Focus: Music and Devotion in India creates a foundational framework for exploring musical expression in India, balancing coverage of a diverse range of traditions with in-depth analyses of specific genres and practices. It is based on the author’s approach to teaching Indian music that begins with the fundamental connections between sound and religious experience in South Asia. The reader is first introduced to the culture, religions, and musics of India, before examining the music and devotion in India through the lens of specific religious identities. The final section examines the Varkaris of Maharashtra, a Hindu Bhatri sect that features ensemble singing and drumming. An accompanying website hosts field recordings.
The author highlights both distinctive and overlapping features of Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Christian, and Jewish traditions as they manifest through music, and draws attention to larger issues at stake in India, including colonialism, nationalism, mass-mediation, "world music" markets, and musical syncretism. Her focus on the a Hindu bhakti (devotional) sect is based on two years of fieldwork in the city of Pune, and allows the reader to encounter devotional music at close range and in diverse settings. Building upon the ideas explored earlier in the book, clear examples of the profound connections between concepts, contexts, and sounds in South Asian musical life are revealed.