Samaagam at Perth Concert Hall

Mar 19 2010 Perthshire Advertiser Friday

SAMAAGAM, the first in Horsecross Arts’ Home and Away programme, brought together international artists and people from across Perth and Kinross.

Wednesday’s performance was the culmination of seven weeks learning, developing and taking part in Indian music and dance. Adults from across Perth and Kinross and pupils from St John’s Academy and Our Lady’s Primary were in partnership with Dance Ihayami, members of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, conductor David Murphy, and internationally respected sarod player Amjad Ali Khan.

The evening started with a short documentary about the project from those taking part, including praise from SCO members about the skilful receptivity of pupils. This was followed by three dances, with differing, increasing casts celebrating Hindu Gods. The adults, Dance Ihayami and music group started with Brahma creating the world.

Next came Vishnu with musicians from S1 at St John’s Academy and charmingly danced vignettes of animals from P7 pupils at Our Lady’s Primary.

Finally came Shiva with the largest grouping of musicians and dancers, P7 pupils from St John’s. All were most enthusiastic and had gained greatly from the project. Next Dance Ihayami, Karen Watts and Priya Shrikumar, gave an exhilarating performance firstly with the two simultaneous in the forceful movements with flat feet and stylised hand positions and then echoing each other in a more Scottish sounding piece.

The next section introduced sarod player Amjad Ali Khan. He played two pieces: the first rhythmic, based on Bengali folksong, the second making use of syllabic singing dating back to a saint of the 13th century, but sounding remarkably like skat singing of the last century. Following the sung part of this piece, Amjad Ali Khan gave an instrumental version. In both he was accompanied in virtuoso fashion by an expert tabla player, who went unmentioned in the programme book.

The final section was made up of the extended work, which gave its name to the evening: Samaagam. As conductor-realizer David Murphy wrote, ‘this comes from the Sanskrit word meaning confluence or flowing together and, without compromising either, preserves the essence of both Indian and Western traditions.’ In this Amjad Ali Khan’s singing and playing combined with the tabla and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. Behind the orchestra flowing colours, purple red, yellow and blue, were projected onto a screen.

In the first section after a question and response start the orchestra built up to a section where sarod and tabla rhapsodized in dance-like episodes. In the middle movement various instrumental groupings improvised with the sarod, this time including Amjad Ali Khan’s singing.

The final section took a softly lyrical song and treated it as a theme and variations, becoming faster and more rhythmic, with one section sounding bathetically like a waltz. This work, though interesting in its many aspects, lacked a convincing shape and would have had more impact had its luxuriance been pruned. As a learning experience it was well presented and happily applauded by the well-filled concert hall.

Ian Stuart-Hunter