Quotes \"...Pioneering trans-cultural terrain.\" - San Francisco Chronicle \"VidyA\'s music breathes at the very center of a cultural crossroads between the North American jazz idiom and the Carnatic music of South India. VidyA\'s music is a new vein of North American music... present tense, present location, new culture in the making.\" -Todd Brown, Red Poppy Art House \"…when these patterns are played on saxophone, violin, string bass, and jazz drums, there is a build-up of emotional energy and intellectual complexity which seems to recreate the energy that was present at the birth of bebop in 1940s New York. In fact, if Charlie Parker or Dizzie Gillespie had heard VidyA at that time, I think it would have never have occurred to them that VidyA’s music was Indian. They would simply have wondered where these cats had found a sound that was so mercilessly free of the standard melodic and rhythmic clichés.” -Teed Rockwell, India Currents \"A style that\'s madly percussive and sparkling… combines jazz\'s sweet dreaminess with the Indian form\'s insistent rhythmic and tonal changes.” – SF Weekly \"Imagine ragas and American blues folded into a single moment. It\'s a fusion of Indian classical and jazz, and the leader, Prasant Radhakrishnan...points the way for a number of Bay Area improvisers.” - San Francisco Chronicle, “Year in Jazz” About VidyA VidyA is an adventurous new group that merges the virtuosity of Jazz with the melodic and rhythmic nuance of South Indian classical (Carnatic) music. Led by critically-acclaimed saxophonist, Prasant Radhakrishnan along with David Ewell (bass) and Sameer Gupta (Drums), VidyA has emerged with a soulful, penetrating sound that pushes the labels of \"fusion\" or \"world music.\" These three artists have an almost telepathic interplay, incorporating the forward motion of both Indian Classical and jazz rhythms while elaborating Carnatic ragas infused with melodic richness. The group weaves in and out of the two genres while all the time merging them into one. VidyA translates the language of Carnatic music into the idiom of Jazz. VidyA\'s debut CD features eleven compositions from their extremely successful live repertoire, crafted from performing artist residencies and live performances over the past two years. Encompassing deep forays into Indian Classical ragas and jazz sensibilities, constantly building rhythmic and melodic intensity while always playing from the soul, VidyA\'s album brings the depth of their live performance to a studio album. From Liner Notes: Dear Listener, Here are some brief notes about the songs featured on this recording. All of these combine elements of jazz and Indian Classical, specifically Carnatic music and are heavily based on particular Carnatic ragas. More than this, we hope you feel uplifted and enjoy the music, regardless of its background. Ascent - This song was composed quite a few years ago, but was never recorded. It is based on Revati ragam used in Carnatic music, but with an added \"Ga\" or third note. Flight - This song has a relaxed feel with a slightly longer rhythmic cycle that gives it a sensation of almost floating or gliding, hence the name. It is based on various modes and themes found in raga Kalyani, but does not touch heavily on the conventional use of this raga in the classical form. Attachment - This song went through a few transformations before reaching its current state. It switches between two time cycles and two ragas, Madhyamavati (with some hints of Shree ragam) and Shubapantuvarali. The journey from David\'s beautiful bass introduction through the end of the song gives it an almost cinematic feel. DSH - I never thought I would be nodding my head rhythmically to Shanmugapriya. Sameer\'s solo relaxes while intensifying the beat. Gaanamurthi - Named by the raga on which the song is based, Gaanamurthi evokes both sarvalaghu and bebop. Mohana and Pallavi - This is an extremely brief Ragam-Tanam-Pallavi. A three part affair based on Mohana raga with Hindolam also rendered in the later part of the composition. It ends with a korvai, a long rhythmic pattern that brings us back from the improvisation to the composition. Kedaragowla - This composition is in raga Kedaragowla and is based on the older two-part krithi format with more emphasis on the composition itself than long improvisations. It attempts to capture the meditative, calming and sometimes romantic charm of this raga. Kaveri - Like tributaries flowing into the Kaveri river, this composition cycles three ragas in three key centers, each with a different rhythmic emphasis. The three ragas are Abheri, Hemavathi and Chakravagam. Paavanaguru - A famous composition of Lalita Dasar in raga Hamsanandi, Paavanaguru demonstrates the commonly used krithi format of the great Carnatic composers. The composition is reproduced here, with a bit of arranging for VidyA. Lost Tales - Set to raga Bhairavi, this composition was utilized in a dance drama of the same title.