discussion with Tom I mentioned my desire to own a sitar but I did not have a suitable place to display it. Afterwards I noticed I do have the perfect spot to put one. In the corner of my music room I have a padded stool with a plant on it next to my drum set. The plant used to be a large Christmas tree that was potted and beautiful. It died last month so I replaced it with a smaller plant. I realized I could move the plant and set a sitar on top of the stool and bungee cord it to the wall. So I started reading up on sitars last night. I discovered that owning a sitar is a whole lot more complicated than owning any other musical instrument. They go out of tune so often that a sitarist will sometimes have to retune in the middle of a song. The strings are made of a material that will rust easily. And so will the frets. Fret repair is also a big deal. All in all it sounds complicated to own one. But I am not deterred. I have a space and it will make a nice Christmas present for myself.
My love of the sitar began in 1965 when George Harrison was filming Help! and discovered the sitar. He immediately got one and used it recording Norwegian Wood. I was instantly hooked. Not just with the sitar but with Indian music in general. I really love the sound of the tabla (drums) and the rhythms they use. In 1967 Ravi Shankar was in concert at the Hollywood Bowl and the rumor floating around was that George would be in the audience. So I got a ticket and spent a lot of time looking for George but did not see him.
It is an outdoor venue and it was nighttime and there were a whole bunch of long haired hippies there so I did not get to see him. I found out later he was there, he went with Derek Taylor. Then in 1971 Ravi performed as the opening act to the Concert for Bangladesh in which he uttered the most famous line in sitar history. The group started with about two minutes of tuning up. When they finished tuning they got a big round of applause. "Thank you. If you enjoy the tuning so much I hope you enjoy the playing more."
In 1974 George took Ravi as the opening act on his Dark Horse tour and I went to see them in Long Beach after which I got to meet Billy Preston, who totally stole the show. In 2002 Ravi's stunning daughter Anoushka led a large group of Indian musicians to open the show at the Concert for George, celebrating George's life after he died the previous year.
My love of the sitar began in 1965 when George Harrison was filming Help! and discovered the sitar. He immediately got one and used it recording Norwegian Wood. I was instantly hooked. Not just with the sitar but with Indian music in general. I really love the sound of the tabla (drums) and the rhythms they use. In 1967 Ravi Shankar was in concert at the Hollywood Bowl and the rumor floating around was that George would be in the audience. So I got a ticket and spent a lot of time looking for George but did not see him.
It is an outdoor venue and it was nighttime and there were a whole bunch of long haired hippies there so I did not get to see him. I found out later he was there, he went with Derek Taylor. Then in 1971 Ravi performed as the opening act to the Concert for Bangladesh in which he uttered the most famous line in sitar history. The group started with about two minutes of tuning up. When they finished tuning they got a big round of applause. "Thank you. If you enjoy the tuning so much I hope you enjoy the playing more."
In 1974 George took Ravi as the opening act on his Dark Horse tour and I went to see them in Long Beach after which I got to meet Billy Preston, who totally stole the show. In 2002 Ravi's stunning daughter Anoushka led a large group of Indian musicians to open the show at the Concert for George, celebrating George's life after he died the previous year.