Lars-Christian Koch (Honorarprofessur am einladenden Institut und Direktor der Sammlungen der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin im Humboldt Forum)
„Lifestyle and Repertoire. Female Voices in Early Indian Record Industry"

The first recordings of Indian Raga-Music at the beginning of the 20th Century were made by a number of female singers with a unique voice, a unique repertoire and a unique lifestyle, which influenced the next generations of female singer in certain genres significantly. It has to be discussed as how far the recordings themselves – concerning a certain voice-training in a recording situation - were at least partly responsible for the shaping of an ideal female voice, how much the repertoire in its cultural value determined female singing styles and last but not least in which way the changing political, social and economical situation after the Indian independence changed the lifestyle of female singers and possibly the music with it.“ 

Lars-Christian Koch is Director of the Ethnological Museum and of the Museum for Asian Art Berlin and Head of Collections at the Humboldt Forum Berlin. He is Professor for Ethnomusicology at the University of Cologne, Honorary Professor for Ethnomusicology at the University of the Arts in Berlin and Honorary Professor for Ethnomusicology at the Humboldt University Berlin.
He has conducted field work in India, as well as in South Korea. His research focuses on the theory and practise of North-Indian Raga-Music, organology with special focus on instrument manufacturing, Buddhist music, popular music and urban culture and historical recordings.

His publications include Sitar – Manufacturing: The Tradition of Kanailal & Bros., Calcutta / Berlin (SMB) 2011 and My Heart Sings – Die Lieder Rabindranath Tagores zwischen Tradition und Moderne / Berlin (LIT) 2011 / Sebastian Klotz, Philip V. Bohlman, Lars-Christian Koch (Eds.) Sounding Cities - Auditory Transformations in Berlin, Chicago, and Kolkata / Berlin (LIT) 2018