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Songs and Song Cycles
Shakuntala (A Sanskrit Song)
Soprano, string quartet, South Indian veena
Year Written: 2007
Duration: 20:00
Theme: Collaboration: Multicultural/India
DEVELOPED BY DUMASTAR
Premiered By
Nancy Ogle, soprano; Sirius String Quartet; Nirmala Rajasekar, veena; ACA American Music Festival, Symphony Space , NYC, 2007
Text: Kalidasa
Even the man who is happy
glimpses something
or a hair of sound touches him
and his heart overflows with a longing
he does not recognize…
Notes
The story of Shakuntala (shakuntas/birds) first appeared in the Mahabharata and was later adapted into a play by Kalidasa. This passage is considered to be the most beautiful in the Sanskrit language.
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