Deepak Ram (born 1960) is a South African born flautist, composer, keyboard player and producer of Indian origin. Deepak is considered a master of bansuri, an Indian flute of ancient origin made from bamboo. He is a senior disciple of world renowned bansuri maestro Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia under whom he studied Indian classical music. Deepak's versatile playing and breadth of musical repertoire melds classical and improvisational techniques of Indian Raga, Jazz, Blues and Flamenco into a fusion that has garnered critical acclaim internationally. Deepak was awarded a SAMA (South African Music Award) in 2000 for 'Best Instrumental Album', Searching for Satyam. He has contributed on
Shango
Shango (Yoruba language: Ṣàngó, also known as Changó or Xangô in Latin America; and as Jakuta or Badé) is an Orisha, a deity in Yoruba religion. Genealogically speaking, Shango is a royal ancestor of the Yoruba as he was the third Alaafin ...
and
Labyrinth
In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth (, ) was an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the ...
albums by the trance group
Juno Reactor
Juno Reactor is a multi-national musical and performing group, primarily based in Brighton, UK. Known for their cinematic fusion of electronic, global influences, and orchestral symphonic approach, collaborating with composer Don Davis and compo ...
which was featured as the title soundtrack for The Matrix - Revolutions,
Dead Bees on a Cake
''Dead Bees on a Cake'' is a solo album by British singer-songwriter David Sylvian, released in March 1999. It was his first solo album in 12 years since ''Secrets of the Beehive.''
The album peaked at no. 31 in the UK Albums Chart at release ...
album by Jazz artist
David Sylvian
David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, 23 February 1958) is an English musician, singer and songwriter who came to prominence in the late 1970s as frontman and principal songwriter of the band Japan. The band's androgynous look and increasingly ...
among others.
Early life
Deepak Ram's great-grandparents were brought to South Africa to work on sugar cane plantations as indentured labourers. He was thus born in South Africa to second generation immigrants during the apartheid era in the 60s. A few weeks after his birth the family home in Sophiatown, a racially mixed area, was bulldozed under Group Areas Act for effecting racial segregation in Apartheid South Africa. His family were forcibly resettled in Lenasia - an undeveloped township south of Johannesburg earmarked for those of Indian origin. His earliest influences were the Jazz records his brothers listened to and the Bollywood and Indian music his parents listened to. His first flute was fashioned out of a drainpipe with six holes drilled arbitrarily on the sides.
Career
Deepak Ram first travelled to India at the age of 16 where he received training in classical Indian music under the tutelage renowned flautist Pandit
Hariprasad Chaurasia
Hariprasad Chaurasia (born 1 July 1938) is an Indian music director and classical flautist, who plays the bansuri, in the Hindustani classical tradition.
Early life
Chaurasia was born in Allahabad (1938) (officially called Prayagraj) in the ...
and the late Shri Suryakant Limaye.
Before passing away, the latter bequeathed a collection of flutes to Ram.
Discography
Solo albums
* Flute for Thought (1999)
* Searching for Satyam (2000)
* Prasad (Blessing) with Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri (2002)
* Beauty in Diversity (2002)
* Samvad (Conversation) with Ustad Tari Khan (2005)
* One Breath with Pandit Anindo Chatterjee (2007)
* Steps (2008)
* Flute Tales (2013)
* Incandescent (2016)
* Indentured Blue (2020)
DVD
''Live in California'' with Pandit Anindo Chatterjee (includes interviews with Deepak Ram and Pt. Anindo Chatterjee
Production
* 'Sun Zara', a debut album by Chinmayi on Worldwide Records label.
Contributions
* Buddha Bar I
* Buddha Bar III
*
Juno Reactor
Juno Reactor is a multi-national musical and performing group, primarily based in Brighton, UK. Known for their cinematic fusion of electronic, global influences, and orchestral symphonic approach, collaborating with composer Don Davis and compo ...
- Shango (2000)
* Dead Bees on a Cake
* Juno Reactor - Labyrinth (2004)
* Civilization VI - India
References
External links
Deepak Ram plays Ordo Virtutum by Hildegard of Bingen Article on HealthyHildegard (2017)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ram, Deepak
1960 births
Living people
South African musicians