Traditional Indian music is renowned worldwide as a sacred musical tradition that is unique, mystical, complex, and deep. In this weekend workshop, participants will be introduced to Indian Classical Music and mantra through the concepts of melody, intonation, mood, rhythm and raga. Accessible to beginners and experienced musicians alike, participants in this workshop will explore rhythm, melody, vocal expression and devotional chant in expansive and creative interactive lessons. The workshop will begin with an Indian Classical Music introduction and concert with Samir Chatterjee and Minaakshi Majumdar on Friday night and continue with a full day of workshops, including a 2-hour rhythm workshop with Samir Chatterjee and a 2-hour Indian Classical Vocal workshop with Manaakshi Majumdar on Saturday. This workshop is an in-person event at Golden Drum and can also be attended online via Zoom and later as a recorded video.
Workshop hours:
-Friday, May 10, 7-9:30pm - Concert
-Saturday, May 11, 1:30-8pm with one hour food break - Workshops
Registration via suggested donation:
$180 for in-person full weekend
$125 for online via Zoom, full weekend
$35 for in-person, Friday night concert only
No one will be turned away for lack of funds. Please contact dreamseedsound@gmail.com to register with other donation amounts.
Register here:
About
Samir Chatterjee is a virtuoso Tabla player from India. He travels widely across the world throughout the year performing in numerous festivals as a soloist or with other outstanding musicians from both Indian and non-Indian musical traditions. Samir performed at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo, Norway in 2007. He also performed a few times at the United Nations General Assembly. His compositions are widely acclaimed as well as his writings. Samir is a firm believer in the transforming effect of music on the society and all aspects of his work reflects this conviction.
Chatterjee began his studies early with Pandit Bankim Ghosh, Pt. Balaram Mukherjee, Pt. Rathin Dhar and Mohammad Salim. His later formation as a musician occurred under the guidance of Pt. Amalesh Chatterjee (since 1966) and Pt. Shyamal Bose (since 1984). All of Samir's teachers have been from the Farrukhabad Gharana (school) of Tabla-playing, which he now represents.
Samir is rated ‘A’ as an artiste of Indian national radio and television. He can be heard on numerous recordings featuring as soloist, accompanying many of India's greatest musicians and in collaboration with western musicians of outstanding caliber. In concert Samir has accompanied many of India's greatest musicians including Pt. Ravi Shankar, Ud. Vilayat Khan, Pt. Bhimsen Joshi, Pt. Jasraj, Pt. Nikhil Banerjee, Pt. V.G. Jog, Pt. Shivkumar Sharma, Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia, M. S. Gopalakrishnan, Ud. Amjad Ali Khan, Ud. Salamat Ali Khan, Smt. Lakshmi Shankar, Pt. Manilal Nag, Ud. Ali Ahmed Hussain, Ud. Aashis Khan, Dr. L. Subramanium, U Srinivas, Ud. Naseeruddin Sami, Smt. Veena Sahashrabuddhe, Ud. Shujat Khan, Ud. Saheed Parvez, Pt. Ajoy Chakraborty, Ud. Nishat Khan, Ud. Rashid Khan, Pt. Tejendra N. Mazumdar, Pt. Debashish Bhattacharya, Smt. Arti Anklekar, Smt. Kaushiki Chakraborty, to name only a few.
Samir Chatterjee lives in the New York-New Jersey area, and has been a catalyst in the fusion of Indian and Non-Indian music, in his own creations and others as well. He performs with Pauline Oliveros, William Parker, Branford Marsalis, Ravi Coltrane, Joshua Bell, Yoko Ono Lenon, Dave Douglas, Steve Gorn, Glen Velez, Boby Sanabria, Dance Theater of Harlem, Boston Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, Ethos Percussion group, Da Capo Chamber Orchestra, Boston Musica Viva and other jazz, classical and avant guard musicians and ensembles. He is member of jazz trio SYNC with Ned Rothenberg and Jerome Harris and quintet Inner Diaspora together with Mark Feldman and Eric Friedlander. He also collaborates with Sufi-Rock singer Salman Ahmad of Junoon from Pakistan. He is the composer and director of Indo-Flame – a blend of Indian and Flamenco dance and music, Chhand-Anand - a world percussion ensemble, RabiThakur – a ballet on the life of Tagore, Meghadootam – a feature program of music and dance on an ancient Indian poem, and Dawn to Dusk and Beyond – on the effect of music on humans and nature. He performs with Sanjay Mishra on his CD "Blue Incantation" featuring Jerry Garcia as guest artist.
Samir Chatterjee has been teaching for the last 35 years and many of his students are established performers. He is the Founder-Director of CHHANDAYAN, an organization dedicated to promoting and preserving Indian music and culture. He has authored a comprehensive 654-page book entitled A Study of Tabla, a guide book to Indian music titled Music of India and Those Forty Days, a journal of an austere practice regimen. He is on the faculty at Manhattan School of Music, University of Pittsburgh and New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music. He also taught at the Yale University, Columbia University, New York University and Princeton University, among many other major institutions in the USA, Europe and India. He also contributes to several newspapers and periodicals. He won gold medal for his proficiency in a musical examination and has two Master degrees, in English and History.
Since June 2008 Samir started working relentlessly towards the musical revival of Afghanistan. He made several trips to the country working with different levels of the society and administration and within a very short period of time was able to make a remarkable difference in the cultural life of the country. He is the recipient of several awards such as the Sunshine Award, Jadu Bhatta Award and Acharya Varistha Award.
MINAAKSHI MAJUMDAR is a leading Hindustani vocalist of the present generation. She has created a niche as a classical and semi-classical vocalist through her performances in several reputed music festivals and venues. Her performances at the National program of Music organised by the national radio and the Dover Lane Music Conference drew attention to her talent, which took her on tour to several cities in the country and abroad.
Minakshi's ultimate formation as a performer occurred under the guidance of Gurus Bidushi Girija Devi and Pandit Arun Bhaduri of the Sangeet Research Academy, Kolkata, where she was a scholar for the final six years of her studies. Her birth in a family of musicians greatly helped in the initial nurturing of her talent. She was fortunate to find her first Guru in her mother Sandhya Majumdar. Later she received formal training from Sri Sarat Bandopadhyay and Pandit Nihar Ranjan Banerjee, Bidushi Purnima Chaudhuri and Sri Aniruddha Bhattacharya.
Minakshi holds a Masters Degree from the Rabindra Bharati University with Honours in vocal music. She is an 'A' graded artist of the national radio of India.
She is also a listed artist of Indian Council for Cultural Relations under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.