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CHICAGO
Eye on India Festival (EIF) presented Carnatic percussion maestro and Grammy award winner Vikku Vinayakram, his son Selva Ganesh and grandson Swaminathan, along with Ganesh’s new Chennai-based fusion band Arka, to Chicago audiences at two very different settings over a single weekend. Vikku is perhaps India’s premier player of the ghatam, an earthen drum, and his two offspring are experts on the kanjira or Indian tambourine. Vikku, who began his career at age 13, joined legendary fusion group Shakti in the early 1970s to play along with John McLaughlin and Zakir Hussain.
Their concert at co-host Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago in Lemont, Illinois, June 20, began with a demonstration of their virtuosity in classical percussion, punctuated by exhilarating vocalized rhythmic beats or konnakol (Tamil equivalent of bols on Hindustani tabla), and was followed by raga-inspired numbers from Arka and Indo-jazz saxophonist George Brooks from Berkeley. At co-host Martyrs pub, before an American audience comprising more non-Desis, their order of presentation was reversed, and was followed by local classical guitarist Fareed Haque and his own Chicago band. A grand ensemble of improvisation concluded the program at both venues.
The six-man Arka (“Sun”) band comprises playback singer and chartbuster Karthik, flutist Ravichandra Kulur, guitarists Santosh Chandra and on the bass Mishko M’ba, and drummer Gino Banks. Founder Ganesh’s kanjira had already made its mark as a member of the Remember Shakti ensemble. Released at the end of May, their album titled “And a Half” contains eight compositions with odd rhythmic scales ranging from one-and-a-half to seven-and-a-half. Beyond the preponderant role of percussion, the songs betray a unique rhythmic foundation recognizably derived from the Carnatic inspiration. The numbers rendered at both venues were all from “And a Half.”
Opening with the Vedic prayer of title song “Arka” in rag Bageshree, Karthik went on to other numbers, such as the romantic “Chain kho diya hai?” (rhythm with 4 ½ time signature), Mumbai lyricist Manoj Yadav’s “Paramaatma” in rag Jog, and “Ça va bien” (French) in Puriya Dhanashri. At Martyrs, Selva Ganesh again demonstrated in funny ‘narrative-style’ the mridangam konnakol with his son Swaminathan and father Vikku, before declaring, especially on this Father’s Day, “I am so proud to be born in such a family.”
At Martyrs, Fareed Haque first played solo: Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” 18th C. Italian guitarist Mauro Giuliani’s “La Rose” with improvisation, and Isaac Albeniz’s “Asturias” with its distinct Spanish flavor. Then, accompanied by Indian percussionists Ganesh and Swaminathan and his own drummer Greg Fundis, he rendered “Paco’s Blues” dedicated to Paco de Lucia. The rest of Haque’s band, Alex Austin on bass, drummer Greg Fundis and Kevin Kozol on keyboards, along with saxophonist Brooks, then joined them onstage.
Without the opportunity to rehearse together, Haque selected John Coltrane’s “Naima,” followed by Pat Martino’s “Lime Games,” which culminated in an exhilarating percussion ensemble, and Haque’s “That Seven Thing.” Vocalist Karthik, flutist Ravi and Vikku also pitched in for the final ensemble, namely two more numbers by Haque, “Trance Hypothesis and “In the Punjab.” “What an honor to work with Vikku-ji!” blown-away Fareed exclaimed to Desi Talk.
The artistes were individually honored in traditional style with shawls by members of the temple committee. By co-hosting this joyful meeting of Chennai and Chicago at these two contrasting venues, Eye on India has underlined the manner in which the “Sun” (arka) of classical Carnatic rhythm, still embodied by Vikku, is infusing contemporary music, even in America.
The post Arka Infuses Chicago’s Music Scene With Carnatic Rhythms appeared first on News India Times.
