Nabadwīpcandra Brajabāsī: A Resident of Kṛṣṇa’s Braj in the Colonial Capital

Abstract

The article "Nabadwipchandra Brajabashi: A Resident of Krishna’s Braj in the Colonial Capital" by Eben Graves introduces the significant yet understudied figure of Nabadwipchandra Brajabashi (1868–1951), an influential padābalī kīrtan guru who profoundly impacted Bengali devotional music in colonial Kolkata. The article details Brajabashi's biography, emphasizing his family's roots in Braj and their ancestral practice of image worship and kīrtan. It highlights his role in introducing the large-meter kīrtan styles (Gadhanhati and Manoharasahi) to urban Kolkata, which quickly gained recognition as a "high-classical kīrtan." Brajabashi's influence extended through his musical instruction, attracting many prominent bhadralok figures and even an ethnomusicologist, Arnold Bake. Furthermore, the article explores his significant editorial contributions, particularly his co-editorship of the multi-volume anthology Śrī-Padāmṛta-mādhurī, which systematically organized devotional songs based on rasa. It also examines his efforts to document and disseminate tāl theory and performance practices through publications, thereby contributing to the sonic, textual, and theoretical history of padābalī kīrtan.