Import Duty on Harmonium : India to UK

[Guest]

Typical Panjabi, always thinking about the long-game, how things would benefit "career". :giggle: Why not just for fun to soothe the soul?

lol

[PAL 07]

Actually it was blind beggars that started to use the harmonium because of its ease as an instrument......nevertheless it deserves respect but should play a background role in keertan, not the dominant musical instrument we see today

[West London Singh]

Never mind red channel / green channel. Get a hammer and smash it to pieces. After the fall of the Khalsa Raj the British introduced, and indeed enforced upon Sikh Gurdwaras, the instrument that resembled the sound of the Christian Church at the time.

Its roots lie purely in the French Catholic tradition of what Christians used to consider an ecclesiastical sound.

My advice to you ? Get a rabab. If you can't get a rabab get a buzouki. Master the buzouki and then try a bit harder to get a rabab.

[Cisco_Singh]

european Harmonioum / vaaja should noy play any part in Kirtan, it's a fereghi instrument introduced by the british in the 1800s to make Kirtan sound like church choir music.. If your really bothered about Kirtan go and learn traditional raag vidiya and learn to play the intruments that existed in the courts of Sri Guru Hargobind Maharaaj...

[chatanga]

Never mind red channel / green channel. Get a hammer and smash it to pieces. After the fall of the Khalsa Raj the British introduced, and indeed enforced upon Sikh Gurdwaras, the instrument that resembled the sound of the Christian Church at the time.

european Harmonioum / vaaja should noy play any part in Kirtan, it's a fereghi instrument introduced by the british in the 1800s to make Kirtan sound like church choir music.. If your really bothered about Kirtan go and learn traditional raag vidiya and learn to play the intruments that existed in the courts of Sri Guru Hargobind Maharaaj...

WLS and Cisco Bhaji, I like your attitudes towards this coffin that is on every gurdwara stage today.

But Its a little wrong to say that it was enforced on us, as Sant Ishar Singh used the vaja, and introduced dharna to the sikh sangat as a counter measure to what the christians were doing.

as the vaja's use became more widespread, the kirtanias saw it as a very easy instrument to play and started to neglect thier guru's instruments which took about 1 year to master at the very basic level, to these air boxes, which took 1 day.

this attitude has all but eliminated Gurus gurmat sangeet fromthe panth today.

Maybe 2013 will be the year when any Sikh who desires to sing Gurbani will look for the Rabab more than this disgusting wooden air box.

COME ON! LETS MAKE IT HAPPEN!

[Singh559]

I just need to muster some cash to get an instrument!

Chatanga bro, you should start a YouTube channel to teach people Gurmat Sangeet Vidiya. I still remember you playing on Skype - it was amazing.

[chatanga]

no way! there are more talented sikhs out there than me. But i actually did talk to a friend of mine, who s#very good at Dilruba, about starting a youtube channel to give basic lessons in dilruba.

I wonder is anyone going to beat me to it?

Cash is certainly a problem, these instruments dont come cheap, but there are 2 solutions for this:

short term, ask local gurdwearas to invest in these instruments, Guru's house needs his instruments,

long term, the SGPC start manufacturing these instruments themselves. that would be brilliant.

[Singh559]

no way! there are more talented sikhs out there than me. But i actually did talk to a friend of mine, who s#very good at Dilruba, about starting a youtube channel to give basic lessons in dilruba.

I wonder is anyone going to beat me to it?

Really hope to see it happen

[Singh559]

Cash is certainly a problem, these instruments dont come cheap, but there are 2 solutions for this:

short term, ask local gurdwearas to invest in these instruments, Guru's house needs his instruments,

long term, the SGPC start manufacturing these instruments themselves. that would be brilliant.

This sounds like a great idea. Maybe we can get something going from SikhSangat with fliers and a plan to send to Gurdwara committees for youth to present on their agendas?