Dhrupad in Raga Yaman
Niramala niraguṇāya niratiśaya sukhadāya
Nijānanda mayāya nityāya śudhdhāya
Spoken percussion: dhīm dhīm ta ki ta ta ki ta
Conductor: Kavi Pau
Choir: Natasha Agarwal, Shimona Rose Thevathasan, Eleanor Cramer, Clover Willis, Shivani Rattan, Serena Shah, Amaya Pitharas, Anneka Shah, Robin Datta, Edan Umrigar, Jaison Jeyaventhan, Abbas Khan, Noel Li, Krishnan Ram-Prasad, John Holland-Avery, Alexander Boukikov
Videography & Editing: Richard Summers
This Dhrupad (Indian classical vocal form) has been arranged for choir by Dr Kanniks Kannikeswaran, a composer of Indian descent based in the USA.
Traditionally, the Dhrupad would have been sung by a solo singer with a tabla or pakhawaj accompaniment, against the backdrop of a drone. The melodic, percussive and drone elements are interwoven throughout this choral arrangement, with the addition of some exciting harmonies that go beyond the confines on Raga Yaman (also known as the Lydian mode).
This recording features the Choir of Third Culture Collective. The singers are all trained in western classical singing, but mainly have South Asian Heritage. This combination of western bel canto training with the linguistic knowledge of the Indian subcontinent produced a sound world we haven't come across before!
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