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Accords Parfaits (meeting of great talents) Thibault
Cauvin and Pradeep Ratnayake:
Strings of difference
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Thibault and Pradeep in concert
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Accords Parfaits, the fusion concert recently held at Lionel Wendt
was a rare occasion where Sri Lankan concert goers had the opportunity
of witnessing live performance of two great talents and significantly
the fusion of two traditions.
Unlike the previous Pradeepanjalee concerts, two solo performances
were presented; Arabian Nights by Pradeep Ratnayake and Koyumbaba; Carlo
Domeniconi by Thibault Cauvin. For the Arabian Night, Pradeep has used a
'scale' in Arabian music. However, he has also used the techniques in
North Indian classical music and chords.
The experiment produced a unique piece of music with an entirely new
colour code in tones. Significantly, it is perhaps, for the first time
that such experiment was done on Sitar, an instrument imbedded in the
Hindustani Classical music. The audience, especially the large number of
French gave it good response. Thibault who is a classical guitarist
played his father's composition as his sole.
L'Hymene Bleu by Philipp Cauvin is a piece based on French classical
music. This was one of the most difficult pieces to be played on Sitar
as it was based on classical and designed for guitar. While it was
played on guitar with six strings, Pradeep had to play the complex
composition with two strings.
It was also for the first time that this piece was played on Sitar.
Re-created
Stallion in the field, a popular composition in Pradeepanjalee has
been re-created and was for the first time performed on guitar and
Sitar.
The characteristic difference between Pradeep's creation and Ravi
Shankar's performance with the Beatles was that the piece bore the Sri
Lankan signature. Ravi Shankar played a piece of popular music.
The item Boucle Aux Oiseaux D'En Face (Phillipe Cauvin) would have
been a novel experience for young Thibault as it was played with the
accompanying instrument Tabla. Here Tabla was played on North Indian
tradition.
Though the Root which is a popular piece in Pradeepanjalee, this time
Pradeep had incorporated not only the note-combinations from Arabian
music but also notes from traditional Vannam and Prashasti (songs
praising the king), into the piece.
In keeping with his innovative spirit, Pradeep concluded the piece
with a rag Manj Khamaj in order to convert the piece into a Rag. This
was also received well. Basically the folk melodies from Arabian, Indian
and Sri Lankan traditions were used for the piece.
Au Bonheur Du Palais (Phillip Cauvin) was also an extremely difficult
piece to be played on Sitar. For this piece alone, Pradeep and Thibault
practised for four days. However, the conclusion was a unique piece that
was definitely a remarkable encounter of traditions.
Rendez-Vous by Pradeep Ratnayake was based on romance.
This piece was based on Western tradition. Perhaps, this was a
masterpiece as Pradeep created this piece in classical Western tradition
and played Sitar accordingly. However, he used South Indian percussion
instrument Guttam and Tabla for the creation.
Though visiting French guitarists are not an estrange occurrence,
Thibault Cauvin is different in many aspects.
He is one of the youngest French guitarists who has earned a name in
the field of music for being extra-ordinarily talented and imaginative.
Perhaps, his forte seems to be his innate ability to adapt himself to
novel musical traditions that are rarely encountered in the French music
scene.
Thibault meeting with Pradeep Ratnayake who has embarked on a journey
of exploring the new vistas of the Sitar, a traditional Indian
instrument, is an important occasion in Sri Lankan contemporary music
scene.
It is not only a meeting of great talents in the opposite end of the
spectrum but also a journey into the intricate and subtle zest in fusion
music.
For Sri Lankan audience, the fusion of two traditions, namely the
Western and Occidental, produces a new set of notes that are defined not
in terms of chords but in terms of performance and the utilisation of
the techniques such as harmony.
Unique
However, the concert was marked not only for the diverse tones and
shades of colours that two performers created but also for the unique
fusion of heart and soul of the audience with magical spell of fusion
music; emanated from the strings of the Sitar at Pradeep's hand and
Thibault's amazingly practiced finger tips that came into contact with
the strings of the guitar.
One of the outcomes of the concert will be the CD that Pradeep and
Thibault are currently working on. The CD will comprise of pieces of
music played during the concert and will be the first of its kind as
guitar and sitar fused to make exceptional pieces of music.
As we turned back on the Lionel Wendt with the audience emptying the
auditorium that was enthralled by the remarkable combination of Pradeep
and Thibault, two cultural ambassadors, what struck us was the
difference of strings; a set on Sitar nurtured in Hindustani tradition
of music and another on guitar nurtured and flourished in the Western
traditional.
Was it the amalgamation of diverse traditions or of the great talents
which made the evening memorable for the audience or was it the
combination of both?
Indeewara Thilakarathne and Ranga Chandrarathne |
