Trilok Gurtu
Encyclopedia
Trilok Gurtu (born in Mumbai
, India
on 30 October 1951) is a Kashmiri
India
n percussionist and composer, whose work has blended the music of his homeland
with jazz fusion
, world music
and other genres.
He has released his own albums and has collaborated with many artists, including Terje Rypdal
, Gary Moore
, John McLaughlin
, Jan Garbarek
, Joe Zawinul
, Bill Laswell
, Maria João
& Mário Laginha
, and Robert Miles
.
. His mother, singer Shobha Gurtu
, encouraged him to learn playing tabla
, and he studied playing the instrument under Shah Abdul Karim
.
in the 1970s, and developed interest in jazz. In a 1995 television special on Jimi Hendrix
, Gurtu mentioned having initially learned western music without awareness of overdubbing
, which, he said, forced him to learn multiple parts which most musicians would have never attempted. In the 1970s, he played with Charlie Mariano
, John Tchicai
, Terje Rypdal
, and Don Cherry
.
One of Gurtu's earliest recordings was around 1977 in the record Apo-Calypso in an album of the German ethnic fusion band, Embryo. His mother also sang in that record, and later joined him in his first solo CD, Usfret.
In the 1980s, Gurtu played with Swiss drummer Charly Antolini
and with John McLaughlin
in McLaughlin's trio, accompanied variously by bassists Jonas Hellborg
, Kai Eckhardt
, and Dominique DiPiazza
. The line-up with Hellborg performed at least one concert opening for Miles Davis
in Berkeley, California in 1988.
Collaboration between Gurtu and McLaughlin included vocal improvisations using the Indian tala talk method of oral drumming notations for teaching drum patterns. Sometimes, Eckhardt would join in with hip-hop beat-box vocals for a three-way vocal percussion jam, while Gurtu and McLaughlin would throw in a few amusing words such as some Japanese brand names mixed with some Indian words.
Some of the unusual aspects of Gurtu's drum playing include playing, without a drum stool, in a half-kneeling position on the floor, and use of an unconventional kick drum that resembles a large drum head with a kick-pedal, and a mix of tablas and western drums. Gurtu's unique percussion signature involves dipping cymbals and strings of shells into a bucket of water to create a shimmering effect.
Gurtu joined Oregon after the death of drummer Collin Walcott
. He played in three records produced by this band: Ecotopia (1987), 45th Parallel (1989), and Always, Never and Forever (1991).
In the early 1990s Gurtu resumed his career as a solo artist and a bandleader
. Various noted musicians have backed him in a number of his CD releases.
In 1999, Zakir Hussain
and Bill Laswell founded a musical group, Tabla Beat Science
, which played a mixture of Hindustani music, Asian underground, ambient, Drum and Bass, and Electronica. Gurtu joined this group along with Karsh Kale
and Talvin Singh
. The group released three albums before going dormant in late 2003.http://www.uprisemgt.com/artists/tbs/tbstour.php
In 2004, Gurtu created an album, Miles Gurtu
, with Robert Miles
. His collaboration with the Arkè String Quartet began in 2007 with the release of the album Arkeology.
In 2010 Trilok Gurtu played into the album Piano Car, opera of minimalist composer Stefano Ianne with Ricky Portera, Nick Beggs
(Kajagoogoo
), Mario Marzi, Terl Bryant
(John Paul Jones
/Led Zeppelin
), John De Leo.
, 1999; Best Overall Percussionist winner, Carlton Television
Multicultural Music Awards, 2001; Best Percussionist winner, Down Beat
's Critics Poll for 1994, 1995, 1996, 1999 http://www.downbeat.com/default.asp?sect=stories&subsect=story_detail&sid=725, 2000, 2001, and 2002 http://www.downbeat.com/default.asp?sect=stories&subsect=story_detail&sid=728; and Best Asia/Pacific Artist nominee, BBC Radio
3 World for 2002, 2003, and 2004.
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...
, India
India
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...
on 30 October 1951) is a Kashmiri
Kashmiri Pandit
The Kashmiri Pandits are a Hindu Brahmin community originating from Kashmir, a mountainous region in South Asia.-Background:The Hindu caste system of the region was influenced by the influx of Buddhism from the time of Asoka, around the third century BCE, and a consequence of this was that the...
India
India
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...
n percussionist and composer, whose work has blended the music of his homeland
Music of India
The music of India includes multiple varieties of folk, popular, pop, classical music and R&B. India's classical music tradition, including Carnatic and Hindustani music, has a history spanning millennia and developed over several eras. It remains fundamental to the lives of Indians today as...
with 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,...
, world music
World music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
and other genres.
He has released his own albums and has collaborated with many artists, including Terje Rypdal
Terje Rypdal
Terje Rypdal is a Norwegian guitarist and composer. Most of his music has been released on albums of the German record label ECM. Rypdal has collaborated both as a guitarist and as a composer with other ECM artists such as Ketil Bjørnstad and David Darling...
, Gary Moore
Gary Moore
Robert William Gary Moore , better known simply as Gary Moore, was a Northern Irish musician from Belfast, best recognised as a blues rock guitarist and singer....
, John McLaughlin
John McLaughlin (musician)
John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer...
, Jan Garbarek
Jan Garbarek
Jan Garbarek is a Norwegian tenor and soprano saxophonist, active in the jazz, classical, and world music genres. Garbarek was born in Mysen, Norway, the only child of a former Polish prisoner of war Czesław Garbarek and a Norwegian farmer's daughter...
, Joe Zawinul
Joe Zawinul
Josef Erich Zawinul was an Austrian-American jazz keyboardist and composer.First coming to prominence with saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, Zawinul went on to play with trumpeter Miles Davis, and to become one of the creators of jazz fusion, an innovative musical genre that combined jazz with...
, Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell is an American bassist, producer and record label owner....
, Maria João
Maria João
Maria João is a Portuguese jazz singer.She is known for her vocal flexibility and improvisational skills. While normally considered a jazz singer, her music incorporates a mix of folk/ethnic music, modern jazz, and the avant-garde...
& Mário Laginha
Mário Laginha
Mário João Laginha dos Santos, OIH , piano player and composer, is one of the most creative contemporary Portuguese jazz musicians. He is mostly recognized for his recurrent collaborations with fellow Portuguese jazz singer Maria João, with whom he recorded over a dozen discs and toured Portugal...
, and Robert Miles
Robert Miles
Robert Miles is an Italian record producer, composer, musician and DJ in electronica and alternative music.-Biography:...
.
Early life
Born in a Hindu household to famous parents,Gurtu attended Don Bosco High School in MumbaiMumbai
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...
. His mother, singer Shobha Gurtu
Shobha Gurtu
Shobha Gurtu was an Indian singer in the light Hindustani classical style. Though she had equal command over pure classical style, it was with light classical music that she received her fame, and in time came to be known as the Thumri Queen, and for the ‘Abhinaya’ ang in her full-throated voice...
, encouraged him to learn playing 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 he studied playing the instrument under Shah Abdul Karim
Shah Abdul Karim
Shah Abdul Karim , was one of the most famous legends of Bangladeshi folk music. He specialized in Bengali Baul music. Born and brought up in the village of Ujan Dhol, in Derai Upazila of Sunamganj, he lived there until his death. He was awarded the Ekushey Padok in the year 2001 for his...
.
Career
Gurtu began playing western drum kitDrum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
in the 1970s, and developed interest in jazz. In a 1995 television special on Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
, Gurtu mentioned having initially learned western music without awareness of overdubbing
Overdubbing
Overdubbing is a technique used by recording studios to add a supplementary recorded sound to a previously recorded performance....
, which, he said, forced him to learn multiple parts which most musicians would have never attempted. In the 1970s, he played with Charlie Mariano
Charlie Mariano
Carmine Ugo Mariano was an American jazz alto saxophonist. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts and died in Cologne, Germany.-Biography:Mariano was the son of Italian immigrants....
, John Tchicai
John Tchicai
John Martin Tchicai is a Danish jazz saxophonist. He was one of the earliest European free jazz musicians. He is of Danish and Congolese descent....
, Terje Rypdal
Terje Rypdal
Terje Rypdal is a Norwegian guitarist and composer. Most of his music has been released on albums of the German record label ECM. Rypdal has collaborated both as a guitarist and as a composer with other ECM artists such as Ketil Bjørnstad and David Darling...
, and Don Cherry
Don Cherry (jazz)
Donald Eugene Cherry was an innovative African-American jazz cornetist whose career began with a long association with saxophonist Ornette Coleman. He went on to live in many parts of the world and work with a wide variety of musicians.-Biography:Cherry was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and...
.
One of Gurtu's earliest recordings was around 1977 in the record Apo-Calypso in an album of the German ethnic fusion band, Embryo. His mother also sang in that record, and later joined him in his first solo CD, Usfret.
In the 1980s, Gurtu played with Swiss drummer Charly Antolini
Charly Antolini
Charly Antolini is a Swiss jazz drummer.Antolini started playing the traditional Swiss Basler drum and in 1956 went to Paris where he played with Sidney Bechet, Bill Coleman among others, and playing in the Oldtime Jazz Band "The Tremble Kids" with trumpeter Oscar Klein and clarinettist Werner...
and with John McLaughlin
John McLaughlin (musician)
John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer...
in McLaughlin's trio, accompanied variously by bassists Jonas Hellborg
Jonas Hellborg
Jonas Hellborg is a Swedish bass guitarist. He has collaborated with John McLaughlin, Ustad Sultan Khan, Fazal Qureshi, Bill Laswell, Shawn Lane, Jens Johansson, Michael Shrieve, V. Selvaganesh, Mattias IA Eklundh and Buckethead....
, Kai Eckhardt
Kai Eckhardt
Kai Eckhardt is a German musician and composer who plays bass, best known for his work with John McLaughlin, Vital Information, the band he co-founded Garaj Mahal and Billy Cobham...
, and Dominique DiPiazza
Dominique DiPiazza
Dominique DiPiazza, born in Lyon, France in 1959, is an electric bass player.Di Piazza discovered the bass in 1979. Already a self-taught guitarist, DiPiazza developed a distinctive, but unorthodox 'closed palm' technique of picking with the right hand thumb, index, and middle fingers, giving him a...
. The line-up with Hellborg performed at least one concert opening for Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
in Berkeley, California in 1988.
Collaboration between Gurtu and McLaughlin included vocal improvisations using the Indian tala talk method of oral drumming notations for teaching drum patterns. Sometimes, Eckhardt would join in with hip-hop beat-box vocals for a three-way vocal percussion jam, while Gurtu and McLaughlin would throw in a few amusing words such as some Japanese brand names mixed with some Indian words.
Some of the unusual aspects of Gurtu's drum playing include playing, without a drum stool, in a half-kneeling position on the floor, and use of an unconventional kick drum that resembles a large drum head with a kick-pedal, and a mix of tablas and western drums. Gurtu's unique percussion signature involves dipping cymbals and strings of shells into a bucket of water to create a shimmering effect.
Gurtu joined Oregon after the death of drummer Collin Walcott
Collin Walcott
Collin Walcott was a North American musician. He was a student of Ravi Shankar and Vasant Rai. Collin expanded the role of the sitar in western music. Walcott studied music and ethnomusicology at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, and at The University of California at Los Angeles...
. He played in three records produced by this band: Ecotopia (1987), 45th Parallel (1989), and Always, Never and Forever (1991).
In the early 1990s Gurtu resumed his career as a solo artist and a bandleader
Bandleader
A bandleader is the leader of a band of musicians. The term is most commonly, though not exclusively, used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or rock and roll music....
. Various noted musicians have backed him in a number of his CD releases.
In 1999, Zakir Hussain
Zakir Hussain (musician)
Zakir Hussain , , is an Indian tabla player, musical producer, film actor and composer.-Early life:Hussain was born in Mumbai, India to the legendary tabla player Alla Rakha. He attended St...
and Bill Laswell founded a musical group, Tabla Beat Science
Tabla Beat Science
Tabla Beat Science is a musical group founded in 1999 by Zakir Hussain and Bill Laswell. Its style consists of a mixture of Hindustani music, Asian Underground, ambient music, drum and bass and electronica. Laswell met with Karsh Kale , and they later teamed up with Talvin Singh and Trilok Gurtu...
, which played a mixture of Hindustani music, Asian underground, ambient, Drum and Bass, and Electronica. Gurtu joined this group along with Karsh Kale
Karsh Kale
Karsh Kale is an Indian American musician, producer and composer, and is considered one of the pioneering figures in defining the Asian Underground genre by mixing disparate genres of music such as Indian classical and folk with electronica, rock, pop and ambient music...
and Talvin Singh
Talvin Singh
Talvin Singh Matharoo , is a producer and composer and tabla player, known for creating an innovative fusion of Indian classical music and drum and bass...
. The group released three albums before going dormant in late 2003.http://www.uprisemgt.com/artists/tbs/tbstour.php
In 2004, Gurtu created an album, Miles Gurtu
Miles Gurtu
Miles_Gurtu is the fourth album by Robert Miles, the second he independently recorded and produced. Created with Indian jazz percussionist Trilok Gurtu, the result was a mix of their very disparate styles.-Overview:...
, with Robert Miles
Robert Miles
Robert Miles is an Italian record producer, composer, musician and DJ in electronica and alternative music.-Biography:...
. His collaboration with the Arkè String Quartet began in 2007 with the release of the album Arkeology.
In 2010 Trilok Gurtu played into the album Piano Car, opera of minimalist composer Stefano Ianne with Ricky Portera, Nick Beggs
Nick Beggs
Nick Beggs is a British musician, noted for playing the bass guitar and the Chapman Stick; he is a member of Kajagoogoo and formerly Iona and Ellis, Beggs, & Howard.-Personal life:...
(Kajagoogoo
Kajagoogoo
Kajagoogoo are a British pop band, best known for their hit single, "Too Shy", which reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart and No. 5 on the U.S...
), Mario Marzi, Terl Bryant
Terl Bryant
Terl Bryant is a drummer and percussionist who has worked with a wide range of artists and contributed to many top flight recordings to much critical acclaim...
(John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones (musician)
John Paul Jones is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, composer, arranger and record producer. Best known as the bassist, mandolinist, and keyboardist for English rock band Led Zeppelin, Jones has since developed a solo career and has gained even more respect as both a musician and a...
/Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
), John De Leo.
Awards
Gurtu has garnered a number of prestigious awards and nominations, including Best Overall Percussionist winner, Drum MagazineDrum magazine
A drum magazine is a type of firearms magazine that is cylindrical in shape, similar to a drum. Instead of rounds being stored flat, as in a more common box magazine, rounds in a drum magazine are stored in a spiral around the center of the magazine, facing the direction of the barrel.There are...
, 1999; Best Overall Percussionist winner, Carlton Television
Carlton Television
Carlton Television was the ITV franchise holder for London and the surrounding counties including the cities of Solihull and Coventry of the West Midlands, south Suffolk, middle and east Hampshire, Oxfordshire, south Bedfordshire, south Northamptonshire, parts of Herefordshire & Worcestershire,...
Multicultural Music Awards, 2001; Best Percussionist winner, Down Beat
Down Beat
Down Beat is an American magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond" to indicate its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chicago, Illinois...
's Critics Poll for 1994, 1995, 1996, 1999 http://www.downbeat.com/default.asp?sect=stories&subsect=story_detail&sid=725, 2000, 2001, and 2002 http://www.downbeat.com/default.asp?sect=stories&subsect=story_detail&sid=728; and Best Asia/Pacific Artist nominee, BBC Radio
BBC Radio
BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...
3 World for 2002, 2003, and 2004.
Solo and collaborative albums
- 1974: La Terra (The Earth) LP with AktualaAktualaAktuala were a pioneering world music band from Italy, although their often categorised as progressive rock, psychedelic, or avant garde. The name comes from the Esperanto for "contemporary"...
(Bla Bla, 1974) - 1976: Tapetto Volante (Flying Carpet)Tapetto VolanteTapetto Volante is the third and final album by Italian world music pioneers Aktuala. It was released on Bla Bla records in 1976. It is the second recording of percussionist Trilok Gurtu-Profile:...
with AktualaAktualaAktuala were a pioneering world music band from Italy, although their often categorised as progressive rock, psychedelic, or avant garde. The name comes from the Esperanto for "contemporary"...
LP (Bla Bla, 1976) - 1977: Apo Calypso - with Embryo
- 1979: Friends - with Toto Blanke Electric Circus
- 1980: Family - with Toto Blanke Electric Circus
- 1982: Personal Note, Mark NauseefMark NauseefMark Nauseef , is a drummer and percussionist who has enjoyed a varied career, ranging from rock music during the 1970s with his time as a member of the Ian Gillan Band and, temporarily, Thin Lizzy, to a wide range of musical styles in more recent times, playing with many notable musicians from all...
with Joachim KühnJoachim Kühn-Biography:Kühn was a musical prodigy and made his debut as a concert pianist, having studied classical piano and composition with Arthur Schmidt-Elsey. Influenced by his elder brother, clarinetist Rolf Kühn, he simultaneously got interested in jazz. In 1961 he became a professional jazz musician....
, Jan AkkermanJan AkkermanJan Akkerman is a Dutch guitarist. Akkerman is a distinctive guitarist, constantly experimenting with new equipment and guitars. Akkerman's distinctive guitar sound is characterised by his pioneering use of volume swells which produce a smooth, fluty, sustained tone, and other complex techniques...
, Detlev Beier - 1983: Finale - with Charly AntoliniCharly AntoliniCharly Antolini is a Swiss jazz drummer.Antolini started playing the traditional Swiss Basler drum and in 1956 went to Paris where he played with Sidney Bechet, Bill Coleman among others, and playing in the Oldtime Jazz Band "The Tremble Kids" with trumpeter Oscar Klein and clarinettist Werner...
- 1985: Song for EveryoneSong for EveryoneSong for Everyone is an album by Indian violinist L. Shankar, featuring Jan Garbarek, Zakir Hussain and Trilok Gurtu. It was released on the ECM label in 1985.The Allmusic review by Richard S...
- with L. ShankarL. ShankarLakshminarayanan Shankar, also known as L. Shankar and Shenkar, is an Indian-born American violinist, singer and composer.-Early life:... - 1987: Usfret
- 1987: EcotopiaEcotopia (album)Ecotopia is an album by American world music/jazz group featuring Ralph Towner, Paul McCandless, Glen Moore, and Trilok Gurtu, who replaced Collin Walcott following his accidental death, recorded in 1987 and released on the ECM label.-Reception:...
- with Oregon - 1989: 45th Parallel - with Oregon
- 1990: Live At The Royal Festival HallLive At The Royal Festival HallLive At The Royal Festival Hall is an album by the John McLaughlin Trio, featuring Trilok Gurtu and Kai Eckhardt. It was recorded at the Royal Festival Hall in London on November 27th, 1989, and was released on the JMT label in 1990....
- with the John McLaughlin TrioJohn McLaughlin (musician)John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer... - 1990: Living Magic
- 1991: Always, Never and Forever - with Oregon
- 1992: Que AlegriaQue AlegriaQué Alegría is an album by the John McLaughlin Trio, featuring Trilok Gurtu, Dominique Di Piazza and Kai Eckhardt. It was released on the Verve label in 1992.The Allmusic review by Richard S...
- with the John McLaughlin TrioJohn McLaughlin (musician)John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer... - 1993: Crazy Saints
- 1995: Believe
- 1995: Bad Habits Die Hard
- 1997: The Glimpse
- 1998: Kathak
- 2000: African Fantasy
- 2001: The Beat of Love
- 2002: Remembrance
- 2004: Miles GurtuMiles GurtuMiles_Gurtu is the fourth album by Robert Miles, the second he independently recorded and produced. Created with Indian jazz percussionist Trilok Gurtu, the result was a mix of their very disparate styles.-Overview:...
- with Robert MilesRobert MilesRobert Miles is an Italian record producer, composer, musician and DJ in electronica and alternative music.-Biography:... - 2004: Broken Rhythms
- 2006: Farakala
- 2007: Arkeology
- 2009: Massical
- 2010: Piano Car - with Stefano Ianne
- 2011: 21 Spices - with Simon PhillipsSimon PhillipsSimon Phillips is an English jazz, pop and rock drummer.-Career:Phillips began to play professionally at the age of twelve in his father's Dixieland band for four years. He was then offered the chance to play in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar...
External links
- Trilok Gurtu.net - Official website
- Web-article at Scaruffi.com
- Article in India TodayIndia TodayIndia Today is an Indian weekly news magazine published by Living Media India Limited, in publication since 1975 based in Mumbai. India Today is also the name of its sister-publication in Hindi...
- Trilok Gurtu at MintakaMusic
- [ Trilok Gurtu] at Allmusic - Overview, biography, discography