Pannalal Ghosh (24 July 1911 - 20 April 1960) is one of a handful of truly crucial musicians in Hindustani music in the 20th century. His innovations to the bansuri (bamboo flute) included greatly increasing the size of the flute, from about 12 inches to more than 30 inches. It is said that the first time he performed on the radio, listeners were not even certain he was playing the flute, such was the change in tonal quality.
After beginning his musical education with the sitar, he eventually changed over to the flute. His guru was Annapurna Devi, the daughter of Allauddin Khan and the first wife of Ravi Shankar.
Because of his untimely death in 1960, there are few modern recordings of his performances. Most are either on 78s or are very low fidelity live recordings or radio air checks. This is one of the very few exceptions.
The sound of this mono record is thrilling and full bodied. I would have no qualms whatsoever to bring this as a demo LP were I to go shopping for a turntable. The surfaces are quite clean and the balance between Ghosh and the unnamed tabla player are excellent.
I recently purchased a new phono cartridge, the Audio-Technica M440. This is the first post using the new cartridge and I am very impressed with its ability to track well even in the inner grooves (often an area of increased distortion). There was a quite noticeable decrease in the amount of surface noise as well.
These are mono files, so the file sizes are smaller than usual.
side one:
Raag Yaman
side two:
Raag Shri
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After beginning his musical education with the sitar, he eventually changed over to the flute. His guru was Annapurna Devi, the daughter of Allauddin Khan and the first wife of Ravi Shankar.
Because of his untimely death in 1960, there are few modern recordings of his performances. Most are either on 78s or are very low fidelity live recordings or radio air checks. This is one of the very few exceptions.
The sound of this mono record is thrilling and full bodied. I would have no qualms whatsoever to bring this as a demo LP were I to go shopping for a turntable. The surfaces are quite clean and the balance between Ghosh and the unnamed tabla player are excellent.
I recently purchased a new phono cartridge, the Audio-Technica M440. This is the first post using the new cartridge and I am very impressed with its ability to track well even in the inner grooves (often an area of increased distortion). There was a quite noticeable decrease in the amount of surface noise as well.
These are mono files, so the file sizes are smaller than usual.
side one:
Raag Yaman
side two:
Raag Shri
Equipment used in transfer:
Preparation: Ultrasonic cleaning for 20 minutes in pure clean water
Turntable: Audio-technica AT-LP-1240
Cartridge: AT-M440
Pre-amplification: Vintage refurbished Pioneer SX-780.
Pre-amplification: Vintage refurbished Pioneer SX-780.
Recorder: Edirol R-09HR at 24bit/96kHz resolution
Software: Audacity, ClickRepair, and xAct.
Software: Audacity, ClickRepair, and xAct.
(the highest resolution I am capable of producing)
(suitable for burning to CD)
(highest possible quality mp3 file;
suitable for listening on a portable player)