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Anu- A tabla solo by Anuradha Pal

John | Wachita- USA | 04/13/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Excellent album- Anu- The art of Anuradha PalPerformance art in India is now being inscribed by the youthful, and feminine presence of Ms Anuradha Pal. A tabla exponent who has braved male bastions and asserted herself as an accompanist and solo artist, she is known for her outpoured enthusiasm and efflorescent flourish extracted from the tabla. Her concerns go beyond the skill of playing the simple language of the drums as she seeks the condition of tempestuous soundscapes. Her predilection for generating bold clusters of the sound syllables in all the taala-s and movements of the tabla, separate her from the ordinary musician. Her improvisations in the peshkaar, in the kayada, the relaa and the enflamed rendering of gat-s are sharply defined and elaborate building blocks, that verge on a baroque style she feels compelled to follow. She has recently released two more albums- Shanti - aspirituial essence of india and Stree Shakti- Indias's only all female percussion based vocal- Instrumental fusion group, both of which the music is directed by her. The release of all these CD's show her in her element as a composer-as well as a performer and designer with sharp awareness of modern times and music.'ANU'- A SCINTILLATING TABLA SOLO BY ANURADHA PAL An energetic embellishment of a tradition.The tabla solo CD with Vilambit teentaal, Jhaptaal and drut teentaal is an energetic embellishment of a tradition. Inheriting Ustad Allah Rakha's, Punjab baj (style), she takes the tradition forward with her own application to the typical thaap or open-palm stroke developing a sense of pace that balances over bol-baant and speed. Her individual contribution to the world of percussion sound is evident as an attention to complex calculations of taala-s with fractional settings as one and quarter or one and and three-fourth beats which are the mainstay of the aesthetics of her gharana. This is demonstrated by the rendering of a taal pattern as ground and then multiplying the format by doubling, trebling and quadrupling the marking of time. The anaghat or summation of the time cycle just off the precise beat is another characteristic of the art of this lineage of playing that has been cultivated by Anuradha, in keeping with the muscular approach of her taalim (tutelage). A great buy and a must for every music lover!!!"