RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE Ragamala 2017 A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 - 6:30PM-10AM Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS AND SPECIAL EVENTS CITY OF CHICAGO, MAYOR RAHM EMANUEL
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. R AG AMAL A 20 1 7 : WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich Sept. 8–24, 2017 cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam festival Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam free Jugalbandi admission 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.” The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion ADITYA PRAKASH MYTHILI PRAKASH RAJNA SWAMINATHAN 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the AMBI SUBRAMANIAM SALAR NADER MAHESH KRISHNAMURTHY performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him ALAM KHAN world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- RISHI THAKKAR ANIS CHANDNANI Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi ANJALI RAY The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian ANUBRATA CHATTERJEE & ANINDO CHATTERJEE Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street L. SUBRAMANIAM KAVITA SUBRAMANIAM AMBI SUBRAMANIAM BINDU SUBRAMANIAM 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,” “Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,” “RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, JOANNE MAY ELMHURST SYMPHONY COLLEGE ORCHESTRA “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old PRIYA VENKATARAMAN SHIV SUBRAMANIAM Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us ROOPA PANESAR PRISHANNA THEVARAJAH NITIN MITTA to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.” Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- SATISH VYAS ANINDO CHATTERJEE Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us SHIV SUBRAMANIAM SRUTI SARATHY to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned.
One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the aid of the desperate mice.
Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength. RAGAMALA 2017: WELCOME SCHEDULE A CELEBRATION OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC + DANCE For the 5th year, spanning 15 hours and featuring dozens of performers, Ragamala offers a FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts jaw-dropping assortment of Indian classical music from some of its greatest and emerging Ragamala: A Celebration of Indian Classical Music + Dance practitioners. Ragamala functions as the perfect, immersive introduction to the classical music Chicago Cultural Center, Preston Bradley Hall FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 of India. Not only are both the music of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic) + Millennium Park, Great Lawn Chicago Cultural Center represented, but listeners will also get the rare chance to hear ragas performed at the time of 78 E. Washington Street, 3rd Floor Preston Bradley Hall, 3rd Floor day they were originally composed for—a facet of the tradition lost in the west. 6:30pm-10am 78 E Washington Street Presented in collaboration with Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts 6:30pm-6:30am The word “raga” has a Sanskrit origin, meaning "coloring or dyeing". The term also connotes an Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 emotional state referring to a "feeling, affection, desire, interest, joy or delight", particularly 6:30-7:30pm SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 related to passion, love, or sympathy for a subject or something. In the context of ancient Anjali Ray, vocals with Rishi Thakkar, tabla and Anis Chandnani, harmonium Yoga + Gong Meditation Indian music it is often devotional and used as a prayer. The term refers to a harmonious note, (Sunset at 7:12pm) Millennium Park, Great Lawn melody, formula, and building block of music available to a musician to create a heightened 201 E. Randolph Street sensory experience for the listener. 8am-10am The stories of “Ahimsa: Non-Violence” 7:50-8:50pm 2017 is a special year for India as they celebrate 70 years since they won freedom from the Priya Venkataraman & Troupe Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence British on August 15, 1947. To commemorate this milestone and the rich musical tapestry of Dance Choreography & Direction: Priya Venkataraman Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion India, DCASE has commissioned legendary Carnatic violinist, L. Subramaniam, to score and Dance Performance: Priya Venkataraman & Kalapriya Dance Academy 201 E. Randolph Street perform the Bharat Symphony with some of India’s greatest artists, Kavita Krishnamurti Subra- Music Composition & Vocals: Shiv Subramaniam 3pm maniam, Debashish Bhattacharya, Tanmoy Bose, and the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Violin: Sruti Sarathy World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May. Mridangam: Ravi Subramaniam Nattuvangam: Ahila Devi Vigneswaran In addition, DCASE has commissioned the Kalapriya Center for Indian Performing Arts to premiere two dance productions to address the increasing need for non-violence and compas- Rhythms of India sion in Chicago, our nation and globally. “Ahimsa” and “Sanctuaries” featuring bharatanatyam 9:10-10:25pm dancers, Priya Venkataraman and Mythili Prakash, in their respective performances, dramatize Anindo Chatterjee, tabla with Anubrata Chatterjee, tabla and Rohan Misra, sarangi these on-going global challenges and highlight Chicago’s commitment to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Chicago as we experience the stories, the cultures, that celebrate Chicago’s Sanctuaries status as a sanctuary city. 10:45-11:45pm Dance Choreography + Performance: Mythili Prakash Ragamala and World Music Festival Chicago 2017 reaffirm the city’s commitment to welcome Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash everyone. One Chicago serves as the visual depiction of Chicago’s value promise that everyone Nattuvangam: Kasi Aysola is welcome in this city no matter their race, religion, background or sexual orientation. Chicago Mridangam and Kanjira: Rajna Swaminathan is a city of immigrants and that diversity is what makes us great. And no matter the road you Violin: Shiva Ramamurthi travel to get here, Chicago will always be a welcoming city to all. Jugalbandi We sincerely hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Ragamala and your travels to World Music 12-1:30am Festival Chicago 2017! Alam Khan, sarode with Ambi Subramaniam, violin with Salar Nader, tabla and Mahesh Krishnamurthy, mridangam
Hindustani - Santoor + Tabla from North India 1:50-3:05am Satish Vyas, santoor with Anindo Chatterjee, tabla
Music from Abhang & Carnatic Traditions 3:25am-4:40am Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam
Jugalbandi 5-6:10am Roopa Panesar, sitar with Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla
Suprabhatham Also featured is Rajna Swaminathan, who performed in last year’s Ragamala with her sister and singing, all caressed with instrumental flourishes borrowed from India. As Cory Frye of Indie such as the violin into Indian traditions; finally, the last movement will embrace the modern devel- Awakening the Gods violinist, Anjna Swaminathan. A protege of mridangam legend, Umayalpuram Sivaraman, she is Music Reviews has written, “The Indian factor makes this one all it can be, I can imagine a opments that have arisen in the wake of independence. Joining Subramaniam is an all-star cast 6:15-6:30am one of only a handful of female mridangam artists in the world. As a composer, Rajna leads the bonfire burning with Indian drummers sitting around in a circle with Anjali singing in the round. including the acclaimed Bollywood singer Kavita Krishnamurti—who is also fluent in classical Choir comprised of Conductors from Chicago Children’s Choir ensemble RAJAS, a project that brings together musicians from Indian classical and jazz It’s a masterstroke, simply mind blowing in every way.” But there’s more to Ray’s music than pop. traditions--master percussionists Tanmoy Bose, Radhakrishnan Narayanaswamy, and Mahesh Conducted by Ahila Devi Vigneswaran backgrounds to collectively explore new textural and improvisational horizons. She currently Tonight she’ll be sharing her mastery of Indian classical music, but remaining true to her own Krishnamurthy, slide guitar pioneer Debashish Bhattacharya, and the composer’s own daughter (Sunrise at 6:25am) pursuing a PhD in Music at Harvard University. creative impulses, she allows some of her more mainstream tendencies to seep into her work, Bindu, an accomplished singer. For the Chicago performance the elite soloists will be joined by the offering listeners an ideal and inviting pathway to experience the rigor and splendor of Hindu- Elmhurst College and Community Philharmonic Orchestra. Yoga + Gong Meditation at Millennium Park, Great Lawn stani tradition. Her program will evoke the tradition by using the lens of Bollywood films, recast- Zen Yoga Garage + GongLab ing those indelible, infectious melodies in a sparse setting where she’s joined only by tabla 8am-10am player Rishi Thakkar and harmonium player Anis Chandnani.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 Bharat Symphony - 70th Anniversary of India’s Independence Millennium Park, Jay Pritzker Pavilion 201 E. Randolph Street 3pm Alam Khan and Ambi Subramaniam with Salar Nader and Mahesh Krishnamurthy ALL AGES Young sarod master Alam Khan is the son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan, who not only popular- Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Singers World Premiere Work Commissioned for World Music Festival Chicago 2017 ized the traditional 25-stringed fretless instrument, but also belongs in the same class as Ravi The Elmhurst College Philharmonic Orchestra held its first annual World Music Festival in 2011 at Shankar for his role in introducing the glorious beauty and complexity of Indian classical music to the encouragement of guest lecturer Srini Krishnan, Headmaster of the School of Music in FEATURING: the western world. He studied under his father and as a teenager he regularly performed with him Anindo Chatterjee with Anubrata Chatterjee Chennai, India that was founded by A.R. Rahman, composer of Slum Dog Millionaire. That festival Dr. Lakshminarayana Subramaniam onstage across the US, Europe, and India. He has expanded his approach beyond traditional Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, is one of Indian classical music’s was such a great success that it subsequently became a regular event on campus, transforming Ambi Subramaniam sounds in collaborations with artists as diverse as the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Bob Weir of the Grate- greatest tabla players. During his career he’s performed with many of the tradition’s greatest into a series in 2013 with multiple events throughout the academic year. Featured programs have Kavita Krishnamurti Subramaniam ful Dead, and film composer Michael Andrews. Ambi Subramaniam is also a scion of Indian instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali included “Global Rhythms–Music of India,”“Olé! The Musical Influence of Spain,”“RUSSIA!” “The Bindu Subramaniam classical music royalty; his father is the brilliant violinist L. Subramaniam, with whom he began his Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. In 2009 he established the Music of Brazil, Italy, & France,” and “KONTRAS! Music of Contrasts.” Guest artists have included Debashish Bhattacharya studies when he was just three and he began to perform with him just a decade later. But he’s also Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has worked with more than Celtic fiddler Liz Carroll, steelpan player Liam Teague, Russian cellist Ian Maksin, Mullane Healey Tanmoy Bose broken out on his own, playing within Carnatic tradition, but also collaborating with the likes of 6000 students since it opened. As with several performances that are part of this year’s Ragama- Godley Irish Dancers, and the Mexican band, Mariachi Real de Jalisco. Mahesh Krishnamurthy Larry Coryell, Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel. Salar Nader was born in Germany to Afghan parents, la, he’s joined by one of his most devoted students—his son Anubrata, also on tabla. Before his N. Radhakrishnan but when he was only five they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, giving him a pan-stylistic father took over his education, however, he was the last student under the master Deshkottam Important in choosing music for the Elmhurst World Music Festivals has been the requirement outlook. He trained with tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, but his practice has made room for Jnan Prakash Ghosh. Anubrata has accompanied many of the music’s most important instru- WITH: that the Philharmonic Orchestra be included in the performances. Many world music festivals traditional Afghani music, jazz fusion--he’s worked with the likes of Charles Lloyd, Bela Fleck, and mentalists including Parvez, Sharma, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, and T.H. Vikku Vinayakram. He has Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst Community Choir conducted by Joanne May feature soloists and small ensembles, but the Elmhurst festival always seeks to include a fusion of Herbie Hancock--and electronic music. He also works regularly with Kronos Quartet and he also taught at the New York branch of his father’s school. music that can be performed by a traditional symphony orchestra with music that is indigenous composed the original music for the celebrated Afghani film The Kite Runner. He’s also a member Prayer song by SAPNA Children Ensemble coordinated by Dr. Sarada Sonty to the particular culture. Dr. L. Subramaniam, composer of Bharat Symphony, has done just this – of the fascinating rap-Indian classical music group Grand Tapestry, which also performs on this he has written a beautiful work depicting the history of India, incorporating the sounds, colors, year’s festival. The ensemble is rounded out by the elder statesman on mridangam, Mahesh and textures of the traditional symphony side by side with singers and instrumentalists particular Krishnamurthy. ARTIST BIOS to India. Tabla, solo Indian voice, guitar, classical Indian violin, and folk tunes of India are beautiful- ly intertwined into the landscape of the symphony throughout this work. Aditya Prakash and Mythili Prakash - “Sanctuaries” Vocalist Aditya Prakash is an American-born singer with a deep foundation in the southern Indian Under the direction of Professor Joanne May, the Elmhurst Philharmonic Orchestra and Elmhurst style called Carnatic music. He grew up in Los Angeles within a family deeply committed to Indian Community Singers are comprised of Elmhurst College students and faculty members, as well as culture: his mother Viji Prakash is the founder and director of the Shakti Dance School of a number of talented community members. The performers have rehearsed throughout the Bharatanatyam. Prakash began his studies when he was just eight, and during summer and winter Bharat Symphony featuring L. Subramaniam World Music Festival Chicago celebrates the 70th anniversary of India’s independence with the summer to prepare for this Chicago World Music Concert. breaks he would travel to Chennai, India for more intensive training. When he was just 16 he performed with the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar. His cross-cultural background has allowed him world premiere of Bharat Symphony, a stunning new orchestral epic composed by the brilliant to explore various fusions including work with Karsh Kale, Anoushka Shankar and MIDIval Punditz. Indian classical violinist L. Subramaniam. The project was commissioned by the Chicago He studied ethnomusicology at UCLA, and his broad aesthetic has manifested itself in a number of Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and it promises not only to be a multicultural projects drawing up influences like hip-hop, Celtic music, jazz, and flamenco, whether Anjali Ray was born in Illinois and raised in New Delhi, India, but she moved back to the US with highlight of this year’s festival, but a classic for years to come—it’s already been programmed in J.A.S.S. Quartet, which performed at World Music Festival Chicago in 2016 or his expansive own her family when she was 10. In the years since she’s been a glowing example of this country’s rich later in 2017 by London’s influential Barbican Centre with the London Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble, which collides Indian classical music with jazz voicings. He performs with his sister, the multi-cultural brew, retaining a strong connection to her homeland through her practice in four-movement work was conceived to honor a relatively modern achievement, but its scope is acclaimed dancer and choreographer Mythili Prakash, of whom the New York Times has written, Hindustani classical singing. But she’s also been a student of western classical music on the piano, much vaster, an ultra-rich history of Indian classical music. The work opens with a section that “Ms. Prakash invokes the image of fire and its behavior: how it moves, what it means, what it gives and a burgeoning jazz musician. Her main artistic focus these days, working both in Chicago and incorporates chants from the sacred Sanskrit text called the Rigveda, believed to date back and takes from us.”The Los Angeles native, who first studied under her mother Viji and now works Los Angeles, embraces a polished pop sound deeply informed by these building blocks. Her 5000 years. As the symphony unfolds the second movement examines the collision of Islamic under the mentorship of Malavika Sarukkai, has performed all over the world, and she appeared in album Indigo Boy has achieved enthusiastic praise for its sophisticated hybrid of seductive and Mughal elements in the music with the introduction of Hindu instruments like the tabla; Ang Lee’s award-winning film Life of Pi. melody influenced by the likes of Sarah MacLachlan and Tori Amos, chilled grooves, and soulful the third movement will explore the way European influences brought orchestral instruments
Priya Venkatraman & Troupe - The stories of “Ahimsa” with Music by Shiv Subramaniam Satish Vyas with Anindo Chatterjee PROGRAM NOTES This evening we will present three such stories: from ancient Greece to the 19th century Dancer and choreographer Priya Venkatraman is one of the premier contemporary practitioners Satish Vyas is one of today’s leading practitioners of the santoor, a beloved trapezoidal type of America depicted in the classic novel, Moby Dick, to ancient India. in the ancient art of Bharatanatyam, one of the most important and oldest classical dance hammer dulcimer that’s one of the key instruments in Indian classical music. The body of the Anjali Ray - Evolution of Songs from Indian Films: 1930-2017 traditions of India, originating in Tamil Nadu as far back as the second century. She was born and instrument is made from walnut and features seventy-two strings played with a pair of light Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Act I raised in India, and her training began when she was seven, under the tutelage of Guru Saroja wooden mallets or hammers. The earliest training for Vyas came from his father Pandit C. R. Vyas, Songs have been an integral part of Indian films since the introduction of sound in movies in The House of Atreus suffered generations of violence and betrayal before Goddess Athena Vaidyanathan. She spent many of early years in the US, where her learning continued even as she one of the great vocalists of the modern era—most Hindustani music virtuosos begin their 1931. Music composers have instinctively turned towards the readily available, rich cache of intervened. Using her wisdom and patience, Athena created a system of justice that absorbed became a teacher herself. She collaborated with modern dance figures and she choreographed a learning as children, but Vyas didn’t start until the age of 23, giving his first public concert when classical Ragas to bring out these emotive feelings. No matter the demand of the storyline, there the city’s fury and hunger for vengeance. In acquitting young Orestes, who had killed his own Terrance McNally play in Milwaukee. She’s achieved international recognition, and as a journalist he was 35, and once he became fluent on the instrument he graduated to studies with, perhaps, is always a Raga they can use, which in turn has helped expose Indian classical music to a greater mother, she advocated “[Only peace—blessings, rising up from the earth and the heaving for Spain’s El Pais has written, “Her presentation is taken from an ancient tradition, from bronze the greatest living santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Over the last couple of decades Vyas audience. sea.”[1] statues and paintings, and her style, as a whole, has coordinated and harmonious movements has toured all over the world, performing at many prestigious festivals; in 1997 he was the only [1] From Robert Fagles’ translation of The Eumenides, a play by Aeschylus. that are devilishly difficult due to the rhythms, the various norms and principles of the style, filled non-Western instrumentalist invited to play at the venerable Mostra Mozart Festival in Venice, This production has been carefully curated to showcase the versatility and adaptability of Indian with subtleties and swift changes, coordinated movements which speak of love, happiness, or Italy, and he has also worked with the Indo-Jazz fusion group Silk. Despite his interest in such classical Ragas. Ragas are associated with emotions, moods, times of the day, or seasons. While Act II sadness, expressed everything within a strict code with mythological allusions.” For this year’s cross-stylistic endeavors, Vyas insists that he remains committed to Hindustani music. In 2012 he you have heard various Ragas in their pristine and complex form through pure Hindustani and But sometimes the heaving sea throws up more than just blessings. When Captain Ahab Ragamala she presents a work exploring themes of nonviolence in collaboration with composer spoke to the Times of India about his fusion work, “I am not here to do fusion because I was Carnatic renditions, here we wanted to showcase the Ragas’ influence on contemporary music, convinced his crew aboard the Pequod to relentlessly chase after a white whale named Moby and Carnatic vocalist Shiv Subramaniam and the dancers from the Kalapriya Dance Academy. stagnating in classical music. The idea is not to do an album because everyone else is doing fusion. namely Indian cinema songs, and through that, its influence on the average listener. Dick, he craved pure, fatal revenge. In losing his leg to Moby Dick, the captain had lost his I am not at that stage in my career where I need to do that. For all you know, I might never do balance, too. But how does a man measure up to something three times his size, and who has fusion again if I am not inspired enough.”Before dedicating himself full-time to playing music, Syas The following, featured hand-picked classical Raga-based songs still arouse astonishment in no leg to lose? Is there a role for justice in the middle of the ocean? applied his degrees in science and management studies to the music business itself, organizing their beauty, curiosity, and inform questions in listeners from different generations. the Pandit CR Vyas Music Festival in Nagpur and serving as the director of the acclaimed Indian Act III music label Navras Records. He performs with one of India’s greatest contemporary tabla players, TITLE / RAAGA / YEAR / MOVIE / MUSIC DIRECTOR / SINGER From legs and oceans to fingers and forests. In north-east India, a once studious young man Anindo Chatterjee, a student of Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. During his career he’s performed with Kaatrinile Varum Geetham / Sindhu Bhairavi / 1945 / Meera / S. V. Venkatraman / M S Subbulakshmi had become a murderer. He even wore his victims’ fingers around his neck, a rattling, rotting many of the tradition’s greatest instrumentalists including Imrat Khan, Ravi Shankar, Shahid Aayega Aayega / Shudh Kalyani / 1949 / Mahal / Khemchand Prakash / Lata Mangeshkar garland that gave him the name Angulimala. What evil drove him to this? And could the old Parvez, Manilal Nag, Amjad Ali Khan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shivkumar Sharma, among others. monk passing him by—an easy target for another finger—could that old man curb his Hawa Mein Udutha Jaye / Pahadi / 1949 / Barsaat / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar In 2009 he established the Anindo Chatterjee Institute of Tabla in Seattle, Washington, which has vengeful appetite? worked with more than 6000 students since it opened. Ye Zindagi Usi Ki Hai / Bhimpalasi / 1953 / Anarkali / C. Ramachander / Lata Mangeshkar Roopa Panesar, sitar, Prishanna Thevarajah, mridangam and Nitin Mitta, tabla Mere Dil Ye Pukare Aaja / Kirwaani / 1954 / Nagin / Hemanta Mukherjee / Lata Mangeshkar The British sitar player Roopa Panesar is part of a growing community of great Indian classical Panchi Bano Udthi Phiro / Bhoopali / 1956 / Chori chori / Shanker-Jaikishen / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. musicians who have grown up and developed far away from India, as the country’s Diaspora Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam / Kirwai / 1958 / Dilli ka thug / Ravi Shanker Sharma / Asha Bhonsle-Kishore Kumar May strength of spirit rise up everywhere. grows and transforms; many of this year’s Ragamala performers are grew up here in the US. Pyar Kiya Tho Darna Kya / Darbari-Durga / 1960 / Mughal e azam / Naushad / Lata Mangeshkar Panesar has had serious training, studying from an early age with the likes of Ustad Dharambir Piya Aiso Jiya Mein Samaye Gayo Re / Brindabani Sharang / 1962 / Sahib biwi aur ghulam / Hemant Kumar / Geeta Dutt Such was the way of Mahatma Gandhi: Singh and Pandit Arvind Parikh—she also taken guidance from artists visiting the UK, such as Spreading the flaming light of compassion and oneness, Shahid Parvez and Bahauddin Dagar. For much of the current decade she has traveled widely, Lakhon Hai Nigahon Me / Pahadi / 1963 / Phir wohi dil laaya hoon / O. P. Nayyar / Mohammed Rafi Aaj Phir Jeene / Bairavi / 1965 / Guide / Sachin Dev Burman / Lata Mangeshkar May there be peace in the world. perform across Europe, the US, and India. As with so many Indian classical musicians of her gener- Dil Cheez Kya Hai / Bihag / 1981 / Umrao Jaan / Khayyam / Asha Bhonsle ation, Panesar has interests that have allowed her to work in a growing variety of contexts, wheth- Changing the hearts of those who do hateful deeds, er than means collaborating with the influential electronic musician and producer Talvin Singh or Dil Hum Hum Kare / Bhoopali / 1993 / Rudaali / Bhupen Hazarika / Lata Mangeshkar We will fill them with virtue. the English light classical and pop soprano Laura Wright. She also experimented with western Shiv Subramaniam, vocals, Sruti Sarathy, violin, Arjun Ramachandran, mridangam Uyi Re / Hari kamboji / 1995 / Bombay / A. R. Rehman / Hariharan, Chitra We will cut away ignorance and fear. classical tradition, placing her sitar in unusual contexts, such as a performance of Concerto de Carnatic vocal specialist—and a Fulbright scholar in Sanskrit studies--Shiv Subramaniam, who’s Piu Bole Piya Bole / Yaman kalyani / 2005 / Parineeta / Shantanu Moitra / Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam We will foster the pure and good ways of humankind. Aranjuez by the Spanish compose Joaquín Rodrigo. Panesar is also chemical engineer. Still, studied with Vani Sateesh and his grandmother Lakshmi Balasubramaniam, leads a performance Mein Tenu Samjhawan Kii / Darbari / 2014 / Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya / Jawad Ahmed, Sharib-Toshi / Shreya Ghoshal, Arijit Singh nothing is closer to heart than Indian classical music, an ardor that’s hard to miss on her stunning rooted in Carnatic tradition This will be followed by Abhang, devotional poetry sung in praise of Our father, the mystic of ahimsa, 2011 album Khoj. For her Chicago performance she’s joined by two great percussionists—fellow the Hindu god Vitthala. For this performance he is working with the young violinist Sruti Sarathy, gave us strength. So that he may rest in peace, Brit and mridangam player Prishanna Thevarajah, a regular collaborator of Ravi and Anoushka a regular collaborator, fellow Fulbright scholar, and a student of Anuradha Sridhar. The group is Ahimsa: The End of Violence we will not forget our duty. We will exhaust his debts. Shankar, mandolinist U. Srinivas and Nitin Sawhney, among others, and tabla player Nitin Mitta, rounded out by the up and coming mridangam player, Arjun Ramachandran, who is a sophomore A Dance Drama in Three Acts Without any fear we will foster the good. who’s worked with classical greats like Pandit Jasraj and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt as long as serving as in high school, and is currently under the tutelage of his illustrious Guru “Laya Chakravarthy” Sri. Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts Let there be peace in the world. a member of the acclaimed trio Tirtha with MacArthur-winning pianist Vijay Iyer and the innova- Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan for his study of the mridangam. For vocal, he learns from the renowned tive guitarist Prasanna. artist, Sri Madurai Sundar. How does one tell the story of violence? How far back in the chain of events should we go to catch it at its source? And how does it end? In the following three acts, we find out why some great men and women have succumbed to violence, why others renounced it, and how—if at all—this thorny tale ends.
Despite the prevalence of violence in the world, history tells us that we have had relative periods of peace. It informs us that violence is not restricted to one region of the world or one kind of people, but that all living beings have faced emotions that can overwhelm and cause us to become violent.
Sanctuaries Dance Choreography and Performance: Mythili Prakash partners Music Composition and Vocals: Aditya Prakash Curated by Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts
The following story draws inspiration from Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, a town in France that provided sanctuary to Jews trying to escape the Nazis during the holocaust. From December GRANT SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: 1940 to September 1944, the inhabitants of the French village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon • Chicago Park District (population 5,000) and the villages on the surrounding plateau (population 24,000) provided • Irish American Heritage Center refuge for an estimated 5,000 people. This number included an estimated 3,000–3,500 Jews • Québec Government Office in Chicago who were fleeing from the Vichy authorities and the Nazis. • Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts We use the following animal allegory to highlight the importance of Chicago being a sanctuary city. Special thanks to our programming partners and the local and international non-profit and government agencies providing in-kind support to the artists performing at the Plot summary: World Music Festival this year: A pregnant mouse and her husband are captured by scientists and brought to the lab as lab mice. They see the horrors and the torture endured by the other lab mice and are worried for • Consulate General of India, Chicago the safety of themselves and their children. • Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Chicago • Chinese Ministry of Culture As the mother mouse gives birth to her litter, news arrives of a wild elephant stampede • Choose Chicago through the town. While the scientists are preparing to detain themselves to keep safe from • DePaul University the wild elephants, the father mouse escapes and begs the elephant chief to take his wife • Hyde Park Jazz Festival and newborn children to safety into the Jungle. • Kalapriya Foundation, Center for Indian Performing Arts • Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Republics of Korea (MCST), KAMS, and CSK The elephant chief wants nothing to do with these pests, a threat to the resources of the • Navy Pier herd, and shoos the mouse away. • People’s Music School • Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center One of the elder elephants – slower, wiser, and compassionate - hangs back and agrees to • Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts rescue the mouse family. The scientists are distracted by the elephant commotion, preoccu- • The Trust For Public Land pied with their own safety - a perfect opportunity for mice to escape, carried into the jungle • United Nations Association USA - Greater Chicago Chapter by the old compassionate elephant. • Uptown Chamber of Commerce
After some time in the jungle, the chief notices that resources are running lower than usual. When the herd is questioned, the old compassionate elephant takes the blame and is imprisoned. Drawn by its beauty and the fabulous free public events, hundreds of thousands of visitors come to the Chicago Cultural Center every One day the daughter of the elephant Chief is caught by hunters. The Chief is devastated. The year, making it one of the most visited attractions in Chicago. The other members of the herd beg him not to try to rescue her as he will be killed as well, and stunning landmark building is home to two magnificent the herd will be without a Chief. In utter desperation and not willing to heed the warnings of stained-glass domes, as well as free music, dance and theater the herd, the Chief sets out in the middle of the night to rescue his child. As he arrives at her events, films, lectures, art exhibitions and family events. For details, trap, he sees the mice gnawing at the net, setting his daughter free. Overjoyed and relieved, visit chicagoculturalcenter.org. he brings her back home along with the mouse family.
They tell him of the kindness of the old compassionate elephant, and immediately the Chief realizes his folly, both in punishing the old compassionate elephant, and in not coming to the #WorldMusicFestChi aid of the desperate mice. worldmusicfestivalchicago.org Realizing that all the animals are one family, working together to survive against the dangers and cruelty of man, the Chief is moved and humbled. From then on, he leads the herd with compassion as his means of power, rather than arrogance and physical strength.