INKtalks

Q&A with Vasundhara Das: The sufi calling…

May 2nd, 2013 1 Comment

                                   ”It has been like a calling that cannot be explained.”

Singer-songwriter extraordinaire Vasundhara Das, who enthralled audiences at the INK Conference 2012 with her soulful music, is out with her new album. The Shah Hussain Project Vol. 1, first previewed at INK2012, breathes new life into the poetry of the 16th century Sufi poet Shah Hussain. Vasundhara shares her excitement and inspirations for the album in this exclusive interview for the INK Blog.

Vasundhara Das, photo by Nimish Jain

What attracted you to Sufi poetry, and particularly to Shah Hussain?

Sufi Poetry has always attracted me. It has been like a calling that cannot be explained. And being a student of Hindustani classical music, Sufi poetry always reached out to me when I listened to greats like Abida Parveen and Nusrat Saab.

Sufism and Sufi poetry talk about love for the beloved, being open and accepting inside out, being pure in thought and action and the poetry of Shah Hussain is no different. His poetic metaphors, rhythmic sensibilities and straightforward thought process are what drew me to his work. He was a social commentator of his time and interestingly, what he wrote five hundred years ago applies to us, in the present, in the 21st century.

 

 

 

You have said this project was significant in both your professional journey and personal journey in music. How is that?

My journey in music began in a home that took music very seriously. Everyone at home and in the extended family takes pride in putting kids into music lessons with the sole intention of enjoying this amazing gift for oneself first.

But for me, I wanted to live off of music. I wanted it to be my career and I was clear about that from a very young age. So as I got into music before getting into the movie music industry, I was influenced in a big way by world music, crossing genres and so on, but was always also into Hindustani classical music too. And then, my first commercial release – AR Rahman’s Shakalaka Baby and a host of hits to follow! I could not imagine that my dream for a career in music would come true, just like that. But along side the hits, I’ve always wanted to challenge myself more and that has always happened outside the world of film music because of what we all have come to know as the film ‘typecast’.

To cut to the chase, this is an extremely significant project in my professional journey because it is my first independent release as a music composer, singer and songwriter which will cross boundaries and appeal to many demographics of people. And in my personal journey too it is extremely significant because of the way I have pushed myself with the help of Roberto to come up with music I never thought I was capable of creating.

 ”And in my personal journey too it is extremely significant because of the way I have pushed myself with the help of Roberto to come up with music I never thought I was capable of creating.”

What was it like collaborating with Mir Mutkhtiyar Ali? How did that happen?

Mir Mukhtiyar Ali, Photo by Nimish Jain

I first saw Mir Mukhtiyar Ali on a documentary called Had Anhad, part of the Kabir Project. He subsequently performed in Bangalore and I met him after his concert. His performance had moved me so much and I wanted to tell him that. We met at my studio the next day and spent the day talking about life, music and sufi poetry. By the end of the day it was very evident that we both wanted to collaborate and create music based on the poetry of Shah Hussain.

That’s how the Shah Hussain Project began.
He is an absolute joy to work with. The fact that he comes into a situation with an open mind, willing to step out of his comfort zone and wanting to try new things is really amazing. Through this process, real relationships have been forged with real musical chemistry between some amazingly talented musicians. We truly met each other half way through this process.

You have said that The Shah Hussain Project is a lot more than just music. What is the idea behind it?

I see The Shah Hussain Project as a chain of inspiration. We were inspired by Shah Hussain’s poetry and that led us to be the second link in the chain and create the music. The poetry and the music has inspired the third link in the chain, Shilo Shiv Suleman, who created the beautiful artwork. And we hope this continues onward with others who want to be part of a process like this.

Tell us about the ‘live’ element of this album.

The intent here has been to create music which, just like the poetry, is from the past, in the present, going into the future. And that has been the mandate for the treatment of the sound. The idea is to take the music out on tour to be performed live in front of audiences in India as well as outside. So the ‘live’ element of this project has been of utmost importance. In terms of the production, it sounds like a live band playing and the project has very consciously not been over produced. The great dynamics heard from the musicians has come about because everyone has played all the songs completely and no shortcuts have been used. The decision to work with guitars, keyboards and a drum kit is a deliberate one.

Vasundhara Das performing at INK2012, photo by Varsha Yeshwant Kumar

Tell us something about The Active Studio, and what to expect with Shah Hussain Project Vol 2.?

The Shah Hussain Project is the first work of music coming out of The Active Studio, where the entire project was conceptualized and recorded. The seeds of this were sown almost a decade ago when the studio came into existence. During this time, Roberto Narain and me, partners at The Active Studio, have been continuously investing to have the right equipment, software and people to see their vision through. Our vision for the studio was that it be our musical playground, a place where we are able to make our musical dreams a reality. And at The Active Studio, The Shah Hussain project marks the beginning of many more projects to come. The Shah Hussain Project Volume 2 is currently under production and the music is as exciting to us as volume 1.

Where can we get the album? How can your fans get involved?

Our album is available on iTunes, Amazon, and Nokia Music Store, and soon will be on Flyte store. It is available for streaming on mobiles at dhingana.com.
Physical CDs featuring some amazing artwork by Shilo Shiv Suleman will be available for sale at all SHP concert venues. To begin with, we would be delighted if fans can ‘Like’ The Shah Hussain Project facebook page.
Go to any of the above mentioned online stores and buy the album., and come to our concert when we are performing in their city.

                                                                 

Can you leave us with a few lines of Shah Hussain’s poetry that you love, and translate for us what they mean?

Mera Sona Sajan; Mera sona sajan ghar aaya hai ni; Ral mil diyo mubaarkaan; Jis sajan noon main dhoondan chaliya; Woh sajan main paaya hai ni; Rehdaa taa aangan bhayaa suhaana; Matthe noor suhaaya hai ni; Mera sona sajan ghar aaya hai ni; Kahe Hussain fakeer namaana; Murshid dost milaya hai ni;Mera sona sajan ghar aaya hai ni

Which translates into:

My beautiful lover has come home; Come and congratulate me, all of you; My beautiful lover has come home; The lover I have been seeking; Is the one I have found at last; My courtyard looks more beautiful now; The glow on my face is bright; Says Hussain the wise; It is my teacher who has led me to my lover; My beautiful lover has come home. 

The Shah Hussain Project artwork by Shilo Shiv Suleman

Interviewed by: Vaibhav Mathur , INK staff

Pictures by: Nimish Jain

Heena Patel from Talavya writes about “Getting INKed”

Jul 3rd, 2012 Leave a comment

When we received the invitation to speak /perform at the INK conference 2011 (formerly TEDIndia), there was no question about accepting.  Several of us had been following both INK and TED for some time now and we were more than happy to be apart of the experience.

However, after accepting the invitation, we were faced with a dilemma.  What would we perform? For those not familiar with the INK and TED formats, each speaker is given a maximum of 18 minutes. 18 minutes to share your ideas, your work. Unlike most bands, Talavya does not have individual songs, we perform a group tabla composition which is about an hour in playing length without any breaks or speaking.

Talavya performing at the INK conference 2011 in Jaipur. From L to R: Kaumil Shah, Rahul Shrimali, Rushi Vakil, Sahil Patel and Heena Patel. Photo credit : Varsha Yeshwant Kumar

So what would we perform?

The obvious answer would be one segment of Tabla Ecstasy (the composition we currently perform). After all, Tabla Ecstasy is divided into four parts based on speed and each segment is between 7 to 18 minutes in length. It would be easy to speak for a minute or two and then perform a section of the composition. However, this would not reflect one of the primary purposes of Talavya – to showcase the depth and breadth of classical tabla playing. Tabla Ecstasy and all of the previous works of Talavya follow the format of a classical tabla solo performance. Playing one segment would only highlight one aspect of the instrument as each section is comprised of one or two types of tabla compositions.

It was not as if this was the first time we would be performing something less than the entire composition, but just minimal time allocation for an Indian classical music performance is largely unheard of. Thankfully, the INK team were agreeable to give us the maximum time possible of 18 minutes, but this still presented a challenge. The shortest length we’ve played was 25 minutes – a time length that left little room for explanations, but included the more serious and light-hearted aspects of the composition. Going back to the composition with scissors was not an option as it could not be furthered shortened while keeping its essence intact. Our work had to be reframed.

But how would this be done?

The beauty of Talavya and the work we perform is that our compositions are living compositions, in that, they are continually modified. Our composer and guru, Pandit Divyang Vakil (fondly known as “Guruji”), is always making changes to what is known as Tabla Ecstasy based on our inputs, improvements in playing, etc. A few months ago prior to the INK invitation, Guruji had created a new experimental piece for Talavya that brought together world rhythm patterns and Indian classical rhythms.This work was compositionally presented in a different manner than previous works and provided an ideal framework for an INK talk. Using the base compositions (ie. specific kaidas, relas,) of Tabla Ecstasy, Guruji recomposed Tabla Ecstasy to 14 minutes, leaving a couple of minutes to share the idea behind the work (given that it is the INK conference) and technical explanation (which we feel is integral to a Talavya performance). Ultimately, the performance segment incorporated three segments of Tabla Ecstasy (slow, medium and very fast tempo) and multiple types of compositions. Our objective was achieved – to showcase the breadth and depth of classical tabla and that too within the INK time limit, which you must believe us when we say is no small thing from the perspective of an Indian classical musician.

By Heena Patel 

Talavya

Tabla Ecstasy Album Cover

Follow Talavya as they journey around the world sharing the art of tabla by joining their facebook page at www.facebook.com/talavyatabla and /or signing up on their mailing list at talavya.fanbridge.com.
Talavya is soon releasing their album Tabla Ecstasy that comes with free downloads and more.

 

 

Joey Ellis: 4 INK (Pemuteran Abstract)

Mar 21st, 2012 Leave a comment
If I had to convince someone why the sea is a place to save I might have to turn to Jules Verne to say it for me… “On the surface, they can still exercise their iniquitous laws, fight, devour each other, and indulge in all their earthly horrors. But thirty feet below the (sea’s) surface, their power ceases, their influence fades, and their dominion vanishes. Ah, monsieur, to live in the bosom of the sea! …. There I recognize no master! There I am free!”
This is probably somewhat what brought me to Pemuteran, for some reason that I don’t even fully know, the sea is just me. The office to the left was mine for the month. I came here to work at a community coral restoration project that uses a mineral accretion process to turn metal into limestone which in return evolves into a living coral reef. Basically because once coral is introduced into the equation by attachment it begins to grow five times faster and the threshold of temperature it can withstand is increased enough to protect it against bleaching.
It sounds quite novel, but in fact its a science thats been around for about 30 years. There’s lot’s of people doing it, famous designers like Tom Dixon and other TED Fellows such as Colleen Flanigan, even scientists in Mozambique are in on it. One of the reasons why I’m drawn to it is because its a very active way to get people physically involved in protecting the ocean. My own work has this personal motto it constantly says to itself, “impossible by one, attainable by many”. I try to cultivate a collectives creativity, combine it with my own and turn it into something new.
However it’s not just the community outreach that intrigues me, you get to be in some way an alchemist that performs seeable magic. For a material junkie like myself, it’s a dream worth living.
The place I was at ran this quite ingenious “Support a Baby Coral” program where they get people to donate 35 euros for a name that they make out of metal and turn into tiny biorocks. They take pictures and then a year after send another when it’s grown and transformed. We would get a sponsors name every couples days and attach it.
I came as part of the kungfu4coral project I’m working on right now. It’s a project based on my belief that the traditional methods of environmental activism are dated and what needs to happen is a retooling of how environmentalists reach out to the public. From PC to iPhone, from Email to Facebook, from QQ to Weibo, we have constructed a new spectrum of communication tools. We use social media to engineer a new form of self but how do we use it to construct a new definition of environmentalism? How can we relate the ever-growing digital world to the ever-shrinking real world?
From the beginning of my arrival I searched for the material that my culminating sculpture would be made out of. The ones in the past were made of rebar and had to be to welded together. However since I’m a terrible welder and terrible perfectionist this time it just wouldn’t do.
Needing to find something that was common, something that people had and might possibly donate I chose bikes. A totally cliche form for sculpture, but it’s cliche probably for a reason. I bought one to use as an example and then sought out locals, explaining the process while asking for old bicycles. Soon after I had gotten in total 5 bikes, three were from local kids, mine and one other from a nearby home-stay.
There was one problem with the bikes in that there were parts that weren’t metal, so if hooked up they wouldn’t mineral accrete. I decided that I would wrap them in metal and have the limestone envelope it in the end.
I told the guys that here is a puzzle. How do we construct it without electricity? How do we make it with the least amount of bought metal? How can we make the process dictate the design? I came up with the idea of making it out of pipes and using a metal thread maker to make parts connectable and screw into each other. We would probably have to do some welding but it wouldn’t have to be done on site. In the end what it became was beyond my expectation and what it becomes will be far beyond my imagination.
What I think I learned at INK is something similar to what my idol Jacques Cousteau once said “When one man, for whatever reason, has an opportunity to lead an extraordinary life, he has no right to keep it to himself.” That in my own understanding means all of us. So to finish my piece I want to share it with anyone that wants a part of it. It’s nothing grand, compared to my other work that ends up in museums this looks more likely to end up in a dump. But it’s an experiment to make the work and process I do better.
So I have around 80 spots on the structure to attach a name of anyone that wants to donate 35 dollars. Of which will go towards the cost of me buying the anode, cathode and power converters. Basically your name would be made out of wire and over the years will become part of the structure. Coral will grow on it and it will slowly disappear and evolve into a reef. I made one for INK already so that next year at the conference I can show others the transformation.
I thrive off the byproduct of learning about your own culture by participating within another. It can be as simple as the way we perceive materials or as complex to the way we comprehend the arts. However it is that dialogue, the transitional pull, that I feel can provide new insight into our own intimate history and contribution. While as in the past I have felt I controlled the variables of my art too much this time I feel I succeeded in creating something that wasn’t just mine. The organization I was at flourished because people gave them the trust they needed. Yes the locals destroyed most of their environment and that bringing it back to its original glory might never happen but I feel it doesn’t mean they have lost their chance to try.
By Joey Ellis, INK2011 Attendee
http://www.joeyfosterellis.com/
http://kungfu4coral.com/
If you are interested in sponsoring a coral name (each name costs $35 USD), please click here.

Talking to Itay Talgam

Mar 6th, 2012 Leave a comment

I’ve always wanted to be a leader. I think most people would agree. That word has an appealing zing to it. Nina Gannes: Leader of…it almost doesn’t matter what comes next. Almost no noun is as equally coveted in the English language.

Which is why, at some point over the course of your life, I’m sure you’ve asked yourself the question: “How do I become a better leader?” Are you nodding your head, yes? Good. Once you’ve realized that you really don’t know where to start, the follow-up question is “Who the heck can tell me what I need to know?”

In comes INK2011 Speaker Itay Talgam. Talgam uses the orchestra—yes, the classical music kind of orchestra—as a metaphor for business organizational leadership. Let me explain a little.

The only way an orchestra will sound good is if every member is attuned to a clear plan (i.e., the musical score) and the conductor’s vision to interpret that plan. It’s the conductor’s responsibility to connect the musician’s disparate musical statements to create a relevant flow of musical expression. And because each time the orchestra plays a piece the notes are uniquely expressed, the conductor must be always open to changing his perspectives and preconceptions about the directional flow the music might take. In essence, Talgam sees the job of the conductor as creating one storyline of an overarching interpretation of the music from the endless number of small choices the musicians are making each second about Mozart. Sounds a lot like shaping the complexities of business, don’t you think?

Talgam agrees with you exactly. And so by watching videos of expert conductors who are geniuses at crafting musical storylines, we can take tips on how to manage our businesses better. Every conductor has established a leadership style that clearly defines the boundaries of the expected relationship between conductor and orchestra. They could be leading from within—or leading from without. The conductor establishes rules and expectations about the type of control he will assume, and within those guidelines he creates space for the musicians to listen and react to one another. The genius of the best conductors is that they don’t assume total control. By knowing when to step in—and when to step back—they create opportunities for the musicians to lead and interact with one another to create music that is more than the sum of its parts.

In essence, this is exactly the point of great leadership—to enable ideas to blossom. So to become a leader yourself, establish a culture of interactive dialogue, enable exponential collaboration to occur daily, make a coherent storyline of it all, and then get yourself season tickets to the New York Philharmonic.

By Nina Gannes, INK Staff

March  6, 2012

To watch Itay Talgam’s INKtalk, click here, or see below.

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