Global Music Institute organizes one-of-its-kind masterclass by the world music project, Khamira
- Khamira is a collaboration between famous musicians from India and Wales including GMI founder Aditya Balani and Suhail Yusuf Khan, an ex-faculty member of the Institute
- As part of their India tour 2017, Khamira also released a CD with the same name
Delhi: A one-of-its-kind masterclass was organized by the Global Music Institute (GMI) at their campus in NCR, in collaboration with the world music project, Khamira. The band, comprising musicians from India and Wales, also released their first eponymous titled album in India on Tuesday, 16th January 2018. Khamira’s genre-bending sound is the result of open minded musicians combining to create a fusion of Indian Classical, Welsh folk, jazz and rock.
The project is the brainchild of leading Indian musicians Aditya Balani (guitar), who is also the Founder of the Global Music Institute (GMI); Suhail Yusuf Khan (sarangi and vocals), an ex-faculty member of GMI; and Vishal Nagar (tabla). These contemporary musicians of repute joined forces with four ground-breaking and genre-bending musicians from Wales, UK to create the unique sound that is Khamira.
The band is on an India tour for the year 2017 and the masterclass was initiated by Aditya Balani, for students of the GMI, which is a member of the Berklee Global Partners. Aditya Balani is a Berklee graduate and a unique performer/composer/educator who straddles genres and styles. His solo ‘Constants and variables’ was chosen as one of the top 15 EPs by Rolling Stone India in 2015. Suhail Yusuf Khan is a Sarangi virtuoso, a vocalist, and a leading musician of this generation. Vishal Nagar, based out of San Francisco, is in high demand in the Bay area and accompanies numerous Indian, world, and jazz projects. The Welsh band members of Khamira, Tomos Williams (trumpet), Dave Jones (piano), Aidan Thorne (bass) and Mark O’Connor (drums) are all well-known and in demand musicians.
Speaking about this, Aditya Balani, Founder, GMI; and member of Khamira, said, “It was a Burum tour of India in 2014 that initiated this relationship and the concept behind Khamira. I had directed a masterclass presented by Burum (the band of Welsh musicians) at the GMI in 2014. The idea stemmed from creating a unique project that would seamlessly blend different sounds and also integrate two disciplines of music. This masterclass with such talented and reputed musicians from across the globe, as part of this international music project, is another feather in GMI’s cap. This idea is in alignment with the philosophy of GMI – that of exposing our students to global music and music education; facilitating their interaction with world musicians of repute; and breaking grounds in learning contemporary music. I am happy to be a part of this initiative. The CD has received tremendous response in the UK and we are hoping for an even better response in India.”
While the masterclass was a unique blend of theory, creativity, and sounds, the CD release event saw a scintillating performance by Khamira. Passages of melancholic Welsh folk music and Indian classical virtuosity combined to create an effect that was breathtaking. With all the musicians bringing their skills and influences to bear on the band sound, Khamira’s music is somewhere between the cinematic scope of the Pat Metheny Group and the grunge funk of Miles Davis’ 70s band. The album is available to stream from AppleMusic, Spotify, Deezer, and is available to buy in hardcopy. One can also download it directly from the band at https://khamira.bandcamp.com/releases or from CD Baby. Khamira will tour India in January 2018 to support the release of the CD.