Jazz like you have never heard before

CHENNAI : A blend of American Jazz, Classical movements, and gypsy melodies, gypsy jazz is a genre that has been gaining popularity lately. A unique combination of music, this genre traces back to gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt. It was after an accident in which he lost the mobility of most of his fingers that Django started playing the guitar, with his first two fingers and soon developed this whole new style of playing the guitar. The Banjara Quartet, a Goan-based Gypsy Jazz band comprises Rachel Koyama (vocals); Buland Shukla (Guitar); Colin (U-bass) and Maxie (Guitar). The band which was formed four years ago will perform in the city today as part of a concert organised by Alliance Française of Madras & Phoenix MarketCity. CE talks to Buland Shukla who tells us about the genre, the band, and their journey.

Each member comes from different musical backgrounds, how challenging was it when you came together to play gypsy jazz?
I was playing heavy metal earlier, then rock n roll and also blues. Robert got his training in Western Classical and then India Classical violin. Philipp, our first bass player, played classical and jazz. Colin our current bass player played Latin and rock. Maxie, our rhythm player was/is a Bossa nova guitarist, and Rachel was a pop/blues singer.

Somehow this music resonated with us. The spirit of jazz manouche is not easy to ignore. The challenging part is to keep up with the skill levels of all these amazing musicians I have been playing with. Music does not respond to geographical differences. Someone has to just pick up the guitar and play a tune, we are all bound by the spirit of gypsy jazz and it never feels out of place no matter who you are playing with. 

How did you get introduced to the genre?
I heard the genre out of curiosity. I was already on a mission to find acoustic genres that would resonate with me. I never thought I would start playing gypsy jazz as it seemed to be daunting. Once, on the streets of Bangkok, I heard a gypsy jazz tune being played by two American guitarists. I sat there for two hours hearing them jam. One of them was Emmet Mahoney and he had played with John Jorgenson, an American gypsy jazz player. He inspired me to start playing this genre. He sent me materials that I could start learning with. Later, I also got a chance to visit Paris, the hub of gypsy jazz, where I got to see the real masters play, and learn from them a little.

How is the gypsy guitar different?
The guitar is specially crafted based on the selmer/mcaferri model that Django used to play. Most of the guitars of this kind are handcrafted by specialised luthiers. There are very few companies that have been manufacturing it on a larger scale. The neck is wider than a normal guitar, the fret markings are different, the bridge is flosting and one cannot rest their hand on it. So people who don’t play this genre, will not like it. And as people who play this music are not many, one can count them with their fingers. In India, it is difficult to obtain a proper piece.

Has the jazz scene in Chennai evolved? 
I don’t have a lot of information about the jazz scene in Chennai, but a lot of great metal and progressive rock bands come from Chennai. Gypsy jazz is not a heavy, cerebral, kind of jazz. It resonates with all kinds of people. And I am sure the people of Chennai will appreciate it as well.  

Tell us about The Banjara Quartet’s most memorable performance?
I think the best gig of TBQ has to be the one at Ahmedabad, when we played at CEPT University. Considering that it is a unique sound with no percussions and such, we got an amazing response from the crowd. Every bend of the guitar string, every bow of the violin, they felt it and responded to it. For us, it is very important to establish a rapport with the audience. It helps in improvisation. Gypsy jazz does not involve self-indulgent improv, at least for us. It depends a lot on what the audience is feeling.