Toronto Tabla Ensemble

Canadian JUNO Award-nominated world ensemble Toronto Tabla Ensemble is having a party with some Unexpected Guests in this, their newest album release — available now!

Across the release’s seven tracks, the critically acclaimed group of artists weave a variety of instruments, from percussion to bagpipe, piano to taiko, sarod to flute, and more, with their signature sound rooted by the traditional tabla.

“This album is a simple one,” TTE Founder and Artistic Director and Roy Thomson Hall Award winner Ritesh Das says. ”Most of the tracks are in very straightforward 4/4 grooves. On our other albums, you had tracks with different time signatures that made it really intellectual and complicated.

“I wanted this one to be something that anyone can sit back and listen to and enjoy.”

Along with delivering the most approachable songs in their vast repertoire, Unexpected Guests is their latest in a series of boldly collaborative and sonically expansive works. In keeping with its eye-opener title, the immersive and diverse album finds Das and the TTE hosting a party of musical visitors: Enter The Haggis bagpipe player Craig Downie, Japanese Taiko Ensemble Nagata Shachu, singer Maryem Hassan Tollar, violinist Raaginder Singh Momi, flautist Alysha Addetia and more. more

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Sunday, September 09, 2018   JUNO Award Nominated Toronto Tabla Ensemble Release New Album   Bhumika Marks Release #6 for Canada’s Foremost World Music Artists — Available Now!   JUNO Award nominee Toronto Tabla Ensemble have released their newest album, Bhumika — available now!   Led by Artistic Director and Canadian tabla master Ritesh Das, TTE is the area’s foremost non-profit charitable organization of its kind. Das’ groundbreaking blend of world music influences — from Japanese Taiko, to Celtic, to Flamenco, to rock n’ roll — with traditional Hindustani instruments and the tabla have been long-lauded for introducing the style to the mainstream public.   Also released is the music video for “Faceoff”, described as “an energetic meeting between Hindustani and Carnatic rhythmic systems,” by Das. “It’s a song where we translated traditional compositions and classic grooves between the tabla, mridangam, and violin.” The music video features San Francisco-based kathak dancer Labonee Mohanta and violin player Raginder Singh Momi, two of the Ensemble’s newest guest artists.  Featuring intimately inviting closeups of five players’ hands and faces, the video for “Faceoff” slowly pans out to reveal the setting for song play. “The mystery builds. There’s dramatic lighting, intense shadows, and ‘looks’ from the players.   Suddenly we see a top view of a beautiful dancer clad in a red dress sitting in a white space. As if broken from deep meditation the dancer gets up and decides to join the players.  What ensues is best revealed within the video’s start-to-end, but rest assured it speaks truth to its title.   “Faceoff” is the newest single of what marks Toronto Tabla Ensemble’s sixth full-length studio album. Produced in dedication and inspiration of Das’ brother, kathak legend Acharya Chitresh Das, and Das’ guru, tabla master Maestro Swapan Chaudhuri, Das shares how they “greatly influenced (my) identity as a composer.” Maestro Chaudhuri’s own son, Nilan, is a recent addition to the TTE and plays drum kit and tabla on the song “Sare Nau”. It’s Das’ imaginative and unabating artistic vision that lies at Bhumika ’s core; TTE’s cohesive display of intensity and complexity in North Indian classical rhythm through collaboration with other World music forms means each song draws from the tabla’s solo repertoire and the mathematical complexity of Indian rhythmic cycles.  Under Das’ guidance, guest artists on the release contribute to Bhumika ’s musical magnitude in a way that supports and suits the theory and style of classical Indian music, while lending a transformative synergy all their own.  “We have a mission to share the depth and excitement of classical Indian music, as well as culture and history, with audiences around the world,” Das enthuses. “The result is a novel, contemporary sound.” Toronto Tabla Ensemble was nominated for a JUNO Award for their album Firedance , and their compositions have been licensed for numerous commercials and films. TTE created the theme music for CBC Radio’s daily Metro Morning .  Bhumika is available now.  For more information, please contact:  Melissa Das-Arp 1 (888) 958-2252 melissa@tablaensemble.com   more

oronto Tabla Ensemble releases new single Nine-and-a-Half (Sare Nau) The Toronto Tabla Ensemble (TTE) has released another exciting single titled Sare Nau, written in a rare rhythmic cycle of nine-and-a-half beats. The piece was composed by the Ensemble’s artistic director Ritesh Das and features an energetic layering of rhythms from the tabla, mridangam, ghatam, and drum kit.  Sare Nau is the first collaboration between the TTE and drummer Nilan Chaudhuri, who transcribed the entire composition from the language of tabla to perform it on the drum kit. Chaudhuri is also an accomplished tabla player and the son of legendary tabla maestro, Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri. His background and mastery of both instruments has allowed him to provide a unique presence and sound on the track. The single is the second to be heard from TTE’s sixth album, Bhumika scheduled for release in early 2018. The album focuses on the technique, energy, and versatility of classical North Indian rhythms augmented through collaboration and contemporary arrangements. Other guest artists include sarod player, Swapnamoy Banerjee, composer and multi-instrumentalist, Donald Quan, and Japanese taiko master, Kiyoshi Nagata. Since 1991, the TTE has helped bring North Indian classical music to the mainstream in Toronto with its innovative concerts and recordings. The Ensemble has produced three music videos and five original albums, including the Juno-nominated Firedance. The Ensemble’s original music has been used in numerous films and commercials, and in 2003 the Ensemble was commissioned to create the current theme music for CBC Radio’s daily morning show, Metro Morning. For more information on the new album and upcoming TTE concerts, visit: www.torontotabla.com more