IN CONVERSATION WITH
PURBAYAN CHATTERJEE
Purbayan Chatterjee is a gifted musician who had the privilege of learning sitar at an early age and has been collaborating with global Jazz players across the globe . His newest album ‘ Unbounded ( Abaad )’ features legendary musicians from across the globe .
PURBAYAN CHATTERJEE - IMAGE CREDITS - AMARBIR SINGH
Here is a candid conversation with the sitar maestro exclusively for the Score :
How did you start as an artist in the music industry ? Talk to us about your formative learning years . My musical journey started off like any other classical musician , to be honest . With a background of my grandmother who was a classical vocalist , and my father being a sitar guru in Sangeet Research Academy . I started learning sitar when I was five years old , and before that I was trained in vocal music as well . I grew up in a strict classical environment and had even resisted western music initially . I was not very aware of music beyond Hindustani class ical , that was confined to traditional style . It was a very rigorous training schedule for 5 / 7-year-old boy who was more excited about cricket at that age ! After crossing 12-13 years of age , I started falling in love with the greatness of classical music and other forms of music .
Fusion music has become really popular amongst all age groups of people across the globe . How do you look at this form of music ? Using the term fusion music to represent two different forms of music together , is not as experimental as it sounds . Every form of music , traditional music included , is an amalgamation of two or more facets of music . The instrument , sitar itself has faced fusion influences with the Mughal invasions and Persian elements as well .
The whole of Hindustani music that we call today , and the way we play khayal is indeed fusion . This is an ever-continuing process and it will go on . I am totally for fusion , but the only way culture survives is by imbibing other cultures . There is absolutely no negative impact but the need of the hour is awareness , to make the students make aware of the elements of music , enough to know about fusing them .
You are known for your remarkable collaborations with fantastic artists across genres . Could you talk to us about your process of selecting people you want to work with ? Do you decide on the sound first or do artists come first ? I am glad to had the opportunity to work with legends for this new album ‘ Unbounded ( Abaad )’ and would like to thank Sufiscore for making us do it . I had the wildest wish list and when I shared it with these artists , it was almost like someone sprinkled magical dust over it to make it happen . The initial list was smaller , but as we went on , the list expanded and the album evolved . I always loved jazz music and it was an obvious choice for an improvisational music form . Jazz and classical Music have this greatly in common .
The improvisation is governed by intricate set of rules and the framework is designed meticulously . This album was like a magical wishlist for sure , and I am thankful to all the masters who contributed to the album . I must mention Ustad Zakir Hussain and Pt Ravi Shankar Saab who took our music to a global arena . I am also thankful to Béla Fleck who would usually not come around for a
fusion album of this sort .
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