Blind to Bounds

The early part of TD Mosaic Festival Day 7, the final day saw some beautiful performances by the budding artists and for those craving for a diverse cultural diversity with a good  deviation from the popular flavors.

Bharath Natyam Solo:

Shakthi Sanjana, performed Bharatnatyam dance on a devotional song of Lord Krishna. The song is about welcoming Lord Krishna to Mathura after he kills the demon Madhu with flowers.

Through her abhinaya (facial expressions) and mudras(hand symbols), she honors Lord Krishna applies sandal paste and musk thilaka on his forehead.

She interprets the meaning of every word of the song which describes Lord Krishna as he who killed demon Madhu, wrestlers Mushika and Chanoora and elephant Kuvalaya pita.

Shakthi Sanjana  is a trained classical Bharatnatyam dancer from India.  She is currently studying electrical engineering at University of Toronto and dance is her passion.

Peacock Dance by Sri Lankan Dance Group:

Rangara Performing Arts, performed “a beautiful peacock dance with their movements imitating a dancing peacocks who represent peace and harmony with the beauty and nature around them”, told Rashanthi Hettiarchi, the director of the school.

Santoor Recital:

Another treat to the ears was the Santoor performance by Shri Shreyas Sanat Ambikar, a disciple of Pandit Shiv Kiuamr Sharma the maestro who popularized Santoor internationally. Though an engineer by profession, for Shreyas it is his passion and love for the musical instrument that led him to be formally trained in Santoor. He has to his credit professional performances as far and wide as Australia, Singapore and Europe.

“One needs to be madly passionate for Santoor to be able to master it. Its 100 strings that need tuning, is an extremetly demanding task in terms of patience and endurance.”

100 strings remind me of the origins of the name SANTOOR. Santoor in the ancient Indian scriptures is mentioned as Shat-tantri Veena (Shat = hundred, tantric= strings, Veena=( implies) musical instrument).

Santoor like instruments date back thousands of years, and similar instruments are seen in other parts of the world.

In China it is called Yang Quin, in Central Asian countries Cimbale, in Iran & Iraq Santoor, in Greece Santoori, in Germany Hackbret, in Hungary Cymbalom and many European Countries and in America Hammer-Dulcimer.

However, the unique character of Kashmiri Santoor is that it has 100 strings, not one less nor more.

Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, who is the Guru of Shreyas is credited to introducing the Santoor to international forum. Before this, it was familiar only within the Kashmir valley, and was associated specifically to Sufiyana mausiqi.

Accompanying him on Tabla was an accomplished Toronto based Tabla player Dave Bansraj.

The beautiful raags of Hansdhwani ( the song of the swan) and Mishramaand were performed by the duo instantly transported the audience to the Kashmir Valley, with the images of Swans swimming in the Dal Lake.

Turbinator:

Turbinator was another extremely pleasant performance by the brother sister duo Gurpreet Singh Sareen and Soni Sareen . A very friendly, unassuming and humble duo, they enthralled the audience with the flair with which they presented a beautiful combination of East and west.

The siblings have music in their genes. Their great grand father Guru Gyan Singh was a recipient of Tansen Award, the highest music award in India. Since very early, they grew up singing Gurbani in the local and other Gurudwaras in US. Gurpreet, the turbinator is an accomplished Tabla palyer too, apart from being a guitarist. His was trained at home in Indian classical raags, while the outside influence made him interested in Jazz and Blues.

They discovered they could identify similar tunes between the Indian classical raags and the Jazz & Blues.  Hence decided to bring combine them together. As Gurpreet  sang the Blues or Jazz songs with Guitar, Soni responded with  Indian Classical in her beautiful voice in while playing a  Dilruba in what we call in Hindi a jugal bandi.

To Guroreet’s “To Love somebody” by Michael Buble,
Soni ethralled with “ Nirmohi harjaiya, ye kaisi teri khudgarzi…”

I was particularly enchanted by One love one heart by Bob Morley
and the Dil hai chhota sa chhoti si asha jugalbandi.

Before inquiring Soni, I was intrigued by the instrument she was playing.  Soni told she chose to play Dilruba because this was given to her by her Nani( maternal grandmother), who used to play it herself, when she sang  Gurbani in India.

Dilruba, which means one who ravishes the heart, is a musical instrument used in North India by the singers who perform kirtans in the Gurudwaras.

It is about 200 hundred years old instrument and thought to have originated around the time between Guru Hargovind and Guru Gobind Singh. It became popular with Sikh warriors as a light weight portable instrument used to play shabads, or the hymns ofGurbani kirtan, accompanied by the tabla.

The dilruba is played by sliding the fingers of the left hand up and down the strings along neck placing them between the frets while the right hand holds the bow sliding it across the main strings in order to produce notes of raag, a classical Indian musical score.

It was heartening to see, how the audiences, including families, and youngsters came to appreciate and applaud the two.

Soni aspires to complete her Masters in  Education to teach music, while Gurpreet is a budding  electronic engineer, however still does not know how will the fate take him , after a popular musical performance in the American Idol.

Gurpreet said he chose to sing western music, to be able to break the stereotype and to prove that a person of his appearance could also play Blues and Jazz.

He narrated an interesting incident in which during the American Idol season the day his name #Turbinator was trending, #OBL was also trending on twitter, and he received few offensive comments as a result.. But as he progressed higher in the program, he saw the same people transform to appreciation.

It was touching to see him mention the reference to unity beyond religions and regions during his interactive performance.

Personally, I was touched by their humility and simplicity, and wish Gurpreet and Soni rise to heights as they go forward in their life.

The sun had set, and so was the stage to bring to the TD Mosiac Festival audience.

Two star performers, Paul DesLauriers, an accomplished renowned Guitarist, singler and composer from Canada’s Blue elite, and Anwar Khurshid ,a renowned Sitar player who has contributed to the music of an Oscar winning film, The Life of Pi, with their mesmerizing communion of the Blues and the Indian Classical Music.

The stage was scintillating as the virtuosos adorned in beautiful Jamdani kurtas positioned themselves with their instruments—Paul DesLauriers on Guitar, Anwar Khurshid on Sitar, Sam Harrison on Drums and Greg Morency on Bass.

I could sense a pin drop silence in the audience, which was just a moment ago, abuzz with noise. The environ for a sensual musical performance was set. I noticed a few enthusiasts come close to sit on the grass, right in front of the stage. I too came as close as I could.

They were to perform from their  Album called Enter the Gate.

Though a music lover, but semiliterate in musical linguistics, I was surprised how, right from the start,  I could sense a deep understanding between Paul’s Guitar and Anwar’s Sitar, as if there was a love conversation going on between them. A similar quiet conversation could be visible between the eyes of Paul and Anwar, as their Guitar and Sitar conversed. And as if the accompanying Drum and Bass, were joining the conversation to applaud their love.

The visuals and the acoustics were mesmerising.

It felt as if I was transcending a step further each time they moved on from one composition to the other, getting more sense of their musical conversation. They played from Enter the Gate, to Midnight on Dorion, upto Silk Route, to a total of six compositions.

Short of words to describe the journey, I found the most appropriate explanation on Paul’s website:  “…it takes the listener on a sensual and exhilarating journey from Delhi to the Mississippi Delta.”

The time flew by swiftly, as they ended with the exhilarating Silk Route. I thought this wasn’t just enough, but then no amount of such therapeutic music is enough.

I was glad I had chosen to speak to them after the sensual experience. Now I was keen to discover how intense would be their feelings as creators, when it was overwhelming to me as a mere listener.

Speaking to them was yet another journey into tranquility.

There’s a  Paul Coelho quote: “We have to stop by and be humble enough to understand that there is something called mystery.”

It was touching to learn  how humble these hearts were, who had created this mesmerizing communion of East and West. I was floored by their simplicity and humility of all four of them, as we sat around a round table to dig out the details.
Paul explained how 8 years ago, he came to learn Sitar from Anwar, which began with a mutual respect, then turned into a stronger friendship and trust, after which coming together of  their musics was the only way forward.

I mentioned to them about my experience of how still being a semiliterate in music I could sense a perfect harmony between the two.

Paul smiled,: “You do not need to e a scholar of music to feel the harmony. It is the heart which senses it.”

They all recalled, how many people in the audience from different ethnic backgrounds actually get emotionally moved by it.

“Sam was crying, the first time we played in a concert.” reollects Paul.

I could not hold back my complements to their colorful sequined Kurtas , digressing from the traditional western formal black and white

 “It’s so liberating.” Paul was spontaneous.

“The communion of East and West music  is not as straightforward fusion as it seems. Of Blues Band playing with Sitar or Sitar playing with Blues Band etc. It is much deeper. It is a spontaneous flow of notes in response like….” Paul  explained.

“It is a symbiosis”, Sam prompted the right word.
( Symbiosis literally means a relationship of mutual benefit ).

Anwar explained how in an Indian Classical Music which has stringent boundaries and limits, which are a taboo to cross. And  moving from one’s own classical music to a fusion with others is like walking on a double edged sword, ”Having crossed your own boundaries, and now trespassing into someone else’s territory. But once you leave your comfort zone, the contentment you get from crossing the boundaries gives a sense of spiritual release.”

“The pleasure is not just in playing with each other, but also listening to each other play.” Said Paul.

Anwar interjected with naughty look: “Yes, you feel as if your music is gone, just gone, as he plays my notes, and steals them.”

 “It’s more of a borrowing and absorbing brother.”Paul smiled.

Do you guys feel possessive about your respective styles of music? I couldn’t help asking this question.

“Music is not about being possessive, it is devoid of ego, it is transcending to a level that is the demand of spirituality.”

“The feeling is to lose the self, and let the music take over.”

Greg explained how while making this album, it was live recorded, without any hundreds of retakes.
“We had no road map, we had no rule, we just sat in a friend’s basement to record it. The only rule was to play together. What is recorded on the CD is the first draft. And eachtime we perform, it is spontaneous in itself.” Greg and Sam elaborated.

Anwar explained how the Taans in Kirana Gharana, or Raag Bhopali are similar to the Blues music.

To the query of Canadian Pluralism and mutual respect for differences, Paul responds, “It’s not just the respect, it is the unconditional love and reverence for each other’s music, as ultimately there is a universality of music, like there is of humanity, despite being different ethnically.”

Do they feel, any difference in their lives after this experience?

“Almost everything has changed.” Said Paul

“It is extremely rewarding and most humbling.” Added Sam.

Anwar considered Canada his home, and these three as most trusted friends. “I love them so much that I will eat anything they offer me without question.”( referring to some of the culturally taboo foods for him).

Paul responds, “He is the kindest gentleman I have seen in the world, not just a Pakistani”

We ended the chat realizing how it just takes one good person to  break the stereotype against the whole community.

As I left the conversation, I felt that I had transcended  at a higher plane, realising how it is not just their music, but their souls that play in harmony with each other.

I know now I will relive this tranquilizing experience in my car, each time I will play the CD they gifted, in my car.

It was not for no reason, they had named the Album, “Enter the Gate”

A sample of their mesmerising  music here :