Live at Zazen with Jonathan Voyer

This past Saturday, I performed with santoor player Jonathan Voyer, as part of the Zazen Live series. My aim with this series is to promote Indian classical music in an intimate setting. All performances are acoustic.

Jonathan Voyer is a disciple of santoor maestro, Pandit Satish Vyas. We opened with Raag Dhani - first an alap, then a gat jhaptaal (10-beat cycle), followed by a gat in drut teentaal (16-beat cycle).

After a short intermission (ie: samosa break), we continued with Raag Yaman - alap, gat in rupaktaal (7-beat cycle), and ending with a gats in madhya and drut teentaal.

I was really happy with the audience turnout for this concert - we were completely sold out. As always, the audience was really attentive. Jonathan performed many interesting (and challenging) rhythmic variations, with much depth and nuance. Looking forward to future performances together!

A big thanks to Jennifer at Zazen, for her continued support of Indian classical music and dance.

Performance with Suns of Arqa

This past weekend, I was invited to perform with the legendary group from the UK, Suns of Arqa. Led by Wadada, their music combines influences from Indian classical music, dub/reggae, and electronica. The concert took place at the Bobards in Montreal, as part of the Festival Musique Multi-Montreal. Apparently, the group hasn't played in a venue this small in about 20 years. So, let's just say that the place was packed!

Local DJ, Guapo put together an excellent roster of musicians for the show:

SUNS OF ARQA

Wadada : sitar, citern, guitar, harmonica

Angel-Eye : vocals

Guapo : Guitar, electronic dub FX

Geeta Sparkle : vocals

RHYTHM SECTION

Jahsun : drumset

Bass One: bass

RAGA SECTION

Aditya Verma : sarod

Shawn Mativetsky : tabla

VJ : Cousin Chang

We performed a mix of old and new tunes from the Suns of Arqa repertoire. I also accompanied Wadada on sitar, and Aditya on sarod for a couple of traditionally-inspired pieces.

Suns of Arqa with Aditya Verma on sarod.

Bandleader, Wadada on sitar.

I was especially impressed and inspired by Jahsun and Bass One ... really great rhythm section. Very creative, and tight! This was definitely a different kind of gig for me, as I haven't played anything remotely like this since perhaps Ramasutra back in 1999-2001. While trying to find a website for Ramasutra, I came across this video. Here it is, for old-time's sake:

On a completely separate note, in the category of better late than never, here are some photos from my tabla workshop at the University of Western Ontario that I gave at the end of February. Thanks to Prof. Jill Ball for these!

Enthusiastically explaining something related to playing the dahina.

With composer, Paul Frehner.

Notice my great drawing of India on the blackboard? :)

People really love tabla at UWO!

Tabla on 'Des kiwis et des hommes'

Last week, I was invited to be a guest on Des Kiwis et des Hommes, a morning talk show on Radio Canada's television network (the French division of the CBC). The show is broadcast live from Montreal's Jean-Talon market from 9am to 10:30am on weekdays during spring/summer.

We spoke about tabla and Indian culture, and I also got to play a little bit.

The show is now available online (click here). To see the tabla segment, skip to the 6th chapter. I am not sure if this will play outside of Canada, due to copyright, licensing, etc...

Many thanks to the hosts, Francis Reddy and Boucar Diouf, and the amazing crew. A lot goes on behind the scenes for a live show like this, and everything was running like a well-oiled machine!

Upcoming Tabla Events in Montreal

Wow! There are many tabla-related performances coming up in the next few weeks. Here's a quick summary for those of you in the Montreal area.

On Saturday, April 17, I have been invited to perform with the Suns of Arqa, the legendary pioneers of dub, combining influences from Indian classical music, reggae, and electronica. Sarod maestro Aditya Verma will also be performing. Here is a recent article about the event from the Montreal Mirror. April 17 at 10pm, Suns of Arqa, presented by the Festival Musique Multi-Montreal, taking place at the Bobards, 4328 Saint-Laurent.

Also taking place earlier the same day, at 8pm, tabla player Anurada Pal will present her all-women Indian percussion show, Stree Shakti at the Outremont Theatre on Bernard.

On Friday, April 23, I will be accompanying talented santoor player, Jonathan Voyer, as part of the Zazen Live series. He is a disciple of the great Pt. Satish Vyas. Zazen live celebrates the richness of Indian classical music, presented without amplification in a beautiful acoustic space. The concert starts at 8pm at Zazen, 209 St-Paul West, 3rd floor, in Old Montreal. Phone 514-287-1772 to make your reservations. Space is limited!

And last, but definitely not least, on May 15, my newly formed music school, Sangeet Kala Kendra in collaboration with the Kabir Cultural Centre, will be presenting Soul of Ganges, featuring performances by special guests Pandit Kushal Das (sitar) and Pandit Kumar Bose (tabla). The evening will open with a kathak dance recital by Sudeshna Maulik, accompanied by myself on tabla and Raja Bhattacharya on sarod.

Soul of Ganges

Saturday, May 15 at 7:30pm

Maison de la culture Frontenac

2550, rue Ontario Est

This will be a very special performance. Not to be missed! Tickets can also be purchased online here: