Concert: Perfect Amalgamation
Artiste/Composer: Siddharth Kasyap
Genre: Fusion, New Age
Venue: St. Andrews Auditorium, Bandra
Date: Aug 2nd2019
Time: 8-10 PM
A typical pre-weekend plan is usually a plan for a movie, at least for me; or something of the sorts; however THIS weekend I really wanted to do something different – a little bit out of the BOX! So, I scrolled through all the activities, events and concerts happening throughout the city and Perfect Amalgamation caught my eye. Who were they, I didn’t know; how was their music; again I didn’t know but something about them kept me riveted about them.
I quickly researched about them and although it was a performance with no vocals I was in awe with the number of musical instruments that were to be used – a sitar, a flute, violin, sarangi to keyboards; Bass Guitar, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Gutar, Rabad, oud, drums; Indian as well as Western percussion instruments all to be performed by 13 different musicians on stage!
I had no idea what I was in treat for as I quietly sat in seat, feeling quite happy I was able to convince my friend to come along for this event with me! Unlike anything I have ever witnessed, there was not jus a strong element of music but there was a very electrifying combination of lighting together with visuals on the stage, which created reverberating music in the auditorium!
The 90-minute journey, which had no interval was orchestrated and arranged by the keyboardist Atul Raninga. I had no idea who these performers were, barring sitar exponent Ravi Chary. Many of the others were known for their studio work and that too within the musician community!
Siddharth knew what kind of musicians he wanted. Most of the musicians who will perform this evening are active on Mumbai’s recording studio circuit. “I was looking for people who have studio experience and yet could play live,” says Kasyap “For the overall sound, I wanted a good balance of Indian and Western instruments. I discovered sarangi player Momin in Jaipur, and violinist Kushmita on a trip to the North-East.”
Raninga, who had previously accompanied flautists Ronu Majumdar and Rakesh Chaurasia; and percussionist Sivamani among others, says the emphasis will be on simple instrumental melodies. “Each musician has a set part, and though there will be some improvisation, there won’t be any gimmickry,” he states. According to Raninga, the performance will be accompanied with animated visuals and deliberate lighting to highlight different parts of the show.
It was hard to even select a favourite track, as all of them were so unique and beautiful! With all originals, each track focused on the instrument being played by the musician. It was really astounding to hear the name of the famous Shah Rukh Khan movie Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge having been performed by the very same musician (Jayanti Gosher) present there with the Mandolin! To be present in the midst of such profound musicians was incredible!
There were 8 soulful tracks which emphasised the instruments being played:
- Mystical Sitar: which delivered a mystic feeling through the usage of selected raagas of the sitar. This song which emphasised the suave movement of the fingers on the instrument by Ravi Chary created a semblance of mysticism.
- Strings on Fire: Here the violin was highlighted and the song depicted the commotion created by fire on people as they run shelter skelter as compared to the vigorous movement of the strings when hastily moved to create music. Kushmita KC beautifully and effortlessly showed her expertise in playing this track.
- Oud Taqsim: Oud literally means from wood and it is an Arabic stringed instrument that produces a very ethnic sound. Taqsim means melodic musical improvisation; so Our Taqsim brings out a lovely melody from the Arabic stringed instrument.
- Floating Winds: This euphonic track composed by Siddharth Kasyap highlights the rapid whirlwind of the melody that a flute is capable of creating. Composed in ragas maand, this track evokes a beautiful quest of austerity amongst the harsh reality of life by Tejas Vinchurkar.
- Mellifluous Sarangi: Performed by the youngest from Perfect Amalgamation Momin Khan aces his skill of playing the sarangi and narrating a sense of longing through the bowed string instrument. This track also creates a sense of craving and nostalgia.
- The Ensemble: Based on mouth percussion which are also blended on the raga Saraswati, all the instrumentalists play in unison as if they are vying with one another. This track has a transcendental effect it.
- Rhythm Royale: A track that tickles the senses it is an amalgamation of the intricacies of contemporary percussion and the intricacies of Indian rhythm. Gautam Sharma, Girish Vishwa and Chiranjit Sinha performed a passionate performance on their instruments such as percussions, drums, dholak, matka, etc.
- The Concerto:In this track, each and every instrument played simultaneously with one another where speed was used as a weapon. However, this did not compromise the quality of song from losing its sense of establishing a concrete melody.
Plans are to take Perfect Amalgamation to other Indian cities, and eventually do shows at music festivals abroad. “It requires a lot of planning, considering that there are a large number of musicians,” says Kasyap. “In some ways, I have been inspired by Yanni’s concerts and Western classical orchestras. But the idea is to provide a very relaxed kind of fusion.”
About the players:
1. Siddharth Kasyap:
He is a music composer and the CEO and owner of SK Music Works which showcases the music composed by him and performed by his team of talented artists and musicians.
2. Atul Raninga
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| Atul Raninga |
Atul Raninga is a composer well known for his work on 3 Idiots, Sanju, PK and Knock Out.
3. Jayanti Gosher:
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| Jayanti Gosher |
He is the composer behind the beautiful mandolin melody of Dil Waale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge and Maine Pyaar Kiya. He is a musician having expertise in many different instruments such as mandolin, banjo, rabab, guitar, and oud besides many others In addition to this he has worked with some of the most notable musicians such as Ghulam Ali, Jagjit Singh, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia and Talat Aziz.
4. Ravi Chary
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| Ravi Chary |
He himself hails from a family of musicians where his very own father was a noted tabla player, musicologist and academician of Goa.However, he chose to be a suitarist an is yet on the road to discovery. While his father has been his first guru, his foray into learning the sitar began with Ustad Abdul Karim Khan in Goa, following which he came to Mumbai to learn from Ustad Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan. He has had the privilege of performing with some of the best musicians till date such as Gaan Saraswati Kishori Amonkar, Ustad Allarakha Khan, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Sri Umayalpuram Sivaraman, Vidwan Vikku Vinayakram, Ustad Sultan Khan, Pt. Suresh Talwalkar, Louiz Banks, Fazal Qureshi, Ranjit Barot, Taufiq Qureshi and Sivamani.
5. Girish Vishwa:
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| Girish Vishwa |
Talent is what talent does and Girish Vishwa has never failed even once to surprise us with his energy and talent at the unbeatable taal of dholak. Having been apart of the music industry for years, Vishwa has has had one of the biggest stepping stones working with R.D. Burman in composing the original version of Balam Pichkari. Having worked under Ismail Darbar for movies such as Devdas and Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, he has been there with the work team of Sa Re Ga Ma since their first show and has even been setting records by being a part of world tours with legends such as Amitabh Bachchan, Anil Kapoor and many others. His skill at using the Dholak has made him a well-known figure in the music industry.
6. Momin Khan
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| Momin Khan |
Born into a family of musicians stretching back eight generations, his grandfather Ustad Mehboob Khan was also known as the Sarangi Samrat (Emperor of Sarangi). He had trained under Momin’s father, Ustad Moinuddin Khan, a Jaipur vocalist who had studyed alongside his cousin Sabir. Momin grew up surronded by other musicians in a 42 room haveli (shared townhouse) and even recalls first hearing the sarangi as a lullaby! At the age of six he learnt the instrument and even went on to complete a music degree by the time people complete their college degree. He developed his own music style imbued with sitar, tabla, bansuri and other instuments and even won many competitions.
7. Kushmita KC
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| Kushmita KC |
One of the best Indian violinists has performed with some of the top Indian artists such as Ustad Zakir Hussain, Indus Creed, Ustad Fazal Qureshi Shillong Choir Ajay-Atul and Monali Thakur. She even has performed in Indian IdolSeason 10 semifinals. Originally from Kalimpong, West Bengal she has completed her Masters and Diploma Music (Violin) from the Prestigious Nuremburg Music University Germany.
8. Akashdeep Gogoi:
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| Akashdeep Gogoi |
Also known as Akyl Akashdeep started to learn the guitar at the age of 14. Beginning his musical career as a bass player, having performed for a number of artists and bands he composes music and writes the lyrics for songs
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| 9. Gautam Sharma |
He is a student of the legendary percussion maestro Ustad Tafiq Qureshi Gautam Sharma has been interested in music especially the drums and percussion since his childhood. He was a student of the Ustad Allarakha Institute of Music where he had learnt the tabla under the guidance of Ustad Fazal Qureshi.
10. Tejas Vinchurkar (Flute)
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| Tejas Vinchurkar (Flute) |
He is Born into family which was a spiritual home of music, he was the grandson of Lt. Purshottum Vinchurkar, a renouned vocalist. His gayki belonged to the Gwalior Gharana. His first introduction to Indian classical music was through the tabla where he learned from his father Pradeed Vichurkar. However, he later changed to flute, learning from Lt.Pt.Ravi Garud. He is a disciple of Sri.Abhay Phagre, a popular flutaist amongst India and abroad. He has performed at many concerts in different parts of the world. He has also performed amongst celebrity artists such as Sonu Nigam, Padmashree Kailash Kher, Padmashree Pankaj Udhas, Gazal maestro Talat Aziz, Hariharan and many more.
11.
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| Drummer Chiranjit Sinha |
Drummer Chiranjit Sinha: He was at his best for Rhythm Royale, The Emsemble and The Concerto.
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| Prabhat Raghuvanshi |
12. Prabhat Raghuvanshi is on the Electric Guitar
13. Vinod Hutton is on the Acoustic Guitar.
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Vinod Hutton
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