About Slide Guitar Ragas From Dusk Till Dawn
Slide Guitar Ragas From Dusk Till Dawn is a studio album by Indian slide guitarist and composer Debashish Bhattacharya. Bhattacharya released the album on March 30, 2015, under Riverboat Records as a compact disc. The recording presents five original raga-based compositions that blend Hindustani classical traditions with Bhattacharya’s signature slide guitar techniques.
Bhattacharya composed and performed all tracks on the album. The release features his custom-made guitars, including the chaturangui (a 22-string slide guitar) and the gandharvi (a 14-string slide guitar), alongside traditional instruments like the tabla and tanpura. The album’s thematic arc follows a progression from evening to dawn, with each track evoking a distinct mood and time of night.
The opening track Aarti (The Evening Ritual) establishes a meditative tone with slow, resonant slides and rhythmic patterns inspired by devotional hymns. Ras Tarang (The Waves of Desire) introduces faster tempos and intricate melodic phrasing, showcasing Bhattacharya’s virtuosity in jhala (rhythmic strumming) and gamak (ornamental bends). Mehfil-E-Jashn (The Celebratory Concert) adopts a lively, improvisational structure reminiscent of a classical jugalbandi (duet), though Bhattacharya performs solo.
The latter half of the album shifts toward introspection. Roshni (The Light) employs sparse, sustained notes to convey a sense of stillness, while the closing track Vasundhara (Mother Earth) grounds the composition in deeper, droning tones. The production emphasizes natural acoustics, with minimal post-processing to retain the organic texture of the instruments.
Riverboat Records distributed the album globally, targeting audiences of world music and Indian classical fusion. The physical CD release included liner notes by Bhattacharya detailing the conceptual inspiration behind each raga. No additional remixes, alternate versions, or live recordings from this project have been documented. The context does not specify chart performance, sales figures, or critical reception.