Four Indian jazz artistes that you should take note of

Anannya SarkarPublished on Sep 16, 2022

These four artistes are making India’s jazz scene look upbeat

From solo artistes to ensemble collaborations and even ones turning educators, these four artistes are here to make you love jazz

From solo artistes to ensemble collaborations and even ones turning educators, these artistes are here to make you fall in love with jazz

Contrary to the origins of jazz as rebel music born out of New Orleans and later arriving in erstwhile Bombay and Calcutta in the 1920s, jazz has since then been relegated to a niche genre in India. This could perhaps be attributed to multiple factors, such as the dominance of Bollywood, the “pseudo”-intellectual approach to jazz that many later generations took and the unviable commercials, which is a reality not restricted to only jazz when it comes to music.

However, a handful of jazz artistes over the years have kept their single-minded focus as they continue to play and compose in the genre. The recent mushrooming of dedicated jazz festivals and a few serious jazz bars across the country have also helped the cause, with venues such as The Piano Man Jazz Club and Depot48 in New Delhi; the Bombay Jazz Club in Mumbai, Bflat in Bengaluru; and The Skinny Mo’s Jazz Club in Kolkata supporting and hosting jazz artistes. Leading the pack are a handful of musicians, some of whom we feature here:

Tarun Balani (@tarunbalani)A drummer, composer, percussionist and music educator based out of New Delhi, Tarun Balani is considered to be one of India’s prominent jazz drummers, who has also, more recently, presented an amalgamation of live electronica and jazz as Seasonal Affected Beats. Though Balani’s exploration in jazz began as an 18-year-old in New York City, he has never looked back since. He has toured internationally and is a known face in the domestic jazz circuit. He considers music to be “a spiritual experience,” and is also inspired by his Indian roots. Balani’s albums Dharma on the reputed German record label Berthold Records, and Sacred World helped cement his position as a reputed jazz artiste. — **Tarun Balani (****@tarunbalani**)
A drummer, composer, percussionist and music educator based out of New Delhi, Tarun Balani is considered to be one of India’s prominent jazz drummers, who has also, more recently, presented an amalgamation of live electronica and jazz as Seasonal Affected Beats. Though Balani’s exploration in jazz began as an 18-year-old in New York City, he has never looked back since. He has toured internationally and is a known face in the domestic jazz circuit. He considers music to be “a spiritual experience,” and is also inspired by his Indian roots. Balani’s albums Dharma on the reputed German record label Berthold Records, and Sacred World helped cement his position as a reputed jazz artiste.

Pradyumna Singh Manot (Paddy) (@pradyumnamanot)A trained western classical pianist, Manot, of his own admission, did not like the restraint of it. This led him to jazz and it was the “improvisation” that attracted him the most. A Latin jazz pianist, Manot can be seen performing with his eponymous trio mostly at venues “where people are not talking”. Manot also acknowledges that the commercials are sometimes tough but as a music educator, he finds time and energy to devote to his own music too. His pet peeve? “Anything passes off as jazz nowadays!” he told me, when I caught up with him. But with key collaborations and stage-time at international festivals, Manot is considered to be one of the top jazz musicians in India who is also committed to furthering the cause of jazz with 12 Keys, his own music academy. — **Pradyumna Singh Manot (Paddy) (****@pradyumnamanot**)
A trained western classical pianist, Manot, of his own admission, did not like the restraint of it. This led him to jazz and it was the “improvisation” that attracted him the most. A Latin jazz pianist, Manot can be seen performing with his eponymous trio mostly at venues “where people are not talking”. Manot also acknowledges that the commercials are sometimes tough but as a music educator, he finds time and energy to devote to his own music too. His pet peeve? “Anything passes off as jazz nowadays!” he told me, when I caught up with him. But with key collaborations and stage-time at international festivals, Manot is considered to be one of the top jazz musicians in India who is also committed to furthering the cause of jazz with 12 Keys, his own music academy.

Mohini Dey Hartsuch (@dey_bass)If jazz is an extremely niche genre in the Indian music circuit, then having a female jazz artiste is even more niche. A bassist, Hartsuch was somewhat of a prodigy as she began performing as an 11-year-old. Mentored early on in her career by the famous Louis Banks, she has prominent collaborations under her belt such as ones with A R Rahman, Zakir Hussain and Sivamani. Though she doesn’t limit herself to jazz, Hartsuch can be seen touring the world for her various music projects and is one to watch out for. — **Mohini Dey Hartsuch (****@dey_bass**)
If jazz is an extremely niche genre in the Indian music circuit, then having a female jazz artiste is even more niche. A bassist, Hartsuch was somewhat of a prodigy as she began performing as an 11-year-old. Mentored early on in her career by the famous Louis Banks, she has prominent collaborations under her belt such as ones with A R Rahman, Zakir Hussain and Sivamani. Though she doesn’t limit herself to jazz, Hartsuch can be seen touring the world for her various music projects and is one to watch out for.

Bodhisattwa Ghosh (@bodhi.guitar)The frontman of the jazz band The Bodhisattwa Trio, Ghosh is a guitarist and composer who had his debut guitar-oriented solo album out in December 2021. Along with jazz, he has also dabbled in blues, rock and Indian classical music and considers himself to be a “disciple” of Indian guitar legend, Amyt Dutta. Though Ghosh has multiple music projects and collaborations that experiment with varied kinds of sounds, jazz remains one of his key areas of focus and has played at festivals such as Bird’s Eye Jazz Club (Basel, Switzerland) and the Fest Jazza International Jazz Festival (Koprivnica, Croatia). — **Bodhisattwa Ghosh** **(@bodhi.guitar)**
The frontman of the jazz band The Bodhisattwa Trio, Ghosh is a guitarist and composer who had his debut guitar-oriented solo album out in December 2021. Along with jazz, he has also dabbled in blues, rock and Indian classical music and considers himself to be a “disciple” of Indian guitar legend, Amyt Dutta. Though Ghosh has multiple music projects and collaborations that experiment with varied kinds of sounds, jazz remains one of his key areas of focus and has played at festivals such as Bird’s Eye Jazz Club (Basel, Switzerland) and the Fest Jazza International Jazz Festival (Koprivnica, Croatia).

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These four artistes are making India’s jazz scene look upbeat

From solo artistes to ensemble collaborations and even ones turning educators, these artistes are here to make you fall in love with jazz

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