Folk Music Of India (Orissa)

Orissa is a particularly intriguing region of India. Here the Aryan culture of North India meets that of the Dravidian South. There are a number of aboriginal tribes who preserve much of their original way of life, particularly in the highland interior. However, these tribes have, in many instances, been influenced by each other as well as by the larger Aryan and Dravidian groups. Many of these aboriginal communities have also been influenced by Christian missionaries. Three major linguistic groups, Aryan, Dravidian and Munda, are found in this area. The main language is Oriya, an Aryan language closely related to Bengali. The aboriginal tribes, however, speak languages either of the Dravidian or Munda groups, although the influence of Oriya is now considerable. This recording includes representative songs of various tribes and castes in Orissa, reflecting the diversity of language and variety of music to be found in this region. This record is the result of a survey of the music of Orissa made in 1963-4 during a period of Overseas Research Leave granted by the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. The recordings were made in collaboration with Drs. F.V. Lamsweerde of the Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam.