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Presentations:
Sandhi
Sitar & Tabla Presentation
Productions:
Chhand-Anand (World Percussion Ensemble)
Dawn to Dusk and Beyond
Nacho Nacho
Tabla Ensemble
Sandhi: A Performance
Dialogue between Sarangi and Tabla
Renowned Indian classical music maestros present solo performances on two of the
most celebrated instruments from North India.
First Half: Pandit
Ramesh Misra, Sarangi solo
Samir Chatterjee, Tabla accompaniment
Second Half: Pandit
Samir Chatterjee, Tabla solo
Ramesh Mishra, Sarangi accompaniment
Optional additional presentations include:
Workshops in Indian classical music appreciation (rhythm and melody);
Drum clinic (all percussionists welcome),
Melody clinic for musicians on any instrument (e.g. violin, clarinet, guitar,
etc.)
Customized lecture-demonstrations
Duration: Flexible, based on presenter requirements. Recommended 1 ¾ hour total
presentation (45 minutes each half, with a fifteen minute intermission).
Sarangi, “instrument with 100 colors”, is over 700 years old with 39-42 strings:
3-4 playing strings (made from gut), with 36-39 resonant, sympathetic strings
(made of metal). The Sarangi is held vertically and played with a bow held in
the right hand, while the cuticles of the left hand glide along the strings to
vary the notes. The lack of frets makes the Sarangi one of the most impressive
instruments for presentation of Indian classical ragas, as the musician is able
to display the full range of microtones and quarter tones. The technical
difficulty of the Sarangi has resulted in very few maestros practicing or
performing in the world, today. Pandit Ramesh Misra is one of the most
outstanding exponents of this ancient art, transforming intricacies of technique
to sounds that stir audiences worldwide.
Tabla has grown to be one of the most popular percussion instruments in the
world. Originating over 250 years ago in North India, it is the most powerful
representative of the Indian rhythmic system. Tabla is a highly developed
two-piece drum set of bayan, bass, and dahina, treble, composed of wood, metal
and goat hide. Among Indian percussion instruments, the tabla is uniquely
capable of producing a range of tones, adding rich melodic elements to the
complexities of Indian rhythms. Pandit Samir Chatterjee is one of the world’s
leading tabla players. His playing is renowned for its evocative vocal and
rhythmic dimensions.
Fees and Arrangements: $ 2000 for performance and transportation
$ 300 - $ 500 for each additional workshop presentation
Lodging, food and local transportation to be provided by the presenter, if
necessary for length of engagement.
Set-up: 8’(length) x 5’(width) x 1’(height) platform covered with a clean carpet
is required.
*Please make sure that no one steps on the carpet with shoes after it has been
set up.*
Three microphones (2 Shure SM 57, 1 Shure SM 58) on low boom stands.
One stage monitor/speaker set up below platform, facing musicians.
Sufficient stage lighting
A flowery decoration around the platform would be appreciated.
*This presentation is for hire in parties and similar occassions.
About the artists:
K.V. Mahabala had an aptitude for music since childhood. After experimenting with singing and Mandolin playing, he found his true love for classical North Indian music in Sitar. After having initial education of music with his first teacher, Sri Yoga Narasimha in Mysore, K.V. Mahabala decided to seek further musical career in New Delhi, Capital City of India. There he joined Gandharva Maha Vidhyalaya - an Institution responsible for mass movement of music in the Indian Society. There he came across great masters of music, which enriched his appreciation. In New Delhi he furthered his studies with Pandit Uma Shankar Mishra, a senior disciple of legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar and renowned Sitarist in his own right. At this time he was already performing in concerts including the one hosted by the National Thermal Power Corporation of India.When he migrated to United States in 1992, prominent musicians like Pandit Krishna Bhatt and Pandit Soumitra Lahari enhanced his passion for music. K.V. Mahabala has developed a very spiritual approach that reflects in his music. It is this feature that finds him being received so well in the Yoga center of Monroe where he is a regular performer. Mahabala, not only carries the rich Cultural Heritage of India, wherever he performs and teaches, one can see and feel the presence of it. His larger than life attitude and his looking at music as means to better one’s existence sent a highly aesthetic and peaceful vibe through his music that the modern times are much in need of. Currently, K.V. Mahabala is studying under the guidance of Pandit Barun Kumar pal, a senior disciple of Pandit Ravi Shankar and renowned Hansa Veena player in his own right.
Dan Weiss has been studying tabla under the careful gudance of Pandit Samir Chatterjee for 5 and a half years. He has had the opportunity of accompanying Mandiri Lahiri, Mitali Bhowmik, Ramesh Misra,Steve gorn and others. Besides being an aspiring tabla player, Dan has been a proffesional drummer for about 8 years. He has toured Europe and the United States numerous times.
Fees: NY $600
NJ $700
An additional $100 for sound system (if required)
Outside NY & NJ, special rates apply
Click here for the contract (.pdf file)
Chhand-Anand (Chhandayan World Percussion Ensemble)
Introduction
This World Percussion Ensemble (WPE) showcases a variety of percussion
instruments from different parts of the world. Instruments are chosen from
India, the Middle East, Africa, South and North America. We have chosen the
percussion instruments of these parts of the world because of the richness of
their percussion heritage and the variety of elements that the chosen
instruments represent. Pieces are composed and presented based on theme and
instrumentation. All of the pieces are developed on powerful and exciting
rhythms that reflect complex rhythmic and melodic orchestrations. The group
comprises some of the most dexterous and sensitive drummers on the instruments.
In this proposal, we include detailed bios of all the participants in the WPE.
We have further outlined the specifics of each instrument being played in this
ensemble. A brief history of the instrument is given, how it is made, what are
the characteristic tonal qualities of the instrument, and what, if any, is the
contemporary significance of the percussion instruments played in the WPE.
In this ensemble, composed and directed by Pandit Samir Chatterjee, there has
been a compilation of a beautiful array of percussion instruments, which combine
to produce the most joyous music one can rarely experience. The range and scope
of this music extends from the vibrant drumming that one hears in the festas in
Brazil and tambors in Cuba, where people gather to hear drumming in the
religious ritualistic expression of the Orisha religion (from the Yoruba nation
of West Nigeria), to the melodious devotional rhythms of the bauls or
syncretists of Bengal in India and Bangladesh. WPE tries to capture the spirit
of fusion in world music where particular musical traditions seek no
geographical boundaries and limitations. It is free to move beyond horizons, to
be incorporated in other cultures. In the end, what evolves is a blending of the
original with the adopting culture. For example, music that was once specific to
a tribe in Africa has been traveling with people all over the world and gets
incorporated in a religious festival in Brazil or Cuba and is till date
performed there. Such is the nature of hybridity.
The Arabic music/rhythm tradition begins in the caravan song -- the vocal music
of the nomad. Often a simple percussion instrument (for instance a stick) was
used to beat out accents. As the nomadic life was exchanged for urban life new
instruments were developed and the notion of a larger repeating rhythmic cycle
emerged. As the cultural empire of the Arabs expanded, matured and moved through
the greater Middle East and through North Africa into modern Spain, it brought
an academic attitude toward music. Local traditions were integrated and new
forms and instruments developed. The music traditions of North Africa are still
today heavily influenced by Arabic Empire roots rather than by the rest of
mainland Africa. Modern Middle Eastern music is a fusion of local folk
traditions, the remains of ancient classical forms, and aspects of western
popular and sometimes classical music.
Keeping the hybrid trend in mind, Samir Chatterjee creates a fusion of sounds
with different percussion instruments. Each instrument produces a sound that
mingles with other instruments and evolves into a unified sound. The rhythms
move from the microcosm to the macrocosmic expression of music. The ensemble
effect helps to culminate in one unique sound that speaks of droplets of music
from all over the world.
Instrumentation:
Tabla, Shri Khol, Ektara, Dholak, Dhak, Gub Gubi, Dumbeck, Darabuka, Bodhran,
Bendir, Taar, Riq, Drumset, Bata, Conga, Djembe, Bongo, Udu, Cajon, Berimbau,
Cwica, Pandeiro, Jingle, Chequere, Shaker, etc.
Participants:
Samir Chatterjee : Tabla,
Shri Khol, Ektara, Gub Gubi, Dhak, Dholak
Frank Colon : Conga, Bata,
Cwica, Pandeiro, Berimbau, Chequere
Emiliano A. Valerio : Conga,
Udu, Cajon, Bata etc.
Daniel Weiss : Drumset, Bauron
etc.
Donald Eaton : Bata, Djembe,
Bongo etc.
Yousi f Sheronick : Tar,
Riq, Darabuka, Bendir, Bodhran, Dumbek etc.
Mario Monaco
Artist Bios
Conclusion:
World Percussion Ensemble will not be possible without your generous support and
grant. We have an excellent group of very talented professional musicians. They
have all put in their very best to make this ensemble a unique, fulfilling, and
enriching musical experience for every listener. As the proposal entails, there
has been a lot of research done on this project to bring together the finest
music of the world. Music that produces joy and sadness, and is at the same time
therapeutic and recreational in nature. In other words, music that has a huge
impact on society. The producer of this ensemble is Chhandayan Inc.—a non-profit
organization registered under New York State. It has also been granted 501(c)(3)
status by IRS, which implies that any donation made towards Chhandayan Inc. is
100% tax deductible. It has been conducting its activities out of New York City
since April 1998 and its 3 initial directors are Mr. Samir Chatterjee, Mrs.
Daisy Paradis and Mr. Debu Nayak. Its purpose is to promote and preserve the
rich heritage of Indian music and music from all over the world in New York, in
particular and the United Sates, in general. In this process it also intends to
find and eventually solidify its connection to World Music. Please help us
spread the joy of music all around us with your financial support.
Requirements:
Set up :-
1. A 4 feet/4feet and 2 feet high platform/raiser at the center of the stage
covered with a decent and clean area rug
2. 7 chairs –steady with no wheels and handle
3. 8 adjustable music stands with stand lights
4. 5 tables covers with cloths
Sound :-
1. 14 microphones on boom stands (with arms) mostly Shure SM 57 one SM 58. Out
of these we have a special requirement of one vocal microphone with very high
gain.
2. Separate reverb and delay option
3. 8 monitors with separate mix option
Visual :-
1. Slide projector and appropriate screen.
Light : -
2. Color options
3. Spots
Documentation:-
1. Copy of Professional quality Video Photography
2. Copy of Professional quality Audio recording
3. Copies of Professional quality Still photography –both Color and Black& White
4. Copies of printed and published material
Green Room :-
1. Water
2. Tea/coffee
3. Light snacks
Sound needs to be set up and tuned in before musicians come to the auditorium.
Concept:
Some of the oldest traditions of our music, such as Indian
music, were created at a time when we had a better connection and relationship
with Nature. We lived and grew together in harmony nourishing each other as an
integral part of the Creation. Music came as a spontaneous outpour in response
to the natural phenomenon manifested into human emotions. That is how and why
musical frequencies had an inevitable correspondence to the surrounding
environment. It came from Nature as a source of inspiration and influenced its
listeners who are not only from the animal world but also from every other
aspect of the universe. Such is the power of music, if presented in its real
essence.
In the Indian tradition, Ragas, which may inadequately be described as melodic
modes, were created and meant to be performed at particular times of the day or
year. This was because of the correspondence of the frequencies embodied in
those melodies with relevant conditions of Nature. Thus the reciprocity of cause
and effect was enhanced.
In the present-day situation, when we have somehow lost that communion with
Nature, many of those concepts may have lost their proper significance in our
daily hectic lifestyle and we often tend to disrespect and discard what we
cannot easily comprehend. We force ourselves into frenzy when Nature is about to
rest. We are tired when Nature is ready with freshness.
Dawn to Dusk reminds us of this Natural phenomenon of changing energy not only
in our environment but also in human behavior.
Description:
Dawn to Dusk is a depiction of the
spectacular changes in Nature and its influence on human behavior through the
course of the day. These passages are portrayed through music coming from varied
Indian traditions of classical, folk and others and combined with a touch of
modern/new age music. It is further enhanced in its realization by additional
digital audio and visual effects. Music, almost a complete language in itself,
is linked through narration in English with relevant excerpts from original
texts in Indian languages.
The ensemble comprises:
Pt. Samir Chatterjee – Tabla and other Indian percussions
Pt. Ramesh Mishra – Sarengi
Mr. Steve Gorn – Bansuri
Ms. Allyn Miner – Sitar
Mr. Ned Rothenberg / Rudresh Mahanthappa– Saxophone
Mr. Miles Okazaki – Guitar Synth
Mr. Frank Colon – Western Drums & Percussion
Smt. Sanghamitra Chatterjee - Vocal
Mr. Rajkumar Rizvi / Suman Ghosh - Vocal
Smt. Gargi Mukherjee – narration
Dibyarka Chatterjee – Technical crew
The picture below is from a performance in Chicago, IL
Technical requirements:
- Two risers/platforms 1 ½ to 2 feet high. One needs to be 12’/4’ and another will be 5’/4’. Both need be covered with black cloth. Slight cushion on the 12’/4 platform will be nice.
- Three chairs (black) without hand-rest.
- 10 music stands (black) with stand lights. Please keep a provision open to take off some of the boards off from the stand and place them on the riser for musicians in squatting position.
- 12 microphones – 2 Shure Beta 87A, for singers, 5 Shure SM 58 for narrator, Saxophone, flute and two harmoniums, 5 Shure SM 57 for Tabla, Sarangi, Sitar and western percussion. There needs to be provision for equalization and reverberation.
- 7 monitors with provision for individual mix.
- Spot lights on musicians with control and color filter
- Equipments for slide projection. Screen should be hung behind the platforms.
- Flowery decoration of the stage, creating a garden. It will be nice if microphones, stands and cable can be hidden.
