Sailing on the Sea of Love

Based on fieldwork carried out in West Bengal, Sailing on the Sea of Love is a pioneering study of the songs of the Baul —a Bengali religious sect, widely beloved for its enchanting music. Charles Capwell describes the role Baul song plays in the lives of the Bauls themselves and in the experience and imagination of their fellow Bengalis. He also examines the sometimes enigmatic texts of the songs as well as their musical components and performance elements.

Sailing on the Sea of Love provides an overview of the fundamental beliefs and practices of the Bauls and how the changing reception of the Bauls by the larger Bengali society illustrates the evolving nature of tradition. The author that reflects on the startling recent developments that have brought this sect from the relative obscurity of a regional culture to an international audience. This new edition is accompanied by two CDs of Baul music.

Watch the book launch and a panel discussion here.

‘A refreshingly humanistic ethnomusicology in which the awareness of people making music is not forsaken for the sake of the music itself.’ —Peter Manuel, John Jay College and Graduate Center of the City University of New York