I suspect most midwit ears can only “deep” listen to one or the other. As in pay direct attention on purpose. You can shallow listen to either in the background of other tasks.
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Interestingly enough I can’t do accents or impressions either, or tell slight differences in accents apart. I guess listening is an actual talent.
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Another data point: I find the harmonium (pumped reed organ) extremely grating. It’s an equal-tempered western instrument sorta hacked into service as an approximately just-tempered accompaniment instrument in semi-classical and pop Indian music.
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Classical purists hate it and will only use a just-tempered instrument like the tanpura for accompaniment (these things are used as scale-setting drones) but I don’t have the refined ear to have such subtle preferences. Yet I dislike the harmonium at a visceral level.
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The only genre in which I can tolerate it is qawalli where it adds a weird rough edge
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Hmm. Duffy (begging you for mercy), some Adele, some Maroon 5, Dance Monkey (dance for me) seemed to hook me in a vaguely “raga” way.
Oddly enough no conscious fusion attempts like George Harrison’s or John McLaughlin seems to hook me at all. I find that stuff dull.
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Replying to @vgr
are there examples of such songs that come to mind?
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What I was listening to today is this. I suspect most westerners wouldn’t like it at all.
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Replying to
yeah my western ears don't totally get this but there's some drone-y bits that I dig
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my ears definitely drift to the percussive elements as they're hunting for something more familiar
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Lol I actually play the tabla and I can barely hear it at all unless I consciously try to… it’s pure background support for me
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But makes sense… it’s why Zakir Husain, a rare tabla solo star, has achieved crossover success
How about banjo + tabla fusion? 😆
Here's Zakir Hussain jamming with my favorite banjo player:


