The Hindu Friday Review November Fest is back with a cornucopia of artists from across continents, trying out new collaborations and fresh sounds.
Here’s what you can expect to hear at The Music Academy, Chennai, from November 15 to 20, at 7.30 p.m.
Tridha
Genre: Jugalbandi
The Performers: Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia with Pt. Birju Maharaj & Kaushiki Chakrabarty
India’s very own Bansuri (flute) maestro Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia joins legendary Kathak legend Birju Maharaj and the talented Kaushiki Chakrabarty, for the first time, in a confluence of music and dance. This collaboration has been conceived by Indianuance, an artist management and programming outfit, in an attempt to bring vocal music, instrumental music and dance together under a unifying concert. The concert will see an intermingling of not only vocal, instrumental and dance styles but also three accomplished artists of the North Indian classical tradition share the stage and their art for the first time.
Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia is synonymous with the flute. Credited with having given the bansuri its worldwide status, Pt. Chaurasia is known for his skilful playing style that moves between classical, semi-classical, spiritual and collaborative music. He is arguably the most sought after instrumentalist of India and many accolades have come his way, including Padma Vibhushan in 2000.
Pandit Birju Maharaj, torch-bearer of the famous Kalka Bindadin Gharana of Lucknow, bestows unique aesthetics to the dance form with his sharp understanding of music, percussion and drama. He has been responsible for reviving and breathing new life into dance dramas in India. Also a recipient of Padma Vibhushan, accolades haven’t stopped pouring in for him, as he takes his dance and dance productions to audiences across the world. Panditji also lent his art to Bollywood, when he directed, composed and sang for two classical dance sequences in Satyajit Ray’s ‘Shatranj ke Khiladi.’
Kaushiki Chakrabarty, daughter of vocalist Pt. Ajoy Chakrabarty, is among the leading vocalists of the new generation. She is known to combine the rich gayaki of khayal with the emotional and soulful rendition of thumri, dadra, bhajan and other semi-classical forms of music with extreme virtuosity.
Indian Ocean Live
Genre: Folk Rock / Fusion
The Performers:
Amit Kilam: Drums, vocals, gabgubi, recorder and clarinet
Himanshu Joshi: Vocals
Nikhil Rao: Guitars
Rahul Ram: Bass guitar and vocals
Tuheen Chakravorty: Tabla and other percussion
This is Indian Ocean’s first public show in Chennai with its new line-up. Cellist Yo Yo Ma once said, “Indian Ocean does with Indian music what I’ve always wanted to do with Chinese music.” Gear up for an evening of exhilarating music, re-invented by the country's foremost folk rock band. Listen to sounds that are native to the subcontinent merge seamlessly with traditions of other genres like jazz and rock. From spirituality to Sufi poetry to a call for revolution... the band’s music will take you on a journey that juxtaposes the ancient with the contemporary and the past with the future.
Formed in the early 1990s, Indian Ocean has been one of the spearheads of the Indian rock scene. Its unique sound of contemporary rock mixed with classical, jazz and fusion has earned it a cult following. The band has managed to maintain this inimitable sound in all its albums and has received rave reviews from critics and audiences alike.
Nirgun Naad
Genre: Sufi-Bhakti
The Performers:
Vidwan Vikku Vinayakram: Ghatam
Vidya Shah: Lead vocals and curation
Chugge Khan Manganiyar - Vocals and Morchhang
Salim Khan Manganiyar: Back-up vocals and Khadtaal
Harihara Vinayakram: Ganjira
Ghulam Ali: Saarangi
Amar Sangam: Acoustic Guitar and Mandolin
The sounds of the South and the North meet in an exciting new avatar in this premiere show. The powerful vocals of Vidya Shah intermingle with the magical ghatam of Vikku Vinayakram. Joining him is his grandson Hariharan on the ganjira. Also performing will be the superb Manganiyar singers from Rajasthan, the skilled folk musicians of the Thar whose songs are like an oral history of the desert.
The concert celebrates the Medieval mystic poets, bringing alive some of the most powerful and ecstatic expressions of love, devotion and surrender to the ultimate, authored by Sufi and Bhakti poets who produced some of the most lasting poetry in a period that ranged from the 13th to the 17th century. The performance will present works of poets such as Bulle Shah, Rabia Al Basri and Kabir.
Nirgun Naad brings together this eclectic ensemble for the first time. Vikku Vinayakram is renowned internationally for his imaginative and beautiful drumming on the ghatam. A child prodigy who started his concert career at 13, Vikkuji has accompanied the stalwarts of music including Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer, G.N. Balasubramaniam, Madurai Mani Iyer, M.S. Subbulakshmi, and Maharajapuram Santhanam. Equally, he displays his creative genius in the rhythms he makes with various fusion groups such as Shakti and J.G. Laya. He became the first South Indian artist to receive a Grammy in 1991 for Best World Music Album.
Singer Vidya Shah, a composer, musician, and writer from New Delhi, is known for her mellifluous renditions of Sufiana Qalam and Bhakti music. Initially trained in Carnatic music, she later received guidance in the Khayal from Shubha Mudgal and Mujahid Hussain Khan, and in the thumri dadra and ghazal from Shanti Hiranand. She has performed at several forums, including the Tansen Samaroh in Gwalior,The Kennedy Centre in Washington D.C, The Asia Society in New York and the Bode Museum in Berlin. She received the Charles Wallace Award and a Senior Fellowship from the Government of India for her project Women on Record (www.womenonrecord.com), a performance highlighting the contributions of forgotten women performers in the Gramophone era.
The dynamic and creative Chugge Khan plays several instruments, is a vocalist, writer, composer and arranger with a repertoire of more than 1,000 songs that range from Rajasthani folk music to Sufi qawwali, bhajan and more. Chugge was born in the Thar Desert and learnt music from his father from the early age of four. He began performing globally from 13. He is the director of Rajasthan Josh, a collective of Manganiyar musicians that has been the regular headline act for the Jaipur Lit Fest. Chugge and Rajasthan Josh have played across the world with leading artists such as A.R. Rahman, Susheela Raman, Shye Ben Tzur, Prem Joshua, and Transglobal Underground. Chugge played with Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan on the album ‘Alvida’ and with Indian Ocean on ‘Bhumi’.
Prakriti
Genre: Jugalbandi
The Performers:
Rajesh: Mandolin
Jayateerth Mevundi: Hindustani Vocal
Trichur Brothers: Carnatic Vocal
Trichur R. Mohan: Mridangam
Music is the most pristine and powerful expression of Mother Nature. Indian classical music has always internalised and expressed the spirit and the versatile moods of Nature, hence Prakriti as the name of our show. In a unique collaboration, musicians representing three very prominent schools of Indian classical music will share the stage and revel in an exchange of musical interpretations and expressions.
Improvisation is the pillar of Indian music and Prakriti will be a free flow of ideas as the same set of musical notes are explored from different angles by musical minds trained for years in the intricacies of classical music from both the Carnatic and Hindustani schools.
Rajesh has played with nearly all the top musical stars of north and south India, and recorded a dozen or more albums. Brother of Mandolin Shrinivas, Rajesh has given concerts in Australia, the Middle-East, America and Europe. Rajesh has played with John McLaughlin in the album ‘Floating Point,’ nominated for a Grammy in 2009. He also has several solo albums to his credit, both fusion and Carnatic. He also performed live with the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra and KNZ Philharmonic Orchestra.
Considered a doyen of the Kirana Gharana, Pt. Jayateerth Mevundi hails from the musical land of Hubli-Dharwad in Karnataka. He was trained by Pt. Shripati Paadegar, a prime disciple of Pt. Bhimsen Joshi. A sought-after artist today, Mevundi has set high standard in the Hindustani classical Santavani and Dasavani streams. He was recognised as a “Young Maestro in Music” by former president Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam. He has also won the Pt. Jasraj Gourav Puraskar, the Pt. Basavraj Rajguru Puraskar and the Aditya Birla Sangeet Kala Kiran. He was also awarded the Swar Bhaskar Puraskar, the first award established in the name of Pt. Bhimsen Joshi.
Carnatic vocalists Srikrishna Mohan and Ramkumar Mohan, popularly known as the Trichur Brothers, are the sons of mridangam vidwan Trichur R. Mohan. They started their career in the late 1990s and within a short time, have become a regular feature at the December Music Season. They have received various awards such as Sangeetha Nadamani Award, Musiri Subramaniam Award and Yuva Kala Bharathi.
The brothers, who have just returned from a month-long North American tour where they participated in the famous Cleveland Aradhana, are noted for their strict adherence to patanthara and their uncompromising attitude towards bhavam.
Blueprint
Genre: Contemporary A Cappella Jazz
The Performers:
Lisa Young
Jacqueline Gawler
Nicola Eveleigh
Emma Gilmartin
Libby O’Donovan
In their Indian debut, Coco’s Lunch, Australia’s magical purveyors of the a cappella art, take audiences on a journey of innovative original vocal music, infusing flavours of jazz, blues, African-inspired rhythms, pop sensibilities and Western harmonic classical influence with elements of South Indian konnakol, exotic hand percussion and exhilarating vocal improvisations.
The five singers ignite the stage with their magnetic energy and soulful delivery, performing the best of their repertoire including songs from their latest album ‘Blueprint,’ nominated for an Australian Recording Industry Award. Indian audiences will also be treated to their premiere performance of ‘Other Plans’ (composed by Coco’s Lunch artist Lisa Young) which integrates both intoned and pitched konnakol as melody, bass lines, and rhythmic textures. Lisa is a long-time student of Guru Kaaraikkudi Mani.
Described as ‘a new generation of voice’, Coco’s Lunch comprising five composer-singer-percussionists, have composed, recorded and released seven critically acclaimed albums of original vocal music, received a host of awards and nominations including the Contemporary A Cappella Awards in the U.S. (Best Folk World Song and Runner-Up Best World Music Album) and have won the hearts of audiences across Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Austria, France, Canada, Singapore, Laos and China.
Coco’s Lunch was invited to perform as one of 12 selected international ensembles at the prestigious Polyfollia World Choral Showcase in France in 2010, and the group has been a favourite at the Sydney Opera House for many seasons. The unique music of Coco’s Lunch has been featured on countless CD compilations, documentaries, short films, installations and TV commercials, and also presented by vocal groups and professional choirs around the world.
Evening with Kishore
Genre: Bollywood Retro
The Performers:
Ronnie Monsorate: Keyboards
Joseph Monsorate: Trumpet
Bosco Monsorate: Trumpet
Prem Singh Sodha: Trumpet
Blasco Monsorate: Trombone
Rex Monsorate: Drums
Shashikant Gaokar: Saxaphone
Nitin Jadhav: Keyboards
Milind Dabholkar: Keyboards
Kishor Narkhede: El. Guitar
Deepkumar Rane: Bass Guitar
Ravindra More: Octopad
Prasad Malandkar: Congo / Dholak
Kiran Shembekar: Singer
Sandeep Shah: Singer
Dr Ajit Deval: Singer
Ananya Bhowmick: Singer
Nitin Chavan: Sound Eng
Light Infotainment with the Monsorate Brothers and their troupe will take you on a musical journey to the days when Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan ruled the roost in Bollywood. Behind the scenes, it was the dynamic Kishore Kumar who was getting everyone fida with a voice that sounded like honey. Kishore Kumar lent his voice to the biggest stars of his time. From romance (think ‘Roop Tera Mastana’) to comedy (who can forget ‘Ek Chatur Naar’?) and philosophy, the actor-singer’s repertoire covered a whole gamut of styles.
The Monsorate Brothers boasts five brothers who are professional musicians, who freelance in the film industry for different music directors. They started their career in 1972 with Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Kalyanji-Anandji and R.D. Burman. They have also worked with Bappi Lahiri and many present-day music directors. They have toured the world with these music directors, and also with Asha Bhosle, Lata Mangeshkar and the late Kishore Kumar. Apart from this, they have performed at the Jazz Yatra and many other jazz festivals internationally. They have also performed at gospel concerts in India and the U.K.
The Schedule:
November 15 : Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia with Pt. Birju Maharaj & Kaushiki Chakrabarty
November 16 : Indian Ocean
November 17 : Vikku Vinayakaram, Vidya Shah & the Manganiyars
November 18 : Mandolin Rajesh, Jayateerth Mevundi, Rakesh Chourasia & Trichur Brothers
November 19 : Coco's Lunch
November 20 : Monsorate Brothers
Venue: Music Academy
>For the detailed schedule of Nov Fest 2013 in all five cities, click here .
Tickets:
Price:>Rs. 600, Rs. 350 & Rs. 200. Season passes at Rs. 3,000 & Rs. 1,800
All tickets can be purchased online at >www.thehindu.com/frnf2013
Tickets will also be available at All Landmark Outlets: Apex Plaza, Nungambakkam, Spencers Plaza, Chennai Citi Center, Ampa Mall and at The Hindu Office
Helpline: +91 93806 64381
Reserved seats are available for Rs. 750 per seat. Those who wish to avail this facility must call 044-28575807.
Follow us:
Website >thehindu.com/novemberfest
Facebook at >Friday Review November Fest
Twitter >@FRNovfest
