A Comparative Study of Some of the Leading Music Systems of the 15th, 16th, 17th & 18th Centuries c12.1

c12.1

The author of this Sanskrit work is Pandit Somnath of the Andhra country. The date of the work as given by the author is the shaka year 1531, corresponding with 1610 A.D. It is considered to be a work of great interest in the Southern presidency. There are several features of the work however, which will make its study no less interesting to the Northern Musician. A careful perusal of the book will lead the reader to conclude that the author at some period of his life had come into contact with the music and musicians of northern India. A mere glance at the table indicating the shuddha and vikrita swaras of Somnatha, will be enough to show it. The names and descriptions of the ragas again will further support the view. In the Raga Vibodha, the reader will find some distinctly Persian Raga names, such as Husseini, Navroj, Zeeluf, Erakh, and so forth, referred to.