The music industry is now at an age of digital distribution like never before! This has made it easier for independent musicians to build and foster an audience outside of the territories of record labels and industry politics. In a way, it has also introduced the audience to diverse music, creating an acceptance and appreciation for the same. Hence, young musicians are redefining music to create a confluence of musical traditions, “not fusion, not experimental but a confluence of musical traditions:, says Anisha Lakshmanan, who is currently in Bengaluru with her debut album Of Many, which too is available on the digital platforms like Spotify and OK Listen!.
Anisha completed a degree in Hindustani classical at Pune University and travelled to Berklee College of Music, Valencia, Spain for her master’s degree. She fondly remembers her time there saying “I performed solo for 5000 people with a 110 piece orchestra, and that was huge for me. Later, I performed an original to a similar audience and received a standing ovation and it left me in tears of joy”
Her debut album happened song by song; writing her first song at Coonoor, the second as part of a project at Berklee and so forth. “None of the songs were similar to each other. It was of many languages and musical traditions. It was my mom who realised the diversity and picked out the name Of Many, for the album,” she quips.
Of Many features songs in Tamil (Kadhal Idhu Thana), Hindi (Piya Mora, which was written about her late father, from the perspective of her mother) and English (Stranger in a Mask). Her music sensibilities runs from a convergence of Indian classical and western in Piya Mora and hip fusion in Raahi/Naadodi to pop in My World. “I thought my education at Berklee would make my music very western but instead, I learnt to bring my music with the west, and adapt their style in my own way,” she confesses.
In the end, she’s more than an independent singer. Her EP feature musicians from 16 countries and she performs with a band. Comprising of Siddhant Vetekar on bass, Subid Khan on the guitar, Siddhant Patra on the drums, Smarajeet Bhattacharya on the keys, and Sigmund Quadros on sound, she says, “Our band doesn’t have a name per se, but each of my musician brings a little bit of themselves into the songs.”
After performing six gigs in five cities, the tour will come to an end on May 26 at Pune. “ Live Shows are something I eagerly look forward to. I love the different kinds of reactions elicited by the audience,” she admits.
