Today I went to a Tabla (classic Indian hand drums) concert held in the UCO Jazz Lab nearby.
I got the ticket from the director of the Center for Cancer Chemoprevention and Drug Development, who is Indian. I was uncertain about the type of music presented, but showed up out of curiosity.
It turned out, the concert was played by two classical Indian musicians, the Tabla master Anindo Chatterjee and Shri Pankaj Mishra, a rising star player of Sarengi (an Indian strings instrument).
In the duo setting, one was playing percussion/drums and another playing strings. In many compositions, the strings provided a repeating theme, and the Tabla added different interpretations (or play) to the theme. It was fitting that the concert was at the Jazz lab. It was an interactive and interpretative music.
The Tabla was simply AMAZING. Even for me who is not familiar with the Tabla instrument, it was clear that he is a world class virtuoso. For example, he was able to imitate spoken phrases by the hand drums, and could fit the phrases with the accompanying strings. Imagine a rapper, and he is rapping with his hand drums. Crazy skills.
After the show, my clapping hands felt terribly inadequate.
Funny thing about percussion shows is that they make me feel like hit/slap/drum/pat/tap something. They are contagious. My cat may have to endure the strange effect until it wears off in a day or two.
Link to the musician's website
