Louis Banks
Encyclopedia
Louis Banks is a Grammy Award
nominated film composer, record producer
, jazz
musician
-keyboardist
and singer
. Proficient in genres like Indipop, modern progressive and contemporary jazz
and Indo jazz fusion
, he has often been referred to as the Godfather of Indian Jazz.
ese trumpeter moved to Calcutta in the early 1940s to join a European Band in the city, subsequently he changed his name to George Banks. His grandfather, Bakhat Bahadur Budapirti, had composed the Nepalese national anthem Shreeman Gambhira Nepali which was the official anthem from 1962 to 2006.
He did his schooling at St. Roberts School, Darjeeling
. Sensing Banks's interest in western music when at the age of thirteen he started playing the guitar and the trumpet, his father changed his name to Louis Banks in tribute to Louis Armstrong
. This change of name gave the young Banks the confidence to make it big in the world of western music. He started receiving piano lessons from his father and also played in his band. Banks went to college at St. Joseph's College
in Darjeeling, where he continued to study piano.
' band, he performed at the Soaltee Hotel in Kathmandu, for three years. During his stay there he rejected an offer from R.D.Burman to work with him in Bombay. Not happy in Kathmandu, Banks moved base to Calcutta in 1971, where he met singer Pam Craine and saxophonist Braz Gonsalves and formed the The Louis Banks Brotherhood. The band began performing at the Hindustan Hotel which led to an invitation to play at the Blue Fox Restaurant, a popular night club famous for its patronage of live western music. From there on he was able to get work composing advertisement jingles and stage musicals
.
In 1974, Banks approached R.D.Burman, who was a frequent visitor to the Blue Fox Restaurant and asked Burman to let him join his troupe in Bombay, Burman happily took him in. In Bombay, Banks was introduced to different world music genres and he was able to thrive in the rich music scene. As he cemented his place and reputation in the city he popularized live jazz at Bombay nightclubs. In 1979, along with Goan saxophonist Braz Gonsalves he formed the 'Indo-Jazz Ensemble', composing music on Indian classical
scales and Jazz rhythms, incorporating Indian instruments like Ghatam
and Thavil
. In February 1980, he was a member of the jazz quartet which was part of the orchestra to perform with Ravi Shankar
in his noted suite Jazzmine at the 'Jazz Yatra' Festival. He also formed a group called Sangam teaming up with Carnatic
classical vocalist, Ramamani and together they performed about 60 concerts all over Europe and participated in festivals, the group however was short-lived as Ramamani was from Bangalore, while Louis was based in Bombay and the logistics became too difficult. In 2005, Banks formed a group 'Rhythm Asia' with Taufeeq Qureshi on the tabla
and Niladri Kumar on the sitar
.
In 1988, Banks composed the tunes to the iconic Mile Sur Mera Tumhara
, a short film on National integration for Doordarshan
, at that time India's sole broadcaster
. Due to its popularity, the tune has often been dubbed the unofficial Indian anthem. Banks would go on to provide music to similar patriotic short films like Desh raag and Spread the light of freedom. He formed a new band called 'Silk' with Shankar Mahadevan
, Sivamani
and Karl Peters. He has provided the musical score to a number of Hindi films and two English films Bokshua, The Myth and God Only Knows, a comedy satire directed by Bharat Dabholkar. He also provided the score for Roshni a musical, directed by Alyque Padamsee
. He is working on a progressive fusion jazz album titled Labyrinth with his son's band 'Nexus'.
His 2008 collaboration as co producer, arranger and pianist/keyboards on the album Miles from India, a tribute to the founder of modern jazz Miles Davies was nominated for the Grammy Award
's 2008 in the Best Contemporary Jazz Album
category. In the same category, John McLaughlin
's fusion album Floating Pointwas also nominated, Banks was the featured keyboardist
on the album.
. They have four children, Andre, Gino Banks, Neil, and Monique. Gino Banks is an accomplished drummer and member of the fusion band 'Nexus'. Banks lives and works from Juhu, Mumbai
.
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! Year !! Film
|-
| 1982 || An August Requiem
|-
| 1986 || New Delhi Times
|-
| 1986 || Kala Dhanda Goray Log
|-
| 1991 || Hum
|-
| 1991 || Lakshmanrekha
|-
| 1992 || Suryavanshi
|-
| 1992 || Aasmaan Se Gira
|-
| 1993 || Divya Shakti
|-
| 1994 || Insaniyat
|-
| 1995 || God and Gun
|-
| 1995 || Barsaat
|-
| 1998 || Duplicate
|-
| 2002 || Bokshu the Myth
|-
| 2004 || God Only Knows!
|-
|}
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! Year !! Album
|-
| 1997 || The Freedom Run
|-
| 2005 || Love is in the air - Music for romance 1
|-
| 2005 || Love is in the air - Music for romance 2
|-
| 2008 || Miles from India
|-
| 2008 || Floating point - John McLaughlin
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Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nominated film composer, record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
-keyboardist
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
and singer
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
. Proficient in genres like Indipop, modern progressive and contemporary jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
and Indo jazz fusion
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
, he has often been referred to as the Godfather of Indian Jazz.
Early life
Banks was born to Sarswati and George Banks, a musician, in his hometown of Darjeeling. His early music education was at the hands of his father and neighbor Mrs. Myers. His father Pushkar Bahadur, a NepalNepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
ese trumpeter moved to Calcutta in the early 1940s to join a European Band in the city, subsequently he changed his name to George Banks. His grandfather, Bakhat Bahadur Budapirti, had composed the Nepalese national anthem Shreeman Gambhira Nepali which was the official anthem from 1962 to 2006.
He did his schooling at St. Roberts School, Darjeeling
St. Roberts School, Darjeeling
St. Robert's School is a boys' school in Darjeeling, West Bengal, India, which opened in February 1934.St. Robert's School opened in February 1934 in Halcyon House, Darjeeling....
. Sensing Banks's interest in western music when at the age of thirteen he started playing the guitar and the trumpet, his father changed his name to Louis Banks in tribute to Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
. This change of name gave the young Banks the confidence to make it big in the world of western music. He started receiving piano lessons from his father and also played in his band. Banks went to college at St. Joseph's College
St Joseph's College, Darjeeling
St Joseph's College is a government-aided, Christian minority, co-educational college in Darjeeling, West Bengal, India. The college campus is located about 3 km north from downtown Darjeeling. The college was established in 1888 along with the School Department and was affiliated to Calcutta...
in Darjeeling, where he continued to study piano.
Career
After college Banks moved to Kathmandu with his father's band and decided to become a full-time musician, it was there he discovered Jazz music. In the late 1960s, as a band member of the legendary 'Weather ReportWeather Report
Weather Report was an American jazz-rock band of the 1970s and early 1980s. The band was co-led by the Austrian-born keyboard player Joe Zawinul and the American saxophonist Wayne Shorter...
' band, he performed at the Soaltee Hotel in Kathmandu, for three years. During his stay there he rejected an offer from R.D.Burman to work with him in Bombay. Not happy in Kathmandu, Banks moved base to Calcutta in 1971, where he met singer Pam Craine and saxophonist Braz Gonsalves and formed the The Louis Banks Brotherhood. The band began performing at the Hindustan Hotel which led to an invitation to play at the Blue Fox Restaurant, a popular night club famous for its patronage of live western music. From there on he was able to get work composing advertisement jingles and stage musicals
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
.
In 1974, Banks approached R.D.Burman, who was a frequent visitor to the Blue Fox Restaurant and asked Burman to let him join his troupe in Bombay, Burman happily took him in. In Bombay, Banks was introduced to different world music genres and he was able to thrive in the rich music scene. As he cemented his place and reputation in the city he popularized live jazz at Bombay nightclubs. In 1979, along with Goan saxophonist Braz Gonsalves he formed the 'Indo-Jazz Ensemble', composing music on Indian classical
Indian classical music
The origins of Indian classical music can be found in the Vedas, which are the oldest scriptures in the Hindu tradition. Indian classical music has also been significantly influenced by, or syncretised with, Indian folk music and Persian music. The Samaveda, one of the four Vedas, describes music...
scales and Jazz rhythms, incorporating Indian instruments like Ghatam
Ghatam
The ghaṭam is a percussion instrument used in the Carnatic music of South India. Its analogue in Rajasthan is known as the madga and pani mataqa "water jug"....
and Thavil
Thavil
The thavil or tavil is a barrel shaped drum from South India. It is used in temple, folk and Carnatic music, often accompanying the nadaswaram. The thavil and the nadaswaram are essential ingredients of traditional festivals and ceremonies in South India.The thavil consists of a cylindrical shell...
. In February 1980, he was a member of the jazz quartet which was part of the orchestra to perform with Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar , often referred to by the title Pandit, is an Indian musician and composer who plays the plucked string instrument sitar. He has been described as the best known contemporary Indian musician by Hans Neuhoff in Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart.Shankar was born in Varanasi and spent...
in his noted suite Jazzmine at the 'Jazz Yatra' Festival. He also formed a group called Sangam teaming up with Carnatic
Carnatic music
Carnatic music is a system of music commonly associated with the southern part of the Indian subcontinent, with its area roughly confined to four modern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu...
classical vocalist, Ramamani and together they performed about 60 concerts all over Europe and participated in festivals, the group however was short-lived as Ramamani was from Bangalore, while Louis was based in Bombay and the logistics became too difficult. In 2005, Banks formed a group 'Rhythm Asia' with Taufeeq Qureshi on the tabla
Tabla
The tabla is a popular Indian percussion instrument used in Hindustani classical music and in popular and devotional music of the Indian subcontinent. The instrument consists of a pair of hand drums of contrasting sizes and timbres...
and Niladri Kumar on the sitar
Sitar
The 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
.
In 1988, Banks composed the tunes to the iconic Mile Sur Mera Tumhara
Mile Sur Mera Tumhara
"Ek sur" , or "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara" as it is better known, is an Indian song and accompanying video promoting national integration and unity in diversity....
, a short film on National integration for Doordarshan
DoorDarshan
Doordarshan is an Indian public service broadcaster, a division of Prasar Bharati. It is one of the largest broadcasting organizations in India in terms of the infrastructure of studios and transmitters. Recently, it has also started Digital Terrestrial Transmitters. On September 15, 2009,...
, at that time India's sole broadcaster
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
. Due to its popularity, the tune has often been dubbed the unofficial Indian anthem. Banks would go on to provide music to similar patriotic short films like Desh raag and Spread the light of freedom. He formed a new band called 'Silk' with Shankar Mahadevan
Shankar Mahadevan
Shankar Mahadevan is an Indian music composer and singer. He is a part of the Shankar Ehsaan Loy trio team that composes for Indian films and a playback singer.-Early life:...
, Sivamani
Sivamani
Anandan Sivamani , popularly known as Sivamani, is a percussionist based in India. He plays many instruments including drums, Octoban, Darbuka, Udukai, and Kanjira, as well as many more. He performed drumming during the IPL Championships in 2008 & 2010. He is affiliated to the Chennai Super Kings...
and Karl Peters. He has provided the musical score to a number of Hindi films and two English films Bokshua, The Myth and God Only Knows, a comedy satire directed by Bharat Dabholkar. He also provided the score for Roshni a musical, directed by Alyque Padamsee
Alyque Padamsee
Alyque Padamsee is an Indian theater personality and ad film maker. He is probably best known in the English-speaking world for playing Muhammad Ali Jinnah in the film Gandhi...
. He is working on a progressive fusion jazz album titled Labyrinth with his son's band 'Nexus'.
His 2008 collaboration as co producer, arranger and pianist/keyboards on the album Miles from India, a tribute to the founder of modern jazz Miles Davies was nominated for the Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
's 2008 in the Best Contemporary Jazz Album
Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album
The Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album was an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for works containing quality contemporary jazz performances...
category. In the same category, John McLaughlin
John McLaughlin (musician)
John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer...
's fusion album Floating Pointwas also nominated, Banks was the featured keyboardist
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
on the album.
Personal life
He is married to Lorraine originally from IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. They have four children, Andre, Gino Banks, Neil, and Monique. Gino Banks is an accomplished drummer and member of the fusion band 'Nexus'. Banks lives and works from Juhu, Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
.
Filmography
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! Year !! Film
|-
| 1982 || An August Requiem
|-
| 1986 || New Delhi Times
|-
| 1986 || Kala Dhanda Goray Log
|-
| 1991 || Hum
Hum (film)
Hum is a 1991 Hindi Language film directed by Mukul S. Anand. It stars Amitabh Bachchan, Rajinikanth, Govinda, Kimi Katkar, Shilpa Shirodkar, Deepa Sahi and Danny Denzongpa. This was the last successful film for Bachchan in the early 90s before he announced his temporary retirement immediately...
|-
| 1991 || Lakshmanrekha
|-
| 1992 || Suryavanshi
|-
| 1992 || Aasmaan Se Gira
|-
| 1993 || Divya Shakti
Divya Shakti
Divya Shakti is a 1993 Bollywood action film directed and written by Sameer Malkan. The film stars Ajay Devgan, Raveena Tandon and Satyendra Kapoor.-Cast:* Ajay Devgan as Prashant Varma* Raveena Tandon as Priya* Satyendra Kapoor as Monto...
|-
| 1994 || Insaniyat
Insaniyat
Insaniyat is an Urdu word meaning Humanity and is the title of the following Hindi films :-*Insaniyat starring Dilip Kumar and Dev Anand* Insaaniyat starring Shashi Kapoor*Insaniyat starring Kimi Katkar...
|-
| 1995 || God and Gun
|-
| 1995 || Barsaat
Barsaat
Barsaat is a 1949 Bollywood film directed by Raj Kapoor. The film stars the famous duo of Kapoor and Nargis as well as Prem Nath. It was also the introduction of actress Nimmi in her first film role. Barsaat was one of the first major hit films directed by Kapoor...
|-
| 1998 || Duplicate
Duplicate
Duplicate is an Indian Bollywood film released on May 8, 1998. The movie was directed by Mahesh Bhatt and stars Shahrukh Khan in a double role opposite Juhi Chawla and Sonali Bendre. It was produced by Karan Johar's Dharma Productions and marks Shahrukh's first of five collaborations with the...
|-
| 2002 || Bokshu the Myth
|-
| 2004 || God Only Knows!
|-
|}
Discography
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! Year !! Album
|-
| 1997 || The Freedom Run
|-
| 2005 || Love is in the air - Music for romance 1
|-
| 2005 || Love is in the air - Music for romance 2
|-
| 2008 || Miles from India
|-
| 2008 || Floating point - John McLaughlin
|-
|}
External links
- Official Website
- Interview with Louis Banks at The Times of IndiaThe Times of IndiaThe Times of India is an Indian English-language daily newspaper. TOI has the largest circulation among all English-language newspaper in the world, across all formats . It is owned and managed by Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd...