S. K. Saxena

The book is decidedly the very first of its kind. It seeks to weigh some basic facts and concepts of Hindustani sangeet (music, rhythm and Kathak dance) against the art theories of Susanne K. Langer, an eminent aesthetician of the recent past; But now here without meticulious attention to the text of her writings. In the chapter on music, while discussing  Langer's emphasis on 'commanding form' in a total performance, the author proposes a quit new  defination of raga which seeks to integrate the various points in its traditional characterizations. The third chapter too, which deals with Langer's view of rhythm, is not merely explanatory, but ventures to propose a fresh and fairly defensible definition of rhythm.