Hindustani, Carnatic, Qawaali, Sufi, are some of the many forms of South Asian traditional, devotional, and folk music that have long been entrenched with the musical histories of the subcontinent. Existing for centuries, the techniques and styles associated with these genres have since their origins been disseminated across generations through traditional oral education.
These forms of music are commonly filled with religious story-telling, often passing on messages filled with unity, resilience, strength and love, communicated through vocals, hypnotic ragas and taalams. Music in the subcontinent is so deeply associated with community and communal gathering where audience members and musicians are joined in chanting, clapping and celebrating rhythmically, usually in syncopated fashion.
Over the centuries, these forms of music have seeped into contemporary music, both by artists from South Asian backgrounds, seeking to carry their story and message to a more global platform, such as Ganavya, Zakir Hussain, and Susheela Raman; or by artists from the global West, such, John McLaughlin (of the Mahavishnu Orchestra), fascinated by these sounds and stories. Other notable artists include Alice (Swamini Turiyasangitananda Coltrane), (Devadip) Carlos Santana, (Narada) Michael Walden, not to mention George Harrison and John Lennon.
There are many artists who have been inspired by their travels and experiences of South Asian traditional and folk music, however we wanted to use this write up to spotlight three contemporary artists from the diaspora pushing the boundaries of which spaces these musical traditions can occupy and be celebrated across.
Ganavya
Tamil Nadu-raised and New York-born critically acclaimed vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Ganavya fuses American and South Asian musical traditions after a spellbinding performance as part of Sault’s grossly anticipated debut live show last December.
Her deeply moving vocal acrobatics drawing on South Asian classical vocal traditions have since thrust her into the limelight with her first release since 2018, ‘like the sky I’ve been too quiet‘ (released on Shabaka Hutchings’s label Native Rebel Recordings) further cementing her place in the growing global landscape of master spiritual musical polymaths.
Sarathy Korwar
The US-born, Indian-raised, London-based drummer, percussionist, composer and bandleader Sarathy Korwar is at the forefront of the recent UK jazz resurgence. His work predominantly explores taking traditional South Asian persuasive techniques and reinterpreting them in a modern jazz landscape.
His brand of Indo jazz incorporates elements of hip-hop, dance music and other third-stream fusions. His 2019 release ‘More Arriving‘ is an essential listen with the drummer describing the album as a “protest record” recontextualising what the music of the Indian or South Asian diaspora should sound or look like.
Incorporating rappers from across India as well as spoken word poets Zia Ahmed (London) and Deepak Unnikrishnan (Abu Dhabi). Winning Best Independent Album at the AIM Awards in 2020.
Jaubi
It’s hard to place Jaubi’s sound within a specific genre label. The Lahore-based ‘jazz’ quartet consisting of Ali Riaz Baqar, Zohaib Hassan Khan, Qammar “Vicky” Abbas, and Kashif Ali Dhani gained wider international recognition following a collaboration on Ed “Tenderlonious” Cawthorne’s 2020 album Ragas from Lahore. Their 2021 release ‘Nafs at Peace‘ has since been heralded as a modern jazz/indo-jazz classic traversing a plethora of musical styles, namely spiritual jazz, funk, hindustani classical, ragas and ambient. Jaubi creates devotional music for your soul, manna for your ears.
Hey Jukebox!
Hear the playlist below or every Tuesday in May at 3.30pm in the Music Gallery.