‘All That Jazz’ at the February 2020 edition of Under the Banyan Tree on a Full Moon Night
Under the Banyan Tree on a Full Moon Night, produced by leading performing arts and entertainment company Teamwork Arts, renowned for curating innovative and experiential events. The first edition of 2020 – ‘All That Jazz’ celebrates jazz on Sunday, 16th February 2020.
Delhi’s iconic music club, Friends of Music, set up in 1994, has continued to create a thriving language of live music. Carrying forward the feel-good tradition of celebrating and enjoying music with friends and family in an intimate setting, Friends of Music, a Teamwork Arts initiative, brings together musicians and discerning audiences in a community to explore, create and enjoy new sounds.
Under the Banyan Tree on a Full Moon Night is a unique concert series that forefronts rich and diverse music through an eclectic mix of artists and sounds from all around the world. Audiences get the chance to witness performances by musicians under the tranquil repose of a banyan tree with minarets of the iconic Qutub Minar as the backdrop. The Baithak-style evenings, where moonlight and music blend to recreate the poetic charm of traditional musical gatherings, offer audiences an intimate experience with the like-minded and an opportunity to engage with the musicians.
Born in New Orleans, as an amalgamation of European and African music which itself gave birth to the American blues and ragtime music, jazz entered the public consciousness in the roaring 1920s era. Its roots, however, go further back to the late 1800s, when African-Americans began to develop new forms of music.
Although jazz in India began as an elite art form, it made its way to the masses and Bollywood. Goans, who had learned western music from the Portuguese, introduced jazz and swing music to the movies. Musicians such as Chic Chocolate, Frank Fernand and Anthony Gonsalves not only infused the sound of western music into Bollywood, but tied it with the industry’s predominantly Indian classical tradition. This led to the emergence of a new genre of music called Indo Jazz, which fused classical jazz and Indian influences. Ravi Shankar, John Mclaughlin, and John Coltrane all added to this genre. Conversely, Indian classical music also bore an offshoot with jazz, named free jazz.
For the first edition of 2020, Under the Banyan Tree on a Full Moon Night celebrates jazz, in its diversity and uniqueness. Taking both its global soundscape and its Indian context, the concert will explore the genre through two mesmerising musical acts. The first performer for the evening will be João Bittencourt, an accomplished pianist, accordionist, composer, arranger, producer and musical director from Brazil. João showcased his talent as a composer, musical director and instrumentalist in more than 40 award-winning theatrical shows and 10 records over the years. He has also composed the soundtrack for the award-winning short-film Bodas, which was selected to more than 20 international festivals, including the parallel exhibition from Cannes Festival 2016. Led by Joao Bittencourt on piano and accordion, the trio also comprises Kabir Agarwal on bass and Aditya Dutta on drums.
Kabir Agarwal is a bass player and composer from New Delhi, India. He has been active in the Delhi music circuit since his school days and is currently a permanent and/or session bass player for a number of pop artists like Vibhor Parashar, Rooh Unlimited, All India Permit, Sahil Peris, The Soul Curry, Prayaag. He is also a permanent member in bands like Stable Flux, Emenes, Mocaine, The Blue Cab, to name a few.
Aditya is a professional drummer based in Delhi who has been performing and collaborating as a sessions’ drummer in the Delhi independent music circuit for the past few years, He has actively played with Rainer Pusch (Germany), Karan Khosla Trio, Aditi Dot., Rythem Bansal, Rie Ona (Japan), Ipshita Roy and various other musicians and acts from the city.
Bringing the evening to a spectacular close will be The Revisit Project that successfully blends jazz and funk with a bout of nostalgia. The band is all about paying tribute to the distinguished musicians and unmasking a new rendition of some of their best hits. The Revisit Project started out in 2014 as a tribute band, rediscovering some of the lost treasures of Hindi film music and giving a contemporary Funk/Jazz fusion touch to the renditions. Their jam sessions led them to realise their true potential in terms of writing original music and thus, the first album called 'Here We Go' happened in 2017, which was followed by ‘Brown Man's Funk’ and ‘Born in Delhi’ in 2019.
The dress code for the evening- a sky full of stars- pairs well with the musical theme in all its elegance and finesse. As always, there will be an assortment of flavoursome food and delicious drinks available, as well as gifts and goodies at the UTBT Full Moon Pop-Up.
This bespoke concert series is the perfect place to enjoy fantastic performances in a stunning venue in the company of a discerning group of music aficionados. Under the Banyan Tree on a Full Moon Night is set in the beautifully lush and serene 1AQ; an inspiring venue, conceptualised by Anubhav Nath, which offers stunning views of the Qutub Minar.
EVENT DETAILS
When: Sunday, February 16, 7 PM onwards
Where: 1AQ, Opposite Qutub Minar, Mehrauli
Entry: Tickets starting at INR 1500 (all inclusive)
Available at: https://www.twagateway.com/friendsofmusic/underthebanyantree/ Website: http://friendsofmusic.in/
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