photo courtesy: Steve Oda
On Saturday, August 21, Steve Oda and Ty Burhoe present an evening of North Indian Classical (Hindustani) music, a style that has been intricately developed and carefully practiced over the past 500 years. At the heart of the Hindustani tradition is Nada Yoga, the practice of using music as a pathway to the divine. The intention behind the music is to deliver the listener to a place of internal peace and harmony.
It's like a musical tune-up for your spirit.
Steve Oda was a student of the legendary Maestro Ali Akbar Khan for more than 35 years before his guru's passing last year. Khan and Ravi Shankar were the men primarily responsible for bringing India's rich musical traditions from East to West. Oda plays the sarod, a 25-string instrument that is arguably the most beautiful lute in the world. In Persian, the word sarod translates to "beautiful sound."
The deeply emotive and highly expressive sounds of the sarod make it among the most pleasant instruments to listen to, even if you know nothing about Indian music. It is considered one of the most challenging instruments to master, but in the hands of a guru like Oda, the sarod is capable of transporting the listener to a higher place.
Each raga is an evolution of sound unique unto itself. It begins with an alap, or introduction of notes within an ethereal framework. The alap lures listeners in deep. Then the piece progresses into jhor and jhala, where the melody crawls out of the primordial soup of sound and begins to slither, then walk, as a sense of rhythm begins to develop.
Soon the raga springs to life with the gat, signaled by the addition of rhythmic accompaniment of the tabla. Tabla are the small hand drums that give Hindustani (North Indian) music its signature sound, and will be played by Ty Burhoe. As the raga continues its exciting evolution, it increases with intensity and is soon running, dancing and flying at mesmerizing speed.
Burhoe is well known for his rhythmic contributions to the music of Krishna Das, and for his collaborations with R. Carlos Nakai and Bela Fleck. He has been a student of Ustad Zakir Hussain, widely considered the greatest living tabla player, since 1990. As Burhoe ornaments the melody with complex and brilliant rhythms, you'll have a difficult time believing so many sounds can come from two human hands.
The musical journey begins at 7:30 p.m. at St. Francis in the Foothills Church (4625 E. River Rd). Tickets are $15 and are available at Antigone Books on 4th Ave, at the Farmers' Market booth on Saturdays at the Oro Valley Farmers' Market, Sundays at the Tucson Farmers' Market at St. Philip's Plaza, and at the door.
For more information, call 390-9161 or visit www.TalaRecords.com.
Matt Moon is the host of Global Rhythm Radio on KXCI-FM and has been studying Hindustani music for 11 years.
