violinist
The following lists of violinists are available:
* List of classical violinists
* List of contemporary classical violinists
* List of jazz violinists
* List of popular music violinists
* List of Indian violinists
* List of Persian violinists
* Li ...
tabla
A ''tabla'' is a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent. Since the 18th century, it has been the principal percussion instrument in Hindustani classical music, where it may be played solo, as an accompaniment with other instruments a ...
) and
Vikku Vinayakram
Thetakudi Harihara Vinayakram (born 11 August 1942), also known as Vikku Vinayakram, is an Indian percussionist. He is also known as the God of ''ghatam''. He plays Carnatic music with the ''ghatam'', an earthen pot, and is credited with popula ...
(on
ghatam
The ''ghaṭam'' (Sanskrit: घटm ''ghaṭ''; Kannada: ಘಟ ''ghaṭa''; Tamil: கடம் ''ghatam''; Telugu: ఘటం ''ghataṃ''; Malayalam: ഘടം ''ghataṃ'') is a percussion instrument used in various repertoires across the ...
). Initially formed in 1973 under the name “Turiyananda Sangit” (a name coined by
Sri Chinmoy
Chinmoy Kumar Ghose (27 August 1931 – 11 October 2007), better known as Sri Chinmoy, was an Indian spiritual leader who taught meditation in the United States after moving to New York City in 1964.L.Shankar, Ramnad V. Raghavan (on mridangam) and Eve McLaughlin on
Tanpura
The tanpura (; also referred to as tambura, tanpuri, tamboura, or tanpoura) is a long-necked, plucked, four-stringed instrument originating in the Indian subcontinent, found in various forms in Indian music. Visually, the tanpura resembl ...
&
Shruti box
A shruti box (sruti box, shrutibox, srutibox or surpeti) is a musical instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, that traditionally works on a system of bellows. It is similar to a Indian harmonium, harmonium and is used to prov ...
. Eve McLaughlin left the project, and Zakir Hussain was added on tabla and the group name changed to “Shakti” (meaning "creative intelligence, beauty, and power.") as the band wanted a name that “listeners in the West could relate to”. Raghavan also didn't stay with the project beyond the first album, and Vikku was added (on ghatam) for the remainder of Shakti’s early career. The group played acoustic fusion music which combined
Carnatic music
Carnatic music (known as or in the Dravidian languages) is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and southern Odisha.
It is o ...
with elements of
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
.
In addition to fusing Western (
Jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
,
Celtic folk
Celtic music is a broad grouping of music genres that evolved out of the folk music traditions of the Celtic people of Northwestern Europe (the modern Celtic nations). It refers to both orally-transmitted traditional music and recorded music a ...
,
Classical music
Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...
) with Eastern music, Shakti also represented a fusion of the
Hindustani
Hindustani may refer to:
* something of, from, or related to Hindustan (another name of India)
* Hindustani language, an Indo-Aryan language, with Hindi and Urdu being its two standard registers
* Hindustani Muslims are the Urdu-speaking, Hindust ...
and
Carnatic music
Carnatic music (known as or in the Dravidian languages) is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and southern Odisha.
It is o ...
traditions, since Hussain was from
Northern India
North India is a geographical region, loosely defined as a cultural region comprising the northern part of India (or historically, the Indian subcontinent) wherein Indo-Aryans (speaking Indo-Aryan languages) form the prominent majority populati ...
South
South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
.
The group came together after the dissolution of the first incarnation of the
Mahavishnu Orchestra
The Mahavishnu Orchestra was a jazz fusion band formed in New York City in 1971, led by English guitarist John McLaughlin (musician), John McLaughlin. The group underwent several line-up changes throughout its history across its two periods of a ...
, and toured fairly extensively during the period 1975-1977. After 1977, the albums which Shankar recorded with Hussain and Vikku stayed close to the music they had popularized in Shakti.
Two concerts at the
Montreux Jazz Festival
The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annu ...
(July 6, 1976 and July 8, 1977) are included among the 17 CDs of the box set ''Montreux Concerts'' by John McLaughlin.
Between 1982 - 1984, Shakti regrouped for reunion tours in India, this time with L.Shankar performing on his
double violin
The Double Violin is a ten-string, stereophonic double-Neck (music), necked electric violin invented by violinist L. Shankar. It is also referred to as the ''LSD'' or ''L. Shankar's Double Violin''.
Description
The double violin is capable of ...
.
In 1997, McLaughlin and Hussain put together
Remember Shakti
Remember Shakti is a quintet which combines elements of traditional Music of India, Indian music with elements of jazz. The band consists of England, English guitarist John McLaughlin (musician), John McLaughlin, and Zakir Hussain (musician), Z ...
, including
V. Selvaganesh
V. Selvaganesh is an Indian percussionist working in the Carnatic tradition and one of the leading kanjira (south Indian frame drum) players of his generation. He is also known as "Chella S. Ganesh."
Career
Selvaganesh gained world fame through ...
Shankar Mahadevan
Shankar Mahadevan (born 3 March 1967) is an Indian singer and composer who is part of the Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy trio that writes music for Indian films. In 2023, he was awarded an honorary doctorate (''honoris causa'' degree) by Birmingham Ci ...
.
The band reformed in 2020, and released their first album as Shakti in 46 years, '' This Moment'', on 23 June 2023. The album will be supported by a world tour including India, Europe, and United States under the name Shakti50. Violinist Ganesh Rajagopalan joined the band as a full time member. The band also performed a live set for the
Tiny Desk Concert
''Tiny Desk Concerts'' is a video series of live concerts hosted by NPR Music at the desk of former '' All Songs Considered'' host Bob Boilen in Washington, D.C.
The first ''Tiny Desk Concert'' came about in 2008 after Boilen and NPR Music ed ...
.
In 2024, Shakti won the ''
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
'' for the
Best Global Music Album
The Grammy Award for Best Global Music Album is an honor presented to recording artists for influential music from around the globe at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors i ...
Last.fm
Last.fm is a music website founded in the United Kingdom in 2002. Utilizing a music recommender system known as "Audioscrobbler", Last.fm creates a detailed profile of each user's musical preferences by recording the details of the tracks they ...