varanasi on september

malaiKofta · Jun 26th, 2007, 15:41

on my first trip to india on 2002, i heve spent only 24 hours in varanasi. but it was the most amazing 24 hours ever!

now' im going back to the beloved india for the 3rd time and i really really want to visit varanasi. when will b the best time for that if im in india from 15 aug. to 4 oct.?

and while im there where can i catch good music concerts?

Darmabum · Jun 27th, 2007, 04:31

and have been there in all seasons. My thought would be to go there as close to the end of your trip as possible. August is wet, September can be wet, October is one of my favorite months there.

Music, it's all over in Varanasi. One of the reasons I go is to study bansuri. Go to a place called The Music Melody House, near Asi Ghat. The guys who own the shop are very nice and trustworthy. They often have concerts (small ones) there once or twice a week during the season. Many musicians (my teacher included) head for the hills during monsoon. By October they are generally back in town. Everything, music included, slows during the summer.

robotvoice · Jun 27th, 2007, 05:43

I second that recommendation. If it is the same place i am thinking of, and i am pretty sure it is. (going straight just past where the main road turns towards asi ghat) The sitar player there is Tarak Mishra, he is a great teacher and very casual and unintimidating.

Darmabum · Jun 27th, 2007, 05:54

that's it! Tarak Nath Mishra. GREAT teacher! I lived in a guesthouse with an Israeli woman who studied with him. Near the end of my stay in Varanasi I hired a boat big enough for eight, got Tarak and his tabla player and we went out onto the Ganges at sunrise . . . the raga he played was stunning.

robotvoice · Jun 27th, 2007, 05:58

Wow, that sounds fantastic! Yes he is a very good player, but also very humble I think. It is a shame he is not more recognized. Some of the other shop teachers can be pretty second rate or worse. I saw one performance from a rather elderly gentleman and it sounded like somebody torturing a cat!

Darmabum · Jun 27th, 2007, 06:02

he is, for me, a quintessential Indian musician . . . of the old school . . . his wife is a singer . . . the music scene in Varanasi is rich, but - as with much in India - it can take some time to find someone real . . . Tarak Mishra is real . . . and that boat trip . . . I filmed it/recorded it . . .

robotvoice · Jun 27th, 2007, 06:27

do you have that recording online anywhere? I would love to see it

Darmabum · Jun 27th, 2007, 09:35

would love to "You-Tube" it to you, but being an early baby-boomer, just don't know how . . . any advice woud be greatly appreciated. Cheers. Scott

robotvoice · Jun 27th, 2007, 09:39

what a small world it is! Imagine, out of all the music shops on every street corner, of all the music instructors in varanasi, you were talking about the same guy. I love the way these kind of synchronicities arise via indiamike!

ps i am sending you a private message about youtube instructions

robotvoice · Jun 27th, 2007, 10:13

a photo of Tarak with a student from Italy:

Jun 26th, 2007, 15:41	#1
malaiKofta Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Israel Posts: 69	varanasi on september on my first trip to india on 2002, i heve spent only 24 hours in varanasi. but it was the most amazing 24 hours ever! now' im going back to the beloved india for the 3rd time and i really really want to visit varanasi. when will b the best time for that if im in india from 15 aug. to 4 oct.? and while im there where can i catch good music concerts?

Jun 27th, 2007, 04:31	#2
Darmabum Maha Guru Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: in the mountains of Idaho Posts: 794	I've spent over a year of my life in Varanasi, and have been there in all seasons. My thought would be to go there as close to the end of your trip as possible. August is wet, September can be wet, October is one of my favorite months there. Music, it's all over in Varanasi. One of the reasons I go is to study bansuri. Go to a place called The Music Melody House, near Asi Ghat. The guys who own the shop are very nice and trustworthy. They often have concerts (small ones) there once or twice a week during the season. Many musicians (my teacher included) head for the hills during monsoon. By October they are generally back in town. Everything, music included, slows during the summer. __________________ Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure - Marianne Williamson

Jun 27th, 2007, 05:54	#4
Darmabum Maha Guru Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: in the mountains of Idaho Posts: 794	Robotvoice . . . that's it! Tarak Nath Mishra. GREAT teacher! I lived in a guesthouse with an Israeli woman who studied with him. Near the end of my stay in Varanasi I hired a boat big enough for eight, got Tarak and his tabla player and we went out onto the Ganges at sunrise . . . the raga he played was stunning.

Jun 27th, 2007, 06:02	#6
Darmabum Maha Guru Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: in the mountains of Idaho Posts: 794	Humble indeed, he is, for me, a quintessential Indian musician . . . of the old school . . . his wife is a singer . . . the music scene in Varanasi is rich, but - as with much in India - it can take some time to find someone real . . . Tarak Mishra is real . . . and that boat trip . . . I filmed it/recorded it . . .

Jun 27th, 2007, 09:35	#8
Darmabum Maha Guru Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: in the mountains of Idaho Posts: 794	Robotvoice . . . would love to "You-Tube" it to you, but being an early baby-boomer, just don't know how . . . any advice woud be greatly appreciated. Cheers. Scott

Jun 27th, 2007, 05:43	#3
robotvoice mikeaholic Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: california Posts: 1,163	I second that recommendation. If it is the same place i am thinking of, and i am pretty sure it is. (going straight just past where the main road turns towards asi ghat) The sitar player there is Tarak Mishra, he is a great teacher and very casual and unintimidating.

Jun 27th, 2007, 05:58	#5
robotvoice mikeaholic Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: california Posts: 1,163	Wow, that sounds fantastic! Yes he is a very good player, but also very humble I think. It is a shame he is not more recognized. Some of the other shop teachers can be pretty second rate or worse. I saw one performance from a rather elderly gentleman and it sounded like somebody torturing a cat!

Jun 27th, 2007, 06:27	#7
robotvoice mikeaholic Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: california Posts: 1,163	do you have that recording online anywhere? I would love to see it

Jun 27th, 2007, 09:39	#9
robotvoice mikeaholic Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: california Posts: 1,163	what a small world it is! Imagine, out of all the music shops on every street corner, of all the music instructors in varanasi, you were talking about the same guy. I love the way these kind of synchronicities arise via indiamike! ps i am sending you a private message about youtube instructions

Jun 27th, 2007, 10:13	#10
robotvoice mikeaholic Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: california Posts: 1,163	a photo of Tarak with a student from Italy: Attached Thumbnails

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