Music This Week: Ricky Kej and Abby V’s spirited beginning – Aarambh

Rest of the tracks — seven pieces with seven different singers — comprise poised presentations of classical music with modern instrumentation in an attempt to make the space more accessible to a younger audience. Interestingly, Carnatic and Hindustani classical combine forces with innovative electronics. At least most of the tunes, barring a couple, sound largely improvised and not like rehearsed recordings, which is quite charming.

Ghule, based in the poignant Puriya Dhanashree, is a collaboration with Sona Mohapatra. Haunting and with a certain timeless quality, Ghule has got to be one of the most interesting presentations of the raga in the modern context. Mohapatra sounds warm and soothing, while Abby V is virtuosic, especially in the longer alaaps towards the end. Both do not get self-indulgent and that makes the presentation weighty.

A significantly impressive piece is Jaa Kaga, a collaboration with playback singer Benny Dayal. It is based in the Hindustani classical concept of murchhana (graha bhedam in Carnatic classical), where two singers work with the same set of notes but shift the tonic note to arrive at a different raga. The complex presentation, which is like a neat sargam battle, is the clear star of the album. Kaahe sataye with Pratibha Baghel, a piece loosely based on joyous raag Pilu, is another worthy composition on the list, so is Mangal din set in the thoughtful and sombre Bhairav.

While the cover of Yesterday is taut and spirited, what fails to have any impact is another cover — the presentation of Mirabai’s famed bhajan Paayo ji maine, a collaboration with the otherwise impressive KS Chithra. While Abby V and Chithra sing well, the orchestration does not allow the piece to work as a unit. One wishes Kej stuck to the restraint he followed in Yesterday. The male choir, Kej’s attempt at Gregorian chants, is neither revealing nor surprising.

Minimal issues aside, Kej’s album, like his Grammy-winning Winds of Samsara with The Police drummer Stewart Copeland, weaves diverse soundscapes by incorporating scores of musicians. But it’s Abby V’s vocal prowess that has the album bursting with potential.

Aarambh (Sufiscore Records)
Composer: Ricky Kej
Vocalists: Abby V, Sona Mohapatra, KS Chithra, Jonita Gandhi, Benny Dayal, Pratibha Singh Baghel, Antara Nandy, K Sivaangi
Rating: 3 stars