News Notes
The Ragas Live Festival, New York City’s most ambitious music drop, will return for its 12th year as a 24-hour live event at Brooklyn’s Pioneer Works and online. Ragas Live Festival, taking place from October 14 – 15, 2023, will present 24 continuous hours of transcendent, spiritual music at the Pioneer Works main stage, and on livestream.
There will be 18 performances including masters of the raga tradition such as Ramakrishnan Murthy and The Akkarai Sisters alongside legendary figures in ambient music, minimalism and new music including Vicky Chow, David Cossin & Mark Stewart of the Bang on a Can All-Stars, and Mind Maintenance from the influential duo of Joshua Abrahms and Chad Taylor. Terry Riley has given his blessing to composer Amir ElSaffar to create and premiere a new work inspired by Terry Riley’s seminal work In C. The new composition, In E half-flat will be the finale of the 24 hours of music and will be performed by an ensemble of 12 musicians steeped in the microtonal Maqam tradition of North Africa and the Middle East.
Reflecting ragas influence on jazz, Celebrating John McLaughlin & Mahavishnu will feature Premik Russell Tubbs on woodwinds, an original member of the Mahavishnu Orchestra. Breaking ground within the tradition will be a jugalbandi, or duet, of Kunal Gunjal & Suhail Yusuf Khan Kunal on santoor and sarangi, two traditional classical raga instruments that have never been performed together in the United States. To sarangi maestro Suahail Yusuf Khan’s knowledge, the last time these instruments performed together was in India featuring his legendary grandfather Ustad Sabri Khan.
Find out more details at pioneerworks.org/programs/ragas-live-festival-2023.
