Recording in Varanasi.

A place not for the faint hearted, especially in June. I managed to time my visit with a heat wave that was scorching the northern interior regions of India. Days of 47 degree (Celsius) were getting hard to bear, and the nights were not really a big relief, still quite a sweaty experience.

A place of many colors and many religions, also many cows and many rickshaws. Varanasi is situated on the Ganges river and is said to be India’s holiest and one of the worlds oldest cities. The old town is a place full of holly men, cows, burning bodies, beggars, musicians and traders all willing to sell you something….you don’t need. It was through talking to one of these traders that I managed to setup a meeting with a Flute player by the name of Disip Shankar. After explaining my Gavri music project to him, he was happy for me to record a short performance for a modest fee.
Our recording location ended up being too noisy, so after a false start we relocated to my hotel room. A quieter location except for the mooing cow which strangely was in the same key as the music being recorded. The piece of music was a morning raag for flute, played with the backing of an electric Tambura. Recorded to DAT (digital audio tape) via a stereo mic, it really captured the atmosphere of the moment, a beautiful piece of music, played from the heart.

After a brief chat and exchange of contact details we parted ways, both enriched by the experience. I hope to shine a light on Disip’s performance at some stage in the future through a release on IC.Zed Records………..stay tuned !

Improvisations in Mumbai.

 What a treat ! Invited to Indira’s place for dinner and and a evening of live music. I was asked to bring my recording gear to capture the event. Slowly the room was filling up with family and friends / musicians. After a drink and a chat, we all found our places to perform, and in my case to record the session. I could sense a kind of excitement in the room for the music we were about to hear. The instruments in play were, Flute, Sarod, Violin, Tabla, Harmonium & Vocals by Indira, and Spanish guitars by Paul George & Carey O’Sullivan of Australian band Tijuana Cartel. Also not forgetting the electronic Tambura, set to a particular key and creating the drone for all to play to……
It was a very interesting and improvisational session for all of us, the recording process was much the same. With limited resources both Carey and I at times resorted to being human mic stands, moving mic's around from instrument to instrument for different solos and to feature the diverse performances. We weren't really setup to record the event properly, it was more the spirit of the evening we were trying to capture.

Everyone had there moment in the spotlight including Paul and Carey who performed an original song for everyone. It was a very spirited and heartfelt piece of music that was very much appreciated by everyone. After the music session you could really feel the joy in the air, a feeling of celebration. Then came a wonderful home cooked meal, my first for over a month........oh...yea!

It's not often you find yourself in a room with people who posses such talents. This experience was definitely one of the highlights of my trip to India, and judging by the response, a pleasure for everyone involved that night.