This episode came from a WKCR broadcast a year after the passing of  the master drummer Frisner Augustin whoose Troupe Makandal has brought Vodou ceremonial drumming to the world.

It features a recent live performance from La Troupe Makandal recorded at the Afro-Roots Series at the Space at 9 Bleecker. Guests Morgan Zwerlein from Troupe Makandal and producer of the Afro-Roots series and good friend, Kevin Nathaniel joined me to explain about the man and the magic of Vodou drumming.

This is from his obituary in the New York Times:

Mr. Augustin had an encyclopedic knowledge of the rhythms of vodou (the word is the Haitian Creole spelling of voodoo), in which more than 100 spirits are represented and summoned, each by a distinctive rhythm…

La Troupe Makandal has performed for both Haitian and world-music audiences. When it brought abridged vodou ceremonies to public stages, the rhythms were so traditional and intense that unplanned spiritual possessions sometimes took place in secular spaces. The troupe also performs choreographed programs devoted to Haitian history and culture. It has made four albums of traditional Afro-Haitian music: “A Trip to Vodou,” “Èzili,” “The Drums of Vodou” and “Prepare.”

Hugh Masekela is the most well known jazz musician from Africa.  His first big hit was in 1968 and he has sold millions of albums, won multiple Grammys and worked with everyone from Stevie Wonder to Dizzy Gillespie. Fresh off a tour with Paul Simon, he and his band are super-refined, with perfect vocal harmonies, deep grooves, and inspired improvisations.    Masekela is considered a legend of South African Music and the apartheid struggle, but that’s not how he see’s it.

I got to spend sometime backstage with him and now so do you!

Here’s one quote from the interview:

“I never had a career, I had an obsession with music.  And my obsession with it, and maybe a little gift that I had, threw me into the area, but my aim, even when I came overseas, was to learn and to study and everything else is a coincidence.  But I didn’t plan to make it for myself.   If you look at anybody who is out there to make it for themselves they self-destruct.  They become very big and then they self-destruct. As long as you’ve got the “me” thing in your head you’re doomed.” - Hugh Masekela

Sunny Jain at WKCR – Photo by David Ellenbogen

To celebrate the release of their new album Shruggy Ji, (currently #1 on iTunes World Music Chart) NYC Rado Live is going back to the archives to share a 2009 live radio performance by Red Baraat. Red Baraat is the first and only dhol ‘n’ brass band of its kind in the States, melding the infectious North Indian rhythm Bhangra with brass funk and expressing the human spirit through improvisation and a powerful, live, raw sound.  Comprised of dhol (double-sided, barrel-shaped North Indian drum slung over one shoulder), percussion and horns, this NYC-based group plays fresh originals, as well as traditional Punjabi songs and Bollywood numbers with a modern touch.

Baraat is Hindi for a marriage procession.  In North India, it is a tradition on the day of the wedding for the groom to travel to his bride’s home on a magnificently decorated horse, surrounded by an entourage of family and friends.  Led by a dholi and/or a marching band, this joyous celebration naturally induces dancing and singing and is inseparable from the energy and excitement of the musical festivities.

Sunny Jain’s famous Dhol at WKCR – Photo by David Ellenbogen

The line-up when we broadcast this show was:

Sunny Jain                        Dhol, drumset, percussion, vox
Rohin Khemani                   Tavil, percussion
Greg Gonzalez                   Drumset, percussion
Arun Luthra                       Soprano saxophone
Mike Bomwell                    Tenor saxophone
Sonny Singh                      Trumpet
MiWi La Lupa                    Bass trumpet
Dave Smith                      Trombone
John Altieri                       Sousaphone

Sonny Singh at WKCR – Photo by David Ellenbogen

Jeffery Kandel and David Ellenbogen  produced and engineered the original broadcast.

Taylor Kuffner

This is not your grandmother’s Gamelan.  Gamelan are the mesmerizing orchestras of giant gongs and other metal percussion instruments from Indonesia.   Taylor Kuffner’s  Gameletron project combines the instruments of the Gamelan with robotics, creating an incredible immersive experience.    He came to WKCR to share his own recordings he made throughout Indonesia highlighting rarities in the genre including ensembles made of bamboo, iron and beyond.

Grammy Nominated, BBC Award winner Pandit Debashish Bhattacharya is widely recognized as one of the worlds greatest guitarists. A prodigy, he first performed on-All India Radio at the age of 4. He has since amazed audiences worldwide performing with such luminaries as John McLaughlin, Zakir Hussain, Jerry Douglas and Dereck Trucks. 

NYC Radio Live, Bread and Yoga, Rageshree Music, and
HarmonyOm teamed up to create a  benefit concert for the victims of Hurricane Sandy 

Featuring the legendary slide-guitarist from India

Pandit Debashish Bhattarcharya
with
Subhasis Bhattarchaya / Tabla
and Introducing – for the first time in New York, his daughter Anandi Bhattarcharya / Vocal

Guitarist Rez Abbasi brought his burning new trio of John Hebert on the bass and Satoshi Takeishi on the drums to WKCR before their new album -Continuous Beat- is released on November.

Here’s his words on the trio: “I wanted to excite the listener with a new guitar trio experience. One that retains the warmth of the established trio sound but also employs electronics in order to expand the timbral pallet, especially for the melodies. Ultimately, this approach not only gives clarity to the solos but also keeps the listener’s aural sense stimulated.” More info on http://www.reztone.com/

Recorded on Friday, October 12th in WKCR studios. Engineered by Ahmet Ali Arslan.

Oumar Konate and Dramane Toure

Oumar Konate performs live at the WKCR studio joined by guitarist Dramane Toure, bassist Mohamed Ag Mohamed, and percussionist Mahalmadane Abbanassane.  We were lucky to catch these gentlemen on their way to perform at Lincoln Center.  Earlier in the summer they had been touring and recording  with Tibuktu’s Khaira Arby, the “Nightingale of the North.”

Like Abdoulaye Alhassane of Podcast 49, Oumar was born in Gao in Northern Mali an area where all music has been silenced by extremists this year, we’ll hear an interview with him about that along with his manager, the producer and music critic, Christopher Nolan.   For more music recorded by Oumar check out Podcast 19.

Indian Classical vocalist Manoj Govindraj sings 2 compositions based on Raag Megh, accompanied by Swarup Swaminathan on harmonium and Sai Shyam Mohan on tabla.

Here’s what Manoj says about the performance: “Raag Megh -also called Megh Malhar- is a seasonal Raag, sung typically during the rainy season. That’s the reason why the compositions which are based on this raag are worded according to the rainy season. I’ll be presenting 2 compositions: one in a 10 beat rhythmic cycle, which we call Jhaptaal, and this is going to be in middle tempo. The second composition will be in a 12 beat rhythmic cycle, which is Ektal. It will be in a faster tempo. Both of the compositions have words, which talk about the rainy season and the feeling that everyone gets when the rains come after the heat of the summer.”

Manoj found his calling in music early on in life. He began his formal training at the age of seven, though his initiation was even earlier when he was all of three, singing bhajans while on a pilgrimage to Shirdi. By the time he was eleven, he was learning Hindustani music professionally under the tutelage of Mrs. Vineeta Tembe. His mentors include Mr. Prabhakar Karekar and Mrs. and Mr. Prem.

A rank-holder and a gold medalist from Mumbai University, Manoj completed his Master of Fine Arts in Hindustani Classical Vocal Music in 1999. He was the recipient of Pandit Bhimsen Joshi scholarship Hindustani music at post-graduate level in 1998-99. He has won several awards, the most prestigious one being the Sur Singar Samsad Award in 1995 for light vocal.

Manoj has been teaching Hindustani classical and light music (vocal and harmonium) at the Academy of Indian Music, South Plainfield, New Jersey, since March 2004. His repertoire includes Hindustani classical (Khayal), semi-classical (Thumri, Dadra), bhajans, ghazals and old film songs in Hindi and Marathi.

Manoj has conducted several lecture demonstrations on topics including “The Thaat Series” [conducted in 5 sessions, introducing Thaat System in Hindustani Music], “Music Appreciation”, “Introduction to “Hindustani Music” at Keane University, NJ, and other institutions.

Recorded July 21st at WKCR studios.

By Banning Eyre | April, 2007 [guitar player mg]
Abdoulaye Alhassane Toure has brought string-picking wizardry from the desert towns of West Africa to the nightclubs of New York City. Born in 1963, in Niamey, Niger, to a Sonrai family from Gao, Mali, he passed his youth in a multi-ethnic neighborhood surrounded by Peul, Bambara, Sonrai, and other peoples, and as he put it, “They all played music.” Local radio filled his ears with the sinuous, bluesy strains of desert folklore and the melodious bombast of Mande griots. When his parents returned to Mali, Toure recalled, “They came back with cassettes by Ibrahim Hamma Dicko, Fissa Maiga, and Ali Farka Toure, who sang in a language we understood, and I was incredibly inspired by the originality of this music.” Toure’s musical gift became obvious when he started hanging out in the Niamey nightclub where his uncle, Johnny Ali Maiga, led a band.
“Johnny Ali Maiga played folklore, like Ali Farka Toure,” said Toure, “But he also loved rock. His group was on the radio in Niamey, and it sounded like the Malian music I was listening to at home, but sung in Zerma, the national language of Niger.”
By the early ’80s, Toure was playing guitar and flute, and his first band incorporated electric guitar, bass, drums, and brass, and merged regional folk styles with international pop. When the group took first prize in a national competition, Toure became a full-time musician. By the late ’80s, he was leading Super Kassey—the first Niamey band to travel abroad and record in a modern studio.
Before long, Toure was working as a guitar instructor at the European-run Center for the Education and Promotion of Music. In 1992, Toure teamed up with singer/flutist Yacouba Moumouni to create Niger’s most successful roots pop band to date, Mamar Kassey. Mamar Kassey’s two electrifying CDs, Denke Denke (1999) and Alatoumi (2000) showcase Toure’s guitar mastery and formidable arranging skills. The music is rooted in tradition, but molded into brisk arrangements that include key modulations and bursts of solo improvisation.
“Improvisation existed in Sonrai music,” explained Toure, “but in another form. In our ceremonies, there’s an original melody that is played by the kurbu [a 3-stringed lute]. When the energy rises between the players and the dancers, the kurbu player leaves his melody, and follows his heart. But if you tell that kurbu player to work with a modern group and ‘improvise,’ you have to explain to him what it means.”
Mamar Kassey’s travels eventually brought Toure to New York City, where he now lives and performs with his current band, Deep Sahara. Toure can cradle an acoustic guitar and fingerpick his way through desert trance grooves, and he can also take up a flatpick, and wail on electric—edging desert folklore into the realm of blues and rock. One day, he plans to return to Niger to set up a studio and form an international touring band. For now, Toure is merely one of the most riveting African guitarists to be found in the United States.

Tomchess is a Multi-instrumentalist/Improviser/Composer. He plays Reeds, Western Flute, Arabic/Turkish Ney flute, Oud, and Guitar. He also has a history of using electronics /sampling/live-sampling/loops/fx. He has performed with Drummer Ronald Shannon Jackson’ Decoding Society, Butch Morris’s Sheng Skyscraper, recorded with Tenor players Dewey Redman, Pharoah Sanders, Morrocan Sintarist Hassan Hakmoun and Butch Morris. He has also led a guitar trio with Drummer Phil Haynes and bassist Drew Gress called Seven Times a Year. He has studied Middle/Near Eastern and West African musics, spending time in West Africa playing and performing.

He  says:”…My inspiration is drawn from my evolving realizations of love and life; listening to an inner convergence, the rhythms of life, nature/city sounds, my experiences as a human being and artist and listening to music from all parts of the world. The deeper I listen, the more I hear unity/universals in how sound is used and celebrated, as well as differences. The World is chock-full of beautiful and multi-colored infinitudes of expression through sound. Music embraces within it the means to overcome and transcend religious, political and social boundaries as a powerful transformative vehicle. Its also simply just alot of fun. My playing is an expression of my past experiences re-coded into a vision through the present co-emergent moment towards beneficial future possibilities; its an expression of celebration.

Shane Shanahan with Yo Yo Ma and Colin Jacobson

Shane Shanahan has cultivated his own unique and highly sought after sound by combining his studies of drumming traditions from around the world with his background in jazz, rock and Western art music.   His interest in other cultures has lead to extended visits to Turkey, India, and Tajikistan, among others.  Shane’s rare set of diverse skills is what attracted Yo-Yo Ma when he was forming the Silk Road Ensemble.  In the summer of 2000, Shane was invited to Tanglewood where he played an important role in the formation of the group.  Ever since, he has been touring around the globe performing side-by-side with Mr. Ma as an original member of the award-winning Silk Road Ensemble.  Shane’s playing can be heard on all three of the ensemble’s top-selling recordings for the SonyBMG label and the two most recent albums feature his arranging skills, as well.  These arrangements have brought ecstatic audience to their feet in the top concert halls of North America, Europe and Asia. Shane can also be seen and heard on Mr. Ma’s Grammy Award winning holiday CD/DVD release “Songs of Joy.”

He is also a member of frame drum master Glen Velez’ Handance Ensemble and cellist Maya Beiser’s Provenance project.  He has performed and/or recorded with Philip Glass, Alison Krause, Sonny Fortune, Fantasia,

Chaka Khan, G. E. Smith, Simon Shaheen, Jamey Haddad, Cyro Baptista,

Anindo Chaterjee, Sandeep Das, Shahram and Hafez Nazeri, Alim

Qasimov, Kayhan Kalhor, Howard Levy and Steve Gorn, among others.

WOW! Thanks to a community of over 30 world class artists,  WKCR-FM  broadcast 24 hours of live, in-studio performances of Indian Ragas on June 21 on the airwaves in NYC and streaming on the net. We got a HUGE response from around the globe.  The complete festival can still be enjoyed online here and at the NYC Radio Live iTunes podcast.  Many thanks to our curators HarmoNYom, Brooklyn Raga Massive and to our artistic directors Arun Ramamurthy, Sameer Gupta and Veronique Lerebours. Thanks also  to the Make Music NY festival and the WKCR team (Ahmet Ali Arsalan, Sriharsha Aradhya, Lakshmi Gopal, and Kevin Crowley).

Kiran Ahluwalia (vocals),  Rez Abbasi (guitar), Nitin Mitta (tabla). Ragas Live Festival #24

11 pm-12 am during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival.

Expressing her muse through ghazals and Punjabi folk songs, Kiran Ahluwalia explores the language of the heart with beautiful artistry and smoldering intensity. Born in India, raised in Canada, and now living in New York City, her enchanting and seductive music has garnered glowing praise from critics around the world. Her’s is “a voice destined to enchant more than one generation” (fROOTS) and she possesses “a deep spirituality and tranquility that borders on the mystic” (Sing Out Magazine). But most of all, Kiran Ahluwalia is a unique and inspiring performer and composer, who’s legion of fans continues to grow with every captivating performance and each new recording project.

Born in Karachi, Pakistan, removed at the age of four to relocate to Southern California, schooled at the University of Southern California and the Manhattan School of Music in jazz and classical music, as well as a pilgrimage in India under the tutorial of master percussionist, Ustad Alla Rakha, Rez Abbasi is a vivid synthesis of all the above stated influences and genres.

Making New York home for the past 18 years, Abbasi has developed a unique sound both as a composer and an instrumentalist and is considered by many to be one of the foremost modern jazz guitar players the world over. He has honed his skills with performances through out Europe, Canada, the U.S., Mexico and India. He has performed and recorded with many jazz greats including, Grammy winner Ruth Brown, Peter Erskine, Kenny Werner, Barre Phillips, Tim Hagans, Marc Johnson, Billy Hart,  Marvin ‘Smitty’ Smith, Gary Thomas, Rick Margitza, DaveDouglas, DD Jackson, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Tony Malaby, George Brooks, PanditRonu Majumdar, Pandit Kadri Gopalnath, Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, MarilynCrispell, Greg Osby, Howard Levy and a host of others.

Arun Ramamurthy (violin),  Akshay Anantapadmanabhan (mridangam), Nitin Mitta (tabla). Ragas Live Festival # 23

8-9 pm during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival.

Arun Ramamurthy is a gifted violinist who is making his mark in Indian Classical and World music in the United States. Disciple of Dr. Mysore Manjunath & Sri Mysore Nagaraj, he has become one of the most sought after violinists in the US.  Arun has carved a niche for himself in the Indian Classical music scene in NYC as a versatile musician, playing together with artists from both Carnatic and Hindustani styles.  Born and raised in the US, Arun utilizes his Carnatic training to collaborate with western musicians, recording & performing with artists from various genres. Arun released his debut Carnatic CD “Geethanjali” with percussion stalwarts Thiravarur Bakthavatsalam and Giridhar Udupa.  His newest project, the Arun Ramamurthy Quartet, presents fresh arrangments and improvisations of classic Carnatic compositions, including some original music.  Arun curates the innovative series, “Carnatic Sundays” at Cornelia Street Café in New York City, a concert series dedicated to presenting Carnatic music to wider audiences. –arunnj25@gmail.com

Vivek Rudrapatna (violin),  Sriram Raman (mridangam). Ragas Live Festival # 22

5-6 pm during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival.

Vivek Rudrapatna is a seasoned Indian Classical violinist who has played a central role in the Indian Classical music circles of the tristate area and New England for over 10 years.  He began study of the violin under Ms. Jennifer Curran, a passionate music teacher in the New Jersey Public Schools who taught him Western Classical technique and guided him from elementary through high school.  Around the same time, he was fortunate to discover the Carnatic Violin under the guidance of Mysore Sateesh, an inspired violinist from the prized “MSG” lineage.  Since 2001, he has performed as both a soloist and in collaboration with many talented local and international artists in a variety of prestigious venues including the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, The Egg in Albany, and the Sanders Theatre at Harvard University.  Over the years, Vivek has honed his skills under the guidance of renowned artists such as Anantha Krishnan, the Mysore Brothers, and Dr. L. Subramaniam.  Vivek’s long standing interest in world fusion led to the creation of his successful college group “Saptaswara”, a melting pot of Gypsy, Bluegrass, Western, and Indian music.  In his other life, Vivek is an MD/PhD candidate at The Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York.

Shanti Shivani (vocal),  Peter Fagiola  (pakhavaj). Ragas Live Festival # 21

11 am-12 pm during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival.

Shanti Shivani is one of the few Western pioneers bringing the sacred traditions of Nada Yoga and Dhrupad, the most ancient style of Hindustani classical music, to the West. She brings a wealth of vocal, meditative, movement and experience to her classes and performances. She had the great fortune to be accepted as a paramparastudent of the premier family of the Dhrupad lineage, the Dagar family. Her first teacher was Dr. Ritwik Sanyal before continuing her studies with his gurus, the late rudra veena maestro Ustad Zia Mohiuddin Dagar and his brother Ustad Zia Fariduddin Dagar. Their family has been passing on the Dhrupad tradition for nineteen generations. Her studies with Ustad Rahim Fahimuddin Dagar enriched her understanding of Nada Yoga.

Samarth Nagarkar (vocal),  Anirban Roy Chowdury (tabla), Andrew Shantz (harmonium). Ragas Live Festival # 20

8-9 am during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival.

Samarth Nagarkar, a hindustani classical (North Indian classical) vocalist, is a disciple of Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar and Pandit Dinkar Kaikini. A former scholar of the ITC Sangeet Research Academy, Kolkata, he was head of the K. K. Kapoor Sangeet Research Academy, Lucknow as Founder Faculty. Pursuing a full-fledged career as a performing vocalist, Samarth is hailed as one of the most promising young artistes of today.

Oded Tzur (saxophone),  Naren Budhakar (tabla). Ragas Live Festival # 19

10-11 pm during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival.

Saxophonist Oded Tzur is rapidly gaining international acclaim for his
groundbreaking musical work. He is considered by many to be the first
saxophonist in the world to have developed a complete method for performing
North Indian Classical Music on the saxophone, single-handedly creating a
revolutionary approach to the instrument. Odedʼs innovative technique, known
as “Ampis” (A Middle Path In Saxophone), had already been presented in
prestigious institutions such as the 2011 British Saxophone Congress, Trinity
College of Music, London, The Copenhagen Rhythmic Music Conservatory, The
Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus, and The Rotterdam Jazz Academy.
“If a curtain were to be drawn in front of him, no one could tell which instrument was
being played” -
Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia

Naren Budhakar was born in Pune, India, and was first exposed to classical music by his father who was a violinist. From his cousin Shashikant Purandare he learned Delhi style percussion and began performing at a young age. He was initiated as a disciple by Tabla Maestro Ustad Shabbir Nisar. Naren has been performing and teaching both in the U.S. and abroad, lending his percussion skills to various forms of world music. He is on the faculty of the East-West School of Music, where he teaches monthly Tabla classes and performs regularly.

Eric Fraser (Bansuri Flute),  Naren Budhakar (Tabla). Ragas Live Festival # 18

9-10 am during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival performing  Raga Nat Bhairav

Eric Fraser (bansuri flute) is an exponent of a unique “vocal” style of North-Indian flute playing.  A disciple of Pandit Gopal Roy, Eric’s flute playing tells the story of his “gharana” (lineage).  With it’s depth, strong distinct tone and vilumvit laya (slow tempo), this rare approach to bansuri flute invites listeners into serene contemplation and rich aesthetic landscapes.  Eric is a 2010 Fulbright senior research scholar for Indian music, and has enchanted audiences with the sound of his flute in India and the USA.

Amali Preemawardana (Cello),  Trina Basu (Violin),   Perry Wortman (Bass), Sameer Gupta (Tabla). Ragas Live Festival # 17

1-2pm during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival

Karavika draws from the rich classical & folk traditions of India, Europe and North America. Their debut album, Sunrise, features original music inspired by the rhythmic complexities of Indian Classical music as well as collaborative arrangements inspired by old film and folk music from South Asia.

“a diversely melodic, often hypnotic original sound that occasionally reaches toward Appalachian rusticity or a brisk Celtic mood… Whether quiet and reflective or joyously energetic, the melodies are as bright as the musicians’ tone: this is music for celebrating or getting lost in” – Lucid Culture

Jay Gandhi (Bansuri)  Nitin Mitta (Tabla)  Ragas Live Festival # 16

6-7pm during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival performing Raag Puriya Kalyan in Jhaptaal & Teeentaal followed by a Pahadi Dhun

An outstanding disciple of the world renowned bansuri maestro Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Jay is an avid performer with a remarkable artistic maturity and depth. With performances spanning the globe, he has been lauded for his musical sensitivity and expressive sound. His music reflects the training he has received from some of the greatest living masters of the North Indian Classical flute. Initially trained under Pandit Ronu Majumdar, Pandit Vijay Raghav Rao and Pandit Raghunath Seth, he is truly blessed to presently be studying under the living legend of the bansuri, Padma Vibhushan Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, at Brindavan Gurukul in Mumbai, since 2006. In addition to his solo performances, he has also had the honor of providing accompaniment on bansuri for some of the most highly esteemed Hindustani Classical musicians of today, all of whom have given him invaluable guidance towards his musical growth. They include Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Pandit Nayan Ghosh, Pt Ronu Majumdar, Pt Raghunath Seth, Pandit Vidyadhar Vyas, Pandit Ramakant Pathak (pakhawaj), Smt. Kum Kum Sanyal, and Smt Sangita Lahiri. (vocalist). His musical pursuits are not limited to that of the Indian sub-continent and he has grown up with a great love for the music of the African diaspora and America’s classical music – Jazz as well. In 2004, he completed an Individual Major in Jazz Performance at Oberlin College/Conservatory of Music (Ohio), studying privately under such Jazz luminaries as the saxophonist Gary Bartz and trumpetist Marcus Belgrave. He has since collaborated extensively with many noted Jazz musicians including composer/Jazz pianist Courtney Bryan and trumpetist Lech Wierzynski. A recipient of the prestigious American Institute of Indian Studies Senior Performing Arts Fellowship, he currently splits his time between New York City and Mumbai, India.

Nitin Mitta is one of the most accomplished and distinctive tabla players of his generation, with a reputation for technical virtuosity, spontaneity, clarity of tone, and sensitivity to melodic nuances.

Apart from being a dynamic soloist, he is a highly sought after accompanist who has performed with some of India’s most celebrated Hindustani classical musicians, including Pandit Jasraj, Dr. Prabha Atre, Pandits Rajan and Sajan Mishra, Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, and Ustad Shahid Parvez, as well as many Carnatic musicians, such as Lalgudi G.J.R Krishnan and Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi.

Nitin has also made a mark as a versatile collaborator in other spheres. He recently joined forces with 2010 Grammy Nominee Pianist Vijay Iyer and electric guitarist R. Prasanna to produce a studio album titled Tirtha that blends elements of contemporary jazz with the North and South Indian traditional ragas and compositions. Another collaboration with R. Prasanna can be heard on the soundtrack of the Oscar-winning documentary Smile Pinky. He has also performed and toured with singer and Juno Award nominee Kiran Ahluwalia.

Born in Hyderabad in 1975, Nitin received his early training in Hyderabad from Pandit G. Satyanarayana. Blessed with raw talent, he gave his first solo tabla performance at the age of ten. During his studies he won many accolades, including first prize in the All India Competition held in Calcutta. To expand his repertoire of tabla compositions, he sought the guidance of Pandit Arvind Mulgaonkar of Mumbai, one of the most highly respected mentors of his generation.

Under Mulgaonkarji’s tutelage, Nitin not only broadened his tabla vocabulary, but sharpened his understanding of how to bring the material to life in performances through interpretation, improvisation and respect for the dynamics between instrumentalist and rhythmic accompanist. Both of Nitin’s gurus are disciples of the late Ustad Amir Hussain Khan Saheb, legendary doyen of the Farukhabad Gharana.

After moving to the United States in 2002, Nitin received a grant from the Rhode Island State Council on Arts. He was a member of the faculty at the Learn Quest Academy of Music in Waltham, MA. He maintains a busy schedule of performances and tabla workshops, traveling throughout the U.S, Europe, Canada and India. He has performed at several prominent venues including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Weill recital Hall/Carnegie Hall, the UCLA Royce Hall, the Indian consulate in New York, the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C, the Music Academy in Chennai, and the Habitat Centre in New Delhi.

Indrajit Roy Chowdhury (Sitar) and Sanjay Ranjan Pal (Tabla)

Performed 6-7am during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival

Indrajit Roy-Chowdhury is a disciple of the sitar maestro Pandit Subroto Roy-Chowdhury.  Groomed in the Veen-kar style of the Senia Gharana, which maintains the Dhrupadi origins of Indian Classical music, Indrajit strives to innovate while keeping a firm connection with the past.  While completing his undergraduate studies at Duke University, Indrajit received the Bennenson Award for the Arts to further his study of Indian Classical music.  Since then he has taken the profession of a full-time sitarist and has performed on stages across the world including such prestigious venues as Gyan Mancha (Kolkata), Hammerstein Ballroom (New York), Kennedy Center (Washington D.C.) and has had his
concerts telecast by Doordarshan (Indian National Television).  During the 2010 Fall semester Indrajit was a visiting faculty member at the University of Pennsylvania and taught the University’s sitar course..

3 am – 4 am from our Ragas Live Festival.

Ustad Ikhlaq Hussain Khan is a virtuoso sitarist from a centuries-long line of influential musicians of the Delhi Gharana, dating back to the very creator of the instruments ‘sitar’ and ‘tabla’ in the early 13th century, Sufi Saint Hazrat Amir Khusrao.
While his lineage is known for their proliferative work in the field of tabla and rhythmic expression/composition, Ikhlaq’s grandfather, Ustad Ahmadi Khan, was the first to choose a different instrument, sarangi. In turn, Ikhlaq’s father, the eminent Ustad Imdad Hussain, chose to devote his musical life to sitar. Ikhlaq’s immediate family was relocated to Pakistan during partition, and still resides in Karachi.
Ikhlaq Hussain, now a resident of New York City, was granted permanent residency in the U.S. on the basis of his extraordinary music ability; a category reserved for individuals with unusually exceptional talents. This has been a testimony to his virtuosity. Ikhlaq Hussain has followed in the footsteps of his forefathers, captivating audiences worldwide with his highly artistic sensibilities and skillful playing.
Ikhlaq plays in the Gayaki Ang (or vocal manner of playing). It is perhaps the most difficult form of playing the sitar. It involves ‘sytematic use of pitch deflecting technique, where by pulling the strings across the frets and varying their tension, the player can produce intricate melodie phrases from a single stroke of the plectrum. Thus, emulating the human voice to a degree normally unattainable on plucked instruments’.

10-11 am from our Ragas Live Festival.

Falu (Vocals)  Deep Singh (Tabla)

Falu is widely recognized for a rare ability to seamlessly blend a signature modern inventive rock style with a formidable Indian classically-shaped vocal talent.

In her early years in Bombay, singer Falu (aka Falguni Shah) was trained rigorously in the Jaipur musical tradition, honing her talent for up to 16 hours a day at times. She later continued studying under the legendary sarangi/vocal master Ustad Sultan Khan – a mentorship that continues to drive and inspire her to this day. While pursuing a degree in North Indian classical vocal music she won gold medals in three national-level competitions centered around rising young classical talent.

Falu later moved to the States, and in 2001 began recording extensively with Boston-based band Karyshma as well as with Asian Massive leader Karsh Kale, subsequently hitting the nationwide university, club and festival circuits. Falu then formed her own New York-based band of the same name, and started performing at music venues throughout the city including Lincoln Center at a special Healing the Divideperformance for the Dalai Lama in 2003. Falu’s recordings were soon featured on multiple albums and compilations include on the compendium CD to Deepak Chopra’sThe Spontaneous Fulfillment of Desire.

In 2004 Falu was invited to perform as a soloist with Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Project. In 2005 she was asked to serve as one of Carnegie Hall’s Musical Ambassadors to New York City – a position she continues to cherish with great enthusiasm. In May of 2006 she became the youngest South Asian vocalist to deliver a solo performance at Carnegie Hall (Zankel). Also in 2006 she joined the Born Into Brothels Ensemble (from the Academy-Award winning film), and in 2007 she collaborated with Wyclef Jean, lending her distinctive vocal style to the score of Angelina Jolie’s directorial debut A Place in Time.

In August of 2007, Falu released her self-titled debut CD, produced by Palmyra Delran and engineered by Grammy winner Emery Dobyns. Soon afterward, Falu and her genre-defining hybrid “Indie Hindi” musical style made a splash in numerous publications including the Wall Street Journal and Times of India, India’s premier national daily newspaper.

More recently, Falu and her band were featured on National Geographic Channel’s Geo Sessions broadcast internationally, as well as on Fox TV’s Fearless Music, where the hit single Rabba became the first Hindi song ever performed on the national network.

During 2008 Falu began an ongoing collaboration with Jason Miles and DJ Logic in the contemporary jazz collective Global Noize with whom she toured extensively, performing live with Meshell Ndegeocello, Bernie Worrell (P-Funk), John Popper and other talented musicians. She contributed three standout tracks to their self-titled album released in Spring 2008 – her vocals in the album were singled out by Billboardas “ethereal” and “transcendent”. Other 2008 collaboration highlights included with Philip Glass and with Blues Traveler.

In 2009, Falu was invited to perform at Lincoln Center together with Slumdog Millionaire composer A.R. Rahman for the Time 100 Gala in front of the one hundred selection of Time Magazine’s most influential people in the world of 2008, which not surprisingly included First Lady Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey.

Finally, Falu’s most stunning recent performance occurred at the White House in November of 2009, where she was invited to sing alongside A.R. Rahman again at President Obama’s first State Dinner in honor of the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Falu’s band brings together musicians who draw elegantly from Indian classical, alternative rock, contemporary pop, and electronic styles to create a tight mix of East and West, of ancient and modern. The band members are Gaurav Shah (vocals / harmonium), Mark Tewarson (guitars), Borahm Lee (keys), Justin Wallace (bass), and Ramsey Jones (drums).

Deep Singh is a renowned percussionist, born in London England and currently living in NYC. Singh began to play the Tabla at the age three years old and at the age of seven became the youngest disciple of Ustad Allah Rakha. Singh’s professional career started at the age of nine and since has performed at prestigious venues such as The Royal Albert Hall, London; The Royal Festival Hall, London; The Waldorf Astoria, NYC, Carnegie Hall, NYC, among many others. Singh has accompanied the finest musicians from India such as Dr.Aruna Sharma, Ustad Salamat Ali Khan, Ustad Sultan Khan, Hari Harren, Ghulam Ali and many more. He is currently touring a concert of Indian classical music and working with other percussion bands.

After many years of playing in the NYC down town club scene and merging Indian sounds with rock/pop, he is now coming out with his own unique style of music. With his years of experience as an Indian classical musician and playing with western bands, Singh is revered as a master in blending music from the east and west.

Sketch from Ragas Live Festival by Rachel Meirs

Kedar Naphade (Harmonium)  Nitin Mitta (Tabla) Performed 4-5pm during our 24 Hour Ragas Live Festival

Raag Madhuvanti and Thumri in Mishra Pilu

Kedar Naphade, a Hindustani Classical Instrumentalist, is one of today’s leading exponents of the art of Harmonium Solo and Accompaniment.

Daisy Paradis, sitar; Sanjay Ranjan Pal, tabla;

7-8am during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival.

Daisy Paradis is one of the few Americans who can give a pure and authentic rendition of North Indian classical music. An outstanding musician in full command of her instrument, she has had the benefit of more than twenty years of training with one of the greatest artists of India, Maestro Ali Akbar Khan. Her depth of knowledge and devotion to music is coupled with rigorous classical training. Her interpretation is enlivened by an individuality and spark of energy that fills her performance with excitement.

Daughter of jazz harpist Daphne Hellman and sister of guitarist Sandy Bull, Paradis has been a disciple of Maestro Ali Akbar Khan since 1966. She has studied sitar with Krishna Bhatt, as well as attending workshops with Pdt. Ravi Shankar and Nikhil Banerjee. Her vocal studies were with Maestro Khan and Prof. A.T. Kanan of Calcutta. She is a co-founder of the Ali Akbar College of Music in California with Maestro Ali Akbar Khan, and served on the Board of the India Festival in San Francisco.

Paradis has appeared in performance with Maestro Ali Akbar Khan and Swapan Chaudhuri. Among her many concerts have been performances at San Francisco State, the Oakland Museum, the World Music Network, the World Music Institute, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the New York Natural History Museum, programs of the Ali Akbar College, and a number of appearances on KPFA, and many other radio and television stations. She performed as part of the India Festival in California, and was invited in 1989 to perform for the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s Nehru Centenary celebration.

“One of the best of the sitar students to come from Ali Akbar Khan… she has had many years with one of India’s finest musicians behind her. …her technique is fully developed…. her dedication is commendable…. an artist with a real statement to make.” – Soho News

Camila Celin (sarod), Stephen Cellucci (tabla)

3-4 pm during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival.

Sketched by Rachel Meirs.

Below is what the press has said about Camila Celin‘s beautiful guitar work.  This afternoon the New York City was  treated to her performance on the Sarod.

“Grammy nominated Guitarist Camila Celin strumms elegant classical tempos, occasionally sustaining violent bursts of flamenco with inhuman endurance, all while gracefully poised in her chair” ……The West County News ……“…her playing is profound unique, commanding, luminary. She plays a nylon string, flamenco, all these different techniques, modal scales… She is a well trained classical guitarist who also has the ability to improvise… Striking young female…” ……Gayle Olson- Director of Hilltown music ……“… I was especially amazed at the guitar playing of Camila. I couldn’t keep my eyes off the way her fingers were moving on that guitar like cutting hot butter.” ……Roy Knowles- Director of Recovery of Spirit

Stephen Cellucci has studied tabla under the guidance of Pdt. Samir Chatterjee since 2000. He was initiated as a disciple of his Guruji in 2005 and has shared the stage with him several times since. He performed at the well-known Chhandayan All Night Concert of Indian Music in New York City in 2004 and 2009. He also has extensive experience playing with kirtans and accompanying dance — both traditional Indian kathak and western modern forms.

Stephen’s background in western classical music and piano complement his ongoing, rigorous study of Indian music. His scope of musical influences gives him the versatility to adapt the tabla to most any musical need. He resides, teaches, and plays in New York City

Ashvin Bhogendra (vocal),  Arun Ramamurthy (violin),  Akshay Anantapadmanabhan (mrigdanam).

9-1opm during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival.

Ashvin Bhogendra (D.B. Ashvin) hails from a family of musicians. His maternal grandfather Kalaimamani Late Shri T.K.Rangachary is one of the doyens of Carnatic Music and his paternal great-grandfather Dharmavaram Ramakrishnamacharlu is one of the greatest playwrights of Telugu drama. Ashvin was initiated into carnatic vocal by his mother Smt Mallika Jayanth Kumar at the age of 5. Subsequently he was under the tutelage of B.Seetharama Sharma and KalaimamaniLate Shri Vairamangalam Lakshminarayanan for about 15 years. He is currently undergoing advanced training under Shri D Seshachary (Hyderabad Brothers). Ashvin has given concert performances in leading sabhas and organizations all over India and the USA.

Anjana Roy (sitar), Sanjay Ranjan Pal (tabla)

4am-5am during our 24 hour Ragas Live Festival

Anjana Roy had her early education in music from her father Shri Rebati Ranjan Debnath, who was a senior disciple of Ustad Allauddin Khan of Maihar. She later had training from several other masters , including Professor erma of Jaipur, Pandit Debu Chowdhury of Delhi, and Pandit Manilal Nag of Calcutta.

Andrew Mendelson (Sitar),  Ehren Hanson (Tabla)

7-8PM During our ragas live festival

Counter to the ancient tenets of reincarnation, Andrew Mendelson attempts to live as many lives as possible simultaneously in the present. A devout student of Indian classical music, Andrew has been playing and studying the sitar for over 15 years. In 2005, Andrew won the grand championship gold medal at the Darshak Institute Music Competition in Jaipur, India–the largest music competition of it’s kind in the state of Rajasthan. He is a disciple of renowned sitarist Pandit Krishna Mohan Bhatt. Andrew continues to performed at venues throughout New York City and University campuses across the U.S. He is also a studio musician and recently composed the opening credit music for Mike Myers’ film The Love Guru.