“John ji, Zakir bhai, L Shankar ji, and my father (Vinayakram) are the musicians who opened the door for new music, fusion music.
Extreme right V Selvaganesh performs at a concert in Bangalore in 2003 with Shakti members. File Pic/Getty Images
Percussionist V Selvaganesh says fusion band Shakti, which last month won the Grammy for its latest album, has inspired many young musicians since its formation in the 1970s. The 57-year-old musician credits founding members of Shakti—guitarist John McLaughlin, percussionists Zakir Hussain and TH “Vikku” Vinayakram, and violinist L Shankar—for starting India's first fusion band.
“John ji, Zakir bhai, L Shankar ji, and my father (Vinayakram) are the musicians who opened the door for new music, fusion music. Of course, before that Pandit Ravi Shankar ji had collaborated with western musicians, but as a band Shakti is the gate opening for each and every fusion band in India. If you see it from that moment, the youngsters who started a group, this band is the inspiration for them,” Selvaganesh said in an interview.
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The percussionist, who plays kanjira and ghatam, was in the winning team of McLaughlin, Hussain, vocalist Shankar Mahadevan and violinist Ganesh Rajagopalan. He narrated a mythological story to describe his involvement in creating “This Moment”, which recently won the Grammy in the best global music album category. Shakti, founded in 1973, has undergone several changes with new members joining over the years.
“I follow in their footsteps because they never expect anything, they just give their 100 per cent to music. They just work. And after 50 years of this band, it was considered the best global music album. So that goes to the founders, that's their property, their treasure. We are all just add-ons,” he said. The musician will be presenting the “Ghatam Symphony” at the Prestige Srihari Khoday Centre for Performing Arts.
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