The Devotional-Song Service Project, is currently putting
on the Internet ,
sheet music for bhajans or devotional songs in English and Sanskrit.
The "Transcriber" for the original sheet
music transcripts has provided material for scanning in many Bhajans and
Devotional-Songs, by contributing 354 songs or about 1000 pages of sheet music
in English and Sanskrit. Some of these are in review and will be placed on the
board as the pages are edited, corrected and finally released. These
transcripts are various versions of the many songs sung within the Sai Centers,
and they can be used with Guitar and keyboard (harmonium) harmonization or piano
and organ recital.
We are in the process of proof reading
to prepare these for final release, to go on to the Internet at this web site. Sai
Devotees should become active in the process as well. The Transcriber has
transcribed the music sheets by listening to tapes from persons or groups that
have sang these songs, or copies of copies of the professionally recorded tapes,
with LIMITED DOCUMENTATION OF CORRECT AUTHORSHIP.
The release of these transcripts presents us with
a problem that arises in that some of the attributions to the English portions
of the Sanskrit song's, or the authorship for some of these may be incorrect, or
words may be shifted around or changed by singers, etc.
So we need to have these songs proofread, by the
actual authors, evaluated and corrected, and then have their permissions to use
their work. This process is also necessary, since English songwriters provide
music for other reasons than simply the devotional singing, and therefore the
rights for using these may be limited.
We are proceeding cautiously at this point and therefore
the English bhajans will go on the web site one at a time, and only with
permissions. Most of the Sanskrit music that we have scanned in is fine, to put
on the site, with little modification, but we will need to contact the authors
of English verses to the Sanskrit Bhajans, to obtain their permissions as well.
So until these requirements are met, we will not be showing many of the
English verses that are written into these music sheets.
If you can help or assist with some of the sorting out of
the details, at least for the song writing that has gone on around your areas,
or if you personally know the songwriters of songs that are sung in Sai
Centers, could you let them know about this or help in obtaining their
permissions? As these things are sorted out, they will go on to the web, and
offers to link will be given to every Sai Site, so that these songs can be
freely sung around the world.
Also, if you know of anyone who has written sheet
music of bhajans, and they want to distribute them to other devotees, without
charge, let them know and we can add theirs to the site. Keep in mind that many
other songs are already in the process of coming from other songwriters as well.
With your help, at this common meeting place, we
will be able to provide a service for others, and at the same time keep some
kind of control over the fact that these songwriters are known for being the
original authors, and for those who own the copyrights, we can establish a
precedent here, of using them with permission, and display them in their
originally intended formats.
The complete list
of already transcribed bhajans is listed here.
