I am passionate about indigenous bengali hare krishna kirtan and the ragas to which the mahamantra is set. I have been playing harmonium for a few years but my western ear finds it hard to adapt to the indian sense of timing. I can't really tell what's going on. I can just about work out what is going on with the kortals (manjiras) which is a start. I've started the mridang (khol) course on chantandbehappy.com With the hope of recognizing some of the rythms I have on my kirtan tapes and as a result gaining more understanding of timing.
I am also a harmonium-manjira-mrdanga student-player, and my music teacher is a Hare Krishna follower. I'd like to help you if I understood clearly your problem. We are learning both western and Indian bhajans. You can contact me at sitabp@dakkhana.com.
