Put on your dancing shoes

City-based jazz pianist Karim Ellaboudi is putting together a new ensemble that is sure to make you dance with their RnB renditions, disco covers and originals

When you watch city-based Karim Ellaboudi play the piano at a gig, it's easy to relate to the energy radiating from him. And those who have spotted this jazz pianist off stage, have also noticed his ablity to translate the same energy into impressive dance moves.

Now, he's all set to bring a set that promises to get you dancing with their nostalgia-induced list of covers and originals, with his new as yet unnamed ensemble, comprising Anubha Kaul (vocals), Marios Menelaou (bass) and Aron Nyiro (drums).

Aron Nyiro

"After moving to Mumbai in 2014 and pursuing music full-time, I found myself playing a much higher quality of traditional jazz, standards and Latin music than I did as a musician in my 20s. I also played RnB while performing with vocalist Vasundhara, and earlier, when I was in the UK," Ellaboudi tells us. Having focused on jazz for the last five years, he was keen to put together a band that would make people dance.

"When I go dancing in Mumbai, there are a few DJs I love dancing to. Band performances have a live feel to it, and people mostly watch. After that, the DJ gets on stage and people begin dancing. But live music has a much greater energy; something I observed when I was in the UK where people would dance to band performances as much as DJs. I wanted to recreate that experience for Mumbaikars," he shares.

Anubha Kaul

The band will start with covers and build a set that includes hits by Michael Jackson along with old-school classics. They will also add guitar, backing vocals and horns, while Ellaboudi will introduce a lot of brass and pop sounds on the synth and electronic piano. Vasundhara might get on board, too as a vocalist.

Though the band will start playing gigs only in November or December, rehearsals are already underway. "Rehearsing without a gig is nice because many musicians here get together for a gig, have a bunch of rehearsals, play the gig and don't play the set again. But we're planning to start with a couple of gigs in Mumbai; perform in Pune one weekend, and follow it up across weekends in Delhi, Bengaluru and Kolkata. The more often we perform, the better are the chances for our songs to evolve. Apart from improvising, this will also help tighten the sound. And when the music is of excellent quality, the gigs will pour in."

Marios Menelaou

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