Indo jazz

One of the most innovative Indo-jazz experiences comes from Bombay native Ashwin Batish. Although classically trained in North Indian music by his father Pandit Shiv Dayal Batish, Ashwin's growing up in the West, first UK, then USA, gave him a unique insight into the world of Western music. His frequent sit-ins with jazz musicians and his exposure to western musicians such as his father's collaboration with George Harrison for the Beatles movie Help!, sparked in him a desire to stretch his classical music roots into the world of jazz and fusion. Ashwin has, for the past 35 years, been at the forefront of combining his classical sitar music with rock, pop and jazz. He has received critical acclaim from jazz and world music writers and audiences. His latest release, Jazz Is Where Is, is with his "fiery sitar power trio" (Nigel Wood, Ear To The Globe, Ireland). Batish is presently on the faculty of the University of California, Santa Cruz where he teaches Indian music percussion theory and practice. Upon the invitation of the university, Ashwin will be teaching a five-week 2020 Summer intensive called Raga Jazz an application of Indian music to Western Instruments. ==Specific to John Mayer==

"Mayer is very definite about that distinction, as only someone could understand who grew up in Calcutta studying Indian music with Sanathan Mukherjee whilst simultaneously learning Western music with Melhi Mehta. 'Indian music is basically built around a linear technique', he says. 'There's no harmony in the Western sense, just one extended melodic line accompanied by a drone. The absence of harmony is compensated for by very complex rhythms. As I found out more about Western music, I realised that there are similarities with the techniques of serialism. In serialism you are dealing with an atonal sequence, and in ragas, the Indian scale system, you are dealing with a tonal sequence, but one which goes up one way and down another, what's called the aroha-avaroha. In most of the music we play in Indo-Jazz Fusions, the music is all scored. I don't believe in too much improvisation, and when there is space for improvising, this is done in a format which reminds the player of the notes of the raga. [...]' [...] Indo-Jazz Fusions is just such proof of the folly of labels. It isn't a question of the music being jazz, or Indian, or classical; it is a thoroughly satisfying blend of ingredients into something genuinely new, original and forward looking." ==See also==