Indian Sitar Stuff

If you enjoy Indian classical sitar music, expand your musical horizon slightly to include an instrument called the Sarod. It's a good sized lute like instrument with a most interesting timbre. Some astounding virtuosos play the Sarod, Ali Akbar Khan and Buddadev das Gupta come to mind first. Water Lily Acoustics has Ali Akbar Khan on vinyl as well as other good albums featuring Indian musicians collaborating with western artists. They are all good, no dogs. You are going to really limit yourself though if you insist on vinyl. There are many importers of Indian classical music but vinyl is nearly impossible to find in my experience. Don't be afraid to buy artists you are not familiar with, the system for schooling/cultivating Indian musicians is so strong that it is virtually impossible to find anything less than exceptional musicianship.

Back again, a couple more things. Another Sitar artist worth checking out is Collin Walcott, who recorded for ECM back in the 80's. I found a couple of his lp's at my local music store and they are worthwhile listening. Sitar jazz if you will. This is a category of music collecting that will require scoping out Ebay listings. If you do a "sarod" or "sitar" search in Ebay music, there are Shankar/Ali Khan collaborations on vinyl available now.

Quadophile, I'm in total agreement with your enthusiasm for Shiv Kumar Sharma's Santoor playing. It's wonderful, sublime music. I've got half a dozen of his cd's and they are all winners. Musicslug is giving good advice. The long, slow, quiet buildup of a raga's introductory section and the length of the ragas give the cd format some advantages over vinyl. This is coming from someone who prefers vinyl usually.