World music exponent Prem Joshua talks about fusion and more

Prem Joshua in a performancePrem Joshua the World Music connoisseur is German but he made India his home since 1991 He derives energy from the devotional parts of the country and as expected his music gushed ubiquitously mdash by the temple of Pushkar to the river in Hampi An intense flute and saxophone player Joshua decided to learn sitar during his stay in India from Ustad Usman Khan The music of Pandit Ravi Shankar inspired him Fresh off an openair gig in the city he shares stories of his voyage Excerpts from a chatWhen you started in 1991 fusion was new But over the years it gained different dimensions What are your thoughtsIn 1991 EastWest fusion music wasnt entirely new but it was certainly different In my case coming overland from Europe to India for the first time in 1977 with my own musical background of Rock and Jazz it was an immediate love affair and direct encounter with India and her music I stayed on and studied sitar and bansuri flute here my international band was founded here my first albums were released here I was pioneering a new sound from here being spread from India into the world Fusion music has never been an artificial mind concept for me it has always been a natural process of passion inspiration hard work collaborating with talented Indian and international musiciansDo you like the fusion that is happening todayNowadays a lot of noise calls itself fusion You can find any flashy sample of ethnic instruments on keyboards and sound banks Fusion has become cheap and airconditioned It lacks the sweat and dust On the other side India has brought forth a new generation of truly talented musicians who easily move between influences from Indian Classical Jazz and other genresYou had run out of money on your first trip to India How did you survive those daysThe real journey began there It is a long story The simple people of India never let me down even for a minute It was an amazing lesson in trust I was only 18 then Maybe this is one of the reason I love India this muchWhere are you based now It is difficult to locate where you areMy location pin is usually exactly where my heart beats It keeps changing You are right I keep moving a lot for concerts Currently I am touring for concerts but my base is usually in Goa or Mumbai I also like spending time in ItalyIt has been a while you worked on an album any records in the pipelineWhat can people expect next from you in terms of sound experimentsMy last release Kashi was in 2014 I have already begun work for new album which is likely to release in 2017 But it may take more time since I am busy with concerts As a composer singer and multiinstrumentalist let me concentrate on playing sitar bamboo flutes and saxophone My talented band members will add their instrumentsYou recently played at Hampi the venue suits your music perfectly doesnt itA venue near a river sounds magical but dont worry we brought the musical river right into the concrete courtyard of Phoenix Mall in Mumbai All we wish for is a responsive audienceTell us about your early memories of MumbaiThey say either you love or hate Mumbai I always loved it Maybe there are a million reasons to hate it but I will always find a million and one reasons to love it In 1977 Bombay was a quiet city You could cross the streets even without looking There were still horse carts in town