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Maestros in Fusion review – virtuosic Indian ensemble knit two traditions together
Six supremely talented jazz and classical instrumentalists, whose humility belies their mastery, all show how malleable and moving their music can be
Jugalbandi also encourages connections between instrumental sounds: alongside Banks’s bluesy keyboard refrains, Shankar Mahadevan’s konnakol – a style of vocal percussion – becomes reminiscent of jazz scatting. But in playful competition, Banks and Hussain bring terrific flair to technical aspects such as drum rolls, harnessing their instruments’ full range of sound to make them sing. As the six maestros demonstrate, this contrast makes the genre uniquely malleable; when Mahadevan intersperses the set list with some familiar favourites (Maa, Eena Meena Deeka and Breathless), you can feel the influence of western blues on Indian contemporary music.
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