Into The Fire
Premiere: Siri Fort Auditorium, New Delhi, October 1996
Composers: Karaikudi R. Mani, Adrian Sherriff, John Rodgers, Niko Schauble, Scott Tinkler
Original Program for Large ensemble
- 'Into the Fire', Karaikudi R. Mani and Adrian Sherriff (25 mins)
- 'Moras', John Rodgers and Karaikudi R. Mani (25 mins)
- 'The Ferryman', Niko Schauble (10 mins)
- 'Stitching Leonardo', Scott Tinkler (10 mins
New Program for Small Ensemble
- 'Pentacle ', A. Sherriff
- 'Madhuran', B. V. Balasai
- ' Hydradub' , N. Schauble
- 'Sacred Cow's Tail ', S. Evans
- 'In the Loop', A. Spence
- 'Vande Matharan', Chatterjee
- 'Into the Fire', K. R. Mani, A. Sherriff
- 'Stitching Leonardo', Scott Tinkler
Program Notes
One of the aims of the AAO has been to create situations allowing for a free and open exchange of musical and dramatic ideas between different cultures and traditions. When we were invited to tour India in 1996, a wonderful opportunity arose to begin a collaboration which has had far-reaching consequences. Guru Kaaraikkudi Mani is regarded as one of the greatest exponents of the complexities of Carnatic music, the classical music of South India. A composer, vocalist and renowned virtuoso performer on the mridangam, he is also known for his willingness to share the vital principles of his tradition with musicians who are interested to work with those principles; equally, he is just as interested in applying his musicianship to the challenges thrown up by meetings with non-Carnatic systems. He is also a particularly gifted creator of the subtleties of South Indian cuisine, and regards his talents in this area as exceeding his musical ones. Touring with him is full of surprises...
Our first meetings revolved around the rehearsals and performances in Delhi, Mumbai and Calcutta of Adrian Sherriff's re-scoring of Vasantha Pravaham. Sri Mani was sufficiently impressed by the success of this experiment to express a desire to continue developing repertoire which reflected the potential of this collaboration. Significant commissions followed, by John Rodgers and Scott Tinkler, and in 2003 by Daryl Pratt, and Adrian Sherriff, this time working with Elliott Dalgleish. All of these works have drawn on our growing understanding of the magical qualities of the applied mathematics which makes up Carnatic music. We have subsequently toured together with Sri Mani and various members of his Sruthi Laya group throughout Australia, and in Europe.
Sri Mani, now a Guru, celebrates in 2003 his 50th year as a professional musician. He has influenced and inspired countless aspiring students and masters within his field, and I can say without any sense of hyperbole that he is without doubt one of the finest musicians on the planet, one of the select few who appear in one's lifetime. We of the AAO feel very blessed to have been able to make our musical journey with Sri Mani, and look forward to its next stages.
– Paul Grabowsky, 2003
Background
In October 1996 the Australian Art Orchestra (AAO) traveled to India as part of the performing arts initiative called 'New Horizons' - mounted by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to promote Australia-India relations.
To take full advantage of the opportunity Adrian Sherriff, a founding member of the AAO, initiated contact with Karaikudi R. Mani - a master of south Indian Karnatic music. Adrian had been studying Karnatic music in Melbourne at the Academy of Indian Music (Aust) and it was his teacher, 'Ravi' M. Ravichandhira, who suggested the possible collaboration between the AAO and Karaikudi's Sruthi Laya Ensemble in India.
The meeting was a success and marked the beginning of a rich and innovative creative relationship. The first collaborative endeavour involved Adrian expanding and arranging Karaikudi's composition entitled Vasantha Pravaham for western instrumentation. The result was Into the Fire which was performed by the Australian Art Orchestra and the Sruthi Laya Ensemble in New Delhi, Mumbai and Calcutta. The Indian newspaper reviews attest to the success of this tour.
Having played with Karaikudi R. Mani in India, the Australian Art Orchestra members were ready to delve deeper into Karnatic music and sought further opportunities. In 1997, the Australian Art Orchestra invited Karaikudi R. Mani and T. V. Vasan to perform with them at the Wangaratta Festival of Jazz with the assistance of the Australia Council and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (IND).
A further development came in 1998 when, with the support of the Australia Council, the AAO held a music camp at Ironbank, South Australia, where Karaikudi R. Mani conducted master classes. These classes gave AAO members further insight into the practical and philosophical aspects of the Karnatic tradition. The program was then taken to the Adelaide Festival where Into the Fire enjoyed great success.
In 1999 Into the Fire was recorded at the Iwaki Auditorium, ABC Centre, Southbank for ABC Classics. The AAO was assisted with the recording of Into the Fire by the Australia Council and Arts Victoria. The Australia-India Council (AIC) assisted in bringing interstate players to Victoria and The Myer Foundation made a grant towards the distribution of compact discs to educational and cultural institutions. The following year the AAO was invited to present Into the Fire in London for 'Australia Celebrates: Heads Up' and at the World Expo in Hannover, Germany. This invitation provided the basis for a tour to which was added the Copenhagen Jazz Festival, Archa Theatre, Prague and the Pori International Jazz Festival.
Other commissions that have arisen as a result of the AAO's collaboration with Guru Kaaraikkudi Mani and the Sruthi Laya Ensemble include 'Trimurti', composed by Darryl Pratt and 'Saraswati', composed by Adrian Sherriff with Elliott Dalgleish. Both these pieces were premiered in the Into the Fire performance by the Australian Art Orchestra with the Sruthi Laya Ensemble in 2003 at Hamer Hall, Melbourne as part of the Melbourne International Arts Festival.
We are now in a position to stage Into the Fire in Australia, in a format featuring the entire line-up of 20 plus guests and to tour in India with the smaller group of 11. The 2007 the tour for AusArts India began in Hyderabad with a concert staged by promoter KK Raje followed by Mumbai Arts Festival (Gateway to India concert), Kolkota and Bangalore.
The smaller group was used for the 2007 tour and several new works were developed for that particular sized ensemble. We therefore have arrived at having a group which is fairly easy to tour and which has its own distinct repertoire that has found favour with audiences around India. Into The Fire returns to India with this new group for a four city tour in 2008.
2008 Small Ensemble
Guru Kaaraikkudi Mani (Mringdangam)
Mr. B.V. Balasai (Flute)
Mr. Ragu (Mandolin)
Mr. V. Suresh (Ghatam)
Mr. Alister Spence (Keyboard)
Mr. Adrian Sherriff (Trombone)
Mr. Scott Tinkler (Trumpet)
Mr. Nikolaus Schäuble (Drums)
Ms. Sandra Evans (Saxophone)
Mr. Philip Rex (Double bass)
Mr. Lachlan Davidson (Guitar)
Press for Into The Fire
- "All That Jazz"
- The Indian Express, Bombay, 31.10.1996
- "New Music From An Older Tradition"
- The Indian Express, New Delhi, 10.1996
- "Out of This World Music"
- Adelaide Advertiser (Stephen Whittington), 03.1998
- "A Triumphal Hurrah "
- The Telegraph, Calcutta (Prosanto Dutt), 10.1996
- "Melody is the mother; rhythm is the father."
- The Age (Jessica Nicholas), 13.10.2003
- "Hypnotic rhythms"
- Adelaide GT, May 2000
- "Ideas never become tangled"
- Weekend Australian (Lynden Barber), June 2000
- "West meets the subcontinent"
- Sydney Morning Herald (John Clare), 06.05.200
- "The exception to the rule"
- The Age Green Guide (Leon Gettler), May 2000
- "A brilliant collaboration"
- Australian Financial Review (Shane Nichols), June 2000
- "Unique and beautiful"
- Capital Q, May 2000
- "For sophisticated listeners"
- Canberra Times (Michael Porter), June 2000
- Into The Fire: Synthesising East With West
- Synthesising East And West Jazz and Carnatic can make an enthralling combination...
- When East Meets West!
- When East Meets West!A review of the performance that spelt fusion from the word go......
- Experiment that worked
- The Hindu, Friday, Jun 13, 2008
- This collaboration showed how the heartbeat of one classical form can become a core around which the melody of another classical tradition can flow
- The Hindu. Hyderabad Friday, Jun 06, 2008
- "music connecting people"
- Newsindiapress.com Express Features Jun 24, 2008
- "Where genres meet"
- The Hindu, Chennai. Monday, Jun 02, 2008, DIVYA KUMAR
Listen to a sample from Into The Fire
