ISHEETA CHAKRAVARTY

Tell us your songwriting process

I am drawn to melodies so my songwriting process dominates that. My training in Hindustani music also helps me to draw from the all the tools that that form offers me with in terms of scales and notes if one were to look at it from a very technical perspective. For me choosing the 'right' harmony for that melody comes after the melody, because for me the harmony has to sit in with the essence of that melody. Even if I am working on a re-harmonisation or re-interpretation of an existing traditional melody, that melodic content takes centre-stage for me. And then of course there's the rest of the body and form and arrangement that slowly and steadily build the whole song. Working with two forms like classical music and Jazz and trying to bridge them both can be a tricky one so the melody and its essence is where I begin. Then after a point you just get out of the way and let the song takes it own shape. I feel that at one point you have to surrender to the process itself and see where that takes you.

Sometimes a song takes fifteen minutes and then sometimes days and months. Having said all this however, I don't believe that there are specific hard and fast rules to song writing. Different people have different approaches. No matter what the approach or the state of being is, at the end of the day it needs to make sense to you and only then can it translate to an audience and of course it sounds good.

How do you manage to sing both classical and jazz music? Tell us how you got trained to be good at both?

I have been training in Hindustani classical music since I was four years old and that has been a constant since. Jazz happened to me in college. I did not receive any particular training in Jazz but I did have a mentor in Carlton Kitto back in Kolkata, who was one of the last surviving Bebop guitar players in the country back then. I began singing with him and his band directly by just starting to learn some standards and since then it has been a constant process of learning on the job. I sing Jazz purely out of instinct and the love for the music. I have had musicians along the way help me out whenever I needed help in understanding something. I continue to train in Hindustani classical music, visiting my Guru, whenever I get a chance. The two may seem to have completely different approaches and ways of singing but at some point, emotionally and psychologically, the lines blur and then it’s just two or possibly more ways of expressing oneself. Loving both deeply and constant practice is where its at I guess.

Who did you get formally trained from?

I have been trained for many years in Hindustani classical music under Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty and Kaushiki Chakraborty and later under Arati Ankalikar Tikekar. For Jazz, Carlton Kitto had been my earliest mentor. Since I moved to Bombay, Louiz Banks has been like mentor figure for me constantly challenging me with his music. When I was in Kolkata, I was mentored under producer and composer Mayookh Bhaumik for a number of years who taught me the basics of musicianship and how to be a musician, lessons that have held me in good stead since. I recently started taking lessons in Konnakol from Viveick Rajagopalan so I am excited to see where that takes me.

How would you describe the jazz music scene in India? How has it evolved?

I think the jazz scene in India is thriving. The sound is definitely evolving. A lot of us are breaking out of the traditional forms and are experimenting with Jazz in our own ways. A lot of independent artists are taking up Jazz across the country. There are so many venues that are supporting Jazz. I’d like to mention Gatecrash here because they have been consistently trying to promote Jazz throughout the country programming at different venues so the future looks good.