Wear your dancing shoes for a first-of-its-kind concert dedicated to Latin Jazz rhythms
“Latin Jazz is energetic, uplifting and groovy,” says Mumbai-based American multi-instrumentalist and composer D Wood. And that’s why he has finally decided to get Mumbaikars to revel in it, with a first-of-its-kind Latin Jazz event at the NCPA next month.
D Wood
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Wood’s tryst with the musical genre began decades ago, when he was still in the US. He has collaborated with many artistes since then. “Unfortunately, Indians are not exposed to this kind of music on a regular basis, and that’s one of the reasons why we don’t have too many Latin Jazz artistes emerging from here,” Wood explains.
Carl Clements
The concert will bring the music of the samba, rumba, tango and Cha Cha Cha, all played by a band, comprising Wood (bass), Carl Clements (saxophone), Karim Ellabodi (piano), Aron Nyiro (drums) and Anand Bhagat (percussion).
While Clements hails from the US, Ellabodi is of Sudanese origin, and Nyiro from Hungary. Bhagat is the only Indian artiste, who will be part of the band, whose repertoire will range from classical to original compositions.
“We will also be including a live dance performance at the event, because only then can one really enjoy the Latin Jazz experience,” says Wood.
Jazz was dance music up until the 1940s, when it became more intellectual and a high-art form, Wood explains. “Meanwhile, Latin Jazz continued to remain a form of dance music, which kept the tradition going, even as the swing era yielded to more technical forms,” he says.
Speaking about its origins, he says, “Latin has always been part of the Jazz tradition. New Orleans had a lot of people from the Caribbean and Africa, who influenced the music’s development. But, most specifically, it got popularised in the 1940s with trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie and percussionist Chana Pozo. That collaboration changed the way people saw the genre,” he adds. Wood hopes that Indian Jazz listeners warm to the music too.
Where: Experimental Theatre: NCPA, Nariman Point, NCPA Marg
When: August 3, 7 PM
Entry: Rs 500 – Rs 840
Call: 66223724