Birthday, Blogs, a Beatle and Ravi Shankar

Today is Robin's birthday and we are very lucky to have him at home to help him celebrate.
The day started with the normal rendition of 'Happy Birthday', sung by all the family, as an early morning wake up call, followed by a present opening ceremony, before pre school chaos ensued.
Once calm had returned to the house we decided to take some time out.
This is actually quite rare, so was a real treat for us both. That's the beauty of having a birthday in the house, everyone gets to enjoy it!

As it has been such a nice day here, we packed up a picnic, and took ourselves off for a drive in the countryside, and had a thoroughly good time.

But now it's back to work.
Robin is practicing his guitar.
I have been dealing with agents about the forthcoming trips.
Actually, I'm rather envious of some of the places Robin will be visiting over the next few weeks. Hopefully there will be plenty of photo opportunities coming up.

But sitar mania does continue here.
Have you ever heard 'Happy Birthday' on the sitar?
It sounds great, even though the birthday boy had to play it himself, whilst the rest of us finished breakfast. I suppose that's the downside of being the musician.
Not only is Robin still playing his sitar, but he is also listening to others play, and watching them on YouTube.
Here's a example, it's Ravi Shanker giving George Harrison a sitar lesson...!

Take a Break - Play the Sitar

Today the house has been filled with the sound of the sitar.
As Robin enjoys his first day at home, he allowed himself to relax for a while, by playing his sitar.
It's a beautiful instrument in every way, with an exotic sound and intricate decoration.
Here's a photo I took a while ago:



As I worked this morning, he pulled up a chair, and proceeded to play, warming up with 'Norwegian Wood', and swiftly making up his own arrangements, particularly enjoying the sitar's ability to bend a note up a complete major third, and even beyond, which he did repeatedly.
I'm not to sure that he even noticed me leaving the house for a couple of hours, in search of a birthday present for him, (it's on Wednesday) as he was still sitting there playing on my return.

He did take a break at one point, made his way into the lounge, and watched a DVD of Ravi and Anoushka Shankar, just to keep the momentum flowing.
There is an upside to a day off from playing his guitar.
It allows his nails a rest.
When playing the sitar you wear a mizrab on your finger, which is a strange device, and one that I find rather uncomfortable.
I'm not alone in this, George Harrison once described wearing a mizrab as feeling like, "a weasel holding onto the end of your finger."

I knew Robin couldn't stay away from the guitar for an entire day though. He's currently back in the music room and working on his right and left hand exercises.

A Sitar is Born

And then there's the real sitar...



This is a fantastic and beautiful instrument which requires a lifetime of work. The whole technique is very different to the classical guitar but more similar to the electric guitar.
Traditionally the player sits on the floor, with legs crossed, but, as Robin finds it difficult to stay in this position for long, he has devised his own seating arrangement.
It seems to work for him and he is able to get some very nice sounds.
The strings are plucked with a 'mizrab' which fits over the finger, (George Harrison once said that it felt like a 'weasel holding onto the end of your finger'!)
I've tried one and it is a very good description....
However, this also gives Robin the opportunity to rest his nails, whilst still making music.
Consequently yet another project is underway using the sitar.



Robin's sitar has two 'toomba' which are made from gourds and act as a form of amplification.
It was certainly a rather unusual shaped parcel when it was delivered!