Brilliant Beat: Akshara Creates Space For Evocative Melodic Exploration Among Mathematically Elegant South Indian Rhythms
New York-based ensemble releases debut album, In Time
“At its root, Carnatic music is very complex and mathematical,” explains classically trained, New York-based mridangam (South Indian double-headed drum) player Bala Skandan. “That makes it interesting rhythmically, even for seasoned Indian players.”
And for other musicians from a wide variety of backgrounds, as Skandan shows on In Time, his debut recording with Akshara. The octet merges jazz, Western classical, and Indian sensibilities and instrumentation,featuring members from Brooklyn Raga Massive and House of Waters.
Skandan puts South India’s characteristic rhythms at the heart of his pieces, building technically stunning, musically engaging work around them. “Mohana Blues” highlights both konnakol (spoken rhythmic patterns) and tabla, as well as lush washes of arcing strings (including two cellos - actually one cello and two violins). “Mind the Gap” alternates beats and pauses with lithe, sparkling bursts of melody. “Urban Kriti” develops from the modal flutter of hammered dulcimer (Max ZT), picking up steam as it builds in waves, guided by the drums (Skandan plays beautifully off of Nitin Mitta’s tabla) and Jay Gandhi's gorgeous bansuri flute.
So when his parents sent him to music school, he chose the mridangam, the tavil’s more stayed and nuanced cousin. “Mridangam players have taken material from tavil players, and vice versa,” he notes. “The only difference the mridangam is a concert instrument and tavil is a celebration instrument.”
Along with the barrel-shaped drum, Skandan studied violin. He dabbled in both until he got to college, when he set music aside for a while. After graduating, however, he felt something was missing from his life and he dived back into the challenges and delights of the drum. He found himself composing pieces that highlighted his chosen instrument.
“It sometimes gets lost in a traditional concert setting, in a sense that there is so much going on, it’s difficult to extract that special rhythmic aspect and admire it. That’s what I’ve worked to highlight. How do you express this complexity, to put it out there on its own? Then I bring the melody in. The melody can make it hard to hear the complexity and subtlety of the rhythms, but it can also enhance them powerfully.”
Time in London led him to brainstorm new formats for the millenia-old music. He put together a band, an unusual set up in Indian Classical music, where musicians come together to play for one-off concerts, rather than remaining in steady ensembles.The group hooked audiences with shorter-form pieces, to help them ease into the extended experience Carnatic music performances offer. Skandan broke some of the basics into more accessible arrangements and ideas, to initiate those new to the style into its principles and pleasures. “Indian classical music has a lot of depth. It takes time to appreciate its different levels or layers,” he reflects. “You need to peel the layers back and make it easier to engage with.”
Skandan is now based in New York, which has given him a whole range of insights and musical flavors to fold into his own musical vision. “New York gave me was a lot more exposure to other genres and forms of music. There’s a lot more cross-cultural work. Through that process, I came across a lot of musicians from all different backgrounds interested in Indian music. They were inspired by Carnatic music, and I was inspired by them.”
Though most of the ensemble are highly trained Indian Classical musicians, several were new to its forms, though alight with curiosity. Skandan harnessed this interest, adding novel timbres and ranges to his work. “I love cello, and I have two cello players,” laughs Skandan. “Cello is not an instrument usually associated with Carnatic music. I always felt that cello and viola really could add a lot of depth even to very classical.”
Carnatic music has a huge canon of compositions, though by nature, South Indian compositions relate to performance in ways that are more flexible than Western classical works. Skandan extends these principles in his compositions, in ways harmonious with Western practices: “It’s important to not cram your music with your own thought processes. I love it when the band adds harmony, because that’s not part of my training.You want create space for other people to explore.”
