Mumbai: Of Bebop, Swing and new sounds

The Foxtrot Project album is all set to redefine Jazz in India for today

Rishie Raajâu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Sachdeva (extreme right) in performance with his band in New Delhi

What is Jazz? Is it only about standards, syncopations and Swing? People in India often feel a jerk when they hear the term. There are factions within the genre and its takers; some stamp it as Jazz only if it follows standards, while others accept all its branches. To make Jazz accessible to laymen, as well as all categories of listeners, an album — The Foxtrot Project — is about to release its second edition this year. It is a Jazz compilation album (Amuze Records) comprising original tunes by musicians from all over India. The first edition came out two years ago.

Arijit Chakraborty (centre) monitors a live recording of The Bodhisattwaâu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Trio

Idea behind the album
Arijit Chakraborty, the proprietor of the record label, picked up the baton to run the Jazz race in an industry swallowed by profit-making bodies. “I came across many Jazz musicians who told me that no label in India is interested in releasing their albums. It is all about vested interests that later ruins the relationship with the label. It prompted me to take this as a mission,” he explains.

His ear for the genre helped him hunt experimental Jazz acts in the country; Syncopation (New Delhi), The Bodhisattwa Trio (Kolkata), Maarten Visser & Holger Jetter (Chennai), Srinjay Banerjee with The Beer Puppets (Kolkata/Bengaluru) to name a few.

The artistes are bringing their own take on the genre. The Bodhisattwa Trio is more of a Rock-inclined Jazz outfit whereas Syncopation borrows from Bebop.

Maarten Visser & Holger Jetter are a Chennai-based duo

Breaking the myth
“Jazz is a misused term. There are many who have a misconception about the genre. They feel if you play loud with your distortion pedal, it is not Jazz anymore. They associate Jazz with Swing and standards,” says Bodhisattwa Ghosh, the maverick guitarist of the trio, who once flaunted thick, long hair during his stint with Insomnia. The 33-year-old took up Jazz after juggling with Rock bands for about a decade.

His ensemble is contributing two tracks for the album. “We made a new track, Convergence, for this project. The second song, Cronos, will be a version of one of our live recordings,” says Ghosh, who is keen to change people’s mindset with the album. “Modern Jazz is still unknown. There have been acts like
Mahavishnu Orchestra, who are heavy and aggressive yet Jazz,” he adds.

Rishie Raaj Sachdeva (guitarist of Syncopation) — who played with hardcore Jazz musicians in Australia during his college days — says it is all about interpretation now. “Jazz is about what happened, what people are trying to do today is interpret. But I believe if one is saying that the music he plays is Jazz, it needs to have an element of Jazz in it. You can’t call anything Jazz,” says the 44-year-old Sachdeva.

Bodhisattwa Ghosh believes the second edition of The Foxtrot Project will set a new example for modern Jazz in India

Nu sounds
Syncopation is adding the tracks, Home Grown and Nu Jazz, to the venture. “The first one is an emotive track with twists and turns. It has elements of Bebop. The second is entirely from the roots,” he shares, stressing on the importance of bringing the best of all worlds together in one song.

“If I have to expand on my musical horizons, all my influences will be revealed there. We have all grown up on Rock music; those songs from the past will make their appearances. But as I said earlier, there will be nuances of Swing and chordal changes,” says Sachdeva.

After wrapping up, the label intends to arrange an album release tour in cities like Delhi, Pune, Bengaluru and Chennai. They are yet to zero in on a venue in Mumbai.

“We couldn’t find any venue, who would be interested in supporting our cause,” says Chakraborty.

Full line-up of the album

• Syncopation
• Rohanâu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Ganguli
• Neelâu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Sarkar Project
• Arunava Chatterjee
• The Bodhisattwaâu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Trio
• Rahulâu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Guhaâu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Roy
• Maarten Visser & Holger Jetter
• Srinjay Banerjee with The Beer Puppets

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