nada ananda // simon thacker and the nava rasa ensemble
Trying to describe this album is difficult; simply calling it east meets west is not only an understatement but doesn’t do it justice! Sanskrit for the Joy is Sound; Nada Ananda is an eclectic collection of diverse worlds and cultures cross fertilised in an elegant helix of sounds.
This album of delicate compositions is of two halves and kicking things off is the ‘Nada Ananda, concerto for guitar and chamber ensemble’. It is the work of Indian composer Shirish Korde. This virtuoso takes Hindustani classical music, western contemporary sounds that exploring not only the potential of the classical guitar but also concepts of time, rhythm, ornamentation and melody that are influenced by Indian classical music.
The second half titled ‘The Birth Of Naciketas’ – inspired by a story from the ancient Hindu scripture, the Upanishad. This is the virtuoso of Manchester-born, Nigel Osbourne consists of six dexterously orchestrated tracks based on the ten thaats (scale patterns) of Indian classical music with coincide with the times of the day. These make up the 24 hour cycle. The thaats have been related to ragas (melodies) in both northern and southern Indian classical styles.
This virtuoso isn’t just a superficial piece of music but more so integrating thousands of year’s old philosophy with musical theory and performance to paint a tantalising picture of a story and draw out the feelings associated with it through sound … an immense display of skill, talent and thought from both musicians and composer.
On Nada Ananda you will hear British contemporary, western classical blending seamlessly with ancient Indian classical music all brought together by a classical guitarist, Simon Thacker. Thacker brings together music and concepts from different parts of the world and ensembles them as a riveting nine-piece arrangement consisting of and tabla drums, one of Scotland’s leading string quartets, a Scottish-based Brazilian jazz bassist and a cross-genre percussionist.
This album is beautiful; it really has the ability to draw out particular emotions when you listen to it. Hats off to the musicians who have shown a stunning display of creativity and skill with their respective instruments.
Definitely worth a buy! amazon.co.uk // simon thacker
Svara-Kanti
Guitarist Simon Thacker‘s new Indian/Western group, Svara-Kanti builds on the achievements of the acclaimed Nava Rasa Ensemble. It combines music from diverse ancient Indian traditions, Indian classical music and Bollywood (from the Golden Age to AR Rahman) with contemporary Western classical and jazz sounds in a new large scale commission by great Indian composer Shirish Korde.
Also featuring the beautiful voice of my friend Japjit Kaur, celebrated Carnatic violinist Dr Jyotsna Srikanth and tabla master Sarvar Sabri, leading performers renowned for cross cultural exploration, Svara-Kanti combine their traditions to create new sounds and expression delivered with depth and virtuoso technique.
info taken from: www.simonthacker.com
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