Sarathy Korwar is a US-born,

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

-raised,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

-based drummer, percussionist, composer and bandleader. He works predominantly in a

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, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and Indo jazz field but also incorporates elements of hip-hop, and other fusions.

Background

Born in the US, Korwar grew up in

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

and

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per t ...

in India and began studying

tabla A tabla, bn, তবলা, prs, طبلا, gu, તબલા, hi, तबला, kn, ತಬಲಾ, ml, തബല, mr, तबला, ne, तबला, or, ତବଲା, ps, طبله, pa, ਤਬਲਾ, ta, தபலா, te, తబల� ...

aged 10. He later moved to

Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...

to study Geology from Fergusson College, Pune before making the decision to dedicate his time to music, continuing to study tabla with Rajeev Devasthali as well as translating his skills to the western drum kit and playing as a session musician. He then moved to London and continued his studies with Sanju Sahai at

SOAS SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury are ...

Career

In 2016 Korwar released the album ''Day To Day'' on the

Ninja Tune Ninja Tune is an English independent record label based in London. It has a satellite office in Los Angeles. It was founded by Matt Black and Jonathan More (better known as Coldcut) and managed by Peter Quicke and others. Inspired by a visit ...

label. This record incorporated field recordings of the Siddi people of Southern India blended with his own compositions drawing from contemporary jazz and electronic music. He leads the UPAJ Collective, a collective of Eastern and Western musicians formed play a residency at London's Jazz Cafe. The group recorded the live album ''My East Is Your West'' at London's Church Of Sound, released on

Gearbox Records Gearbox Records Ltd. is an independent music studio and record label founded in 2009 and based in London and Tokyo. Gearbox emphasizes vinyl records. They started out by releasing previously unreleased archival jazz recordings from their reel-to-r ...

on 9 November 2018. The group performed compositions by jazz musicians Alice Coltrane,

Pharoah Sanders Pharoah Sanders (born Ferrell Lee Sanders; October 13, 1940 – September 24, 2022) was an American jazz saxophonist. Known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound", San ...

and

Joe Henderson Joe Henderson (April 24, 1937 – June 30, 2001) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. In a career spanning more than four decades, Henderson played with many of the leading American players of his day and recorded for several prominent l ...

as well as

Indian classical music Indian classical music is the classical music of the Indian subcontinent. It has two major traditions: the North Indian classical music known as '' Hindustani'' and the South Indian expression known as '' Carnatic''. These traditions were not ...

and Indo jazz. In 2016 Korwar was selected for the Steve Reid Foundation's mentorship programme, a charitable foundation set up by Gilles Peterson. On 26 July 2019 Korwar released his second studio album, '' More Arriving'' through

The Leaf Label The Leaf Label is a British independent record label based in Yorkshire, England. Initially an electronic music label, releasing mainly instrumental music, the company's approach now features artists spanning jazz and post-punk. History The Le ...

. Recorded over three years in Mumbai and London, the album incorporates rappers from

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

and

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

with spoken word and his own Indian classical influence and jazz instrumentation. The album featured the Jamaican-Indian rapper Delhi Sultanate, the London poet Zia Ahmed and the Abu Dhabi writer Deepak Unnikrishnan among others. Korwar describes the album as a protest record and said: "This is what Indian music sounds like to me right now, and that means incorporating multiple brown voices. If anyone has a problem with that, they should be questioning what they think Indian music should be." The album won Best Independent Album at The AIM Awards in 2020. ''Otherland'' was released for

Record Store Day Record Store Day is an annual event inaugurated in 2007 and held on one Saturday (typically the third) every April and every Black Friday in November to "celebrate the culture of the independently owned record store". The day brings together fa ...

2020 and limited to 1,000 copies on transparent green vinyl. Featuring Kushal Gaya (

Melt Yourself Down Melt Yourself Down are a London-based band who incorporate elements of West African musical styles (afrobeat), punk, jazz and funk. Founded in January 2012, the band is led by saxophonist Pete Wareham, former leader of now defunct jazz/punk ban ...

), Zia Ahmed, Mirande and Mumbai hip-hop collective Swadesi, the EP continues to explore the theme of Indian diaspora that was at the core of '' More Arriving''. In August 2022, Korwar announced his third studio album ''KALAK'' and released the single "Utopia Is A Colonial Project". The "polyrhythmic anthem" was accompanied by a music video choreographed by Elliott Gonzo and starring award-winning dancer Botis Seva. Speaking about the title of the single, Korwar says: "ideas of utopia are intrinsically linked to the mindset of settler colonialism. It comes from seeing the natural world as an inanimate resource rather than a living, sentient being. We need to be anti-utopian, and anti-dystopian. We need to be able to imagine futures drastically different to the kind of ‘utopias’ that are being sold by right-wing populist politicians in South Asia and beyond". The album ''KALAK'' was recorded at

Real World Studios Real World Studios is a residential recording studio complex founded by Peter Gabriel and situated in the village of Box, Wiltshire, England, near to the city of Bath. It is closely associated with the Real World Records record label, Real Wor ...

with acclaimed New York electronic musician, DJ and producer Photay and was released on 11th November 2022. The record features

The Comet Is Coming The Comet Is Coming is a London-based band who incorporate elements of jazz, electronica, funk and psychedelic rock. The band originally recorded for The Leaf Label, on which their debut EP ''Prophecy'' was released, on limited edition 12" vi ...

's on Danalogue on synths, Tamar Osborn on baritone sax, Al MacSween on keys, Magnus Mehta on percussion and vocalist Kushal Gaya of

. Korwar describes the album as "Indo-futurism" and much of the music on the album is written on cyclical rhythmic concepts, which Korwar connects to how many people in "South Asia envisage

heir Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Officiall ...

relationship to the future and the past in ideas of cyclicality".

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

awarded ''KALAK'' 5/5 stars, named it "Global Album of the Month" and described it as "a deft, warming album. Korwar has also collaborated with

Shabaka Hutchings Shabaka Hutchings is a British jazz musician, composer and bandleader. He leads the bands Sons of Kemet and Shabaka and the Ancestors. He is also a member of The Comet Is Coming, performing under the stage name King Shabaka. Hutchings has p ...

, clarinettist Arun Ghosh and producer Hieroglyphic Being, as well as groups Penya and Ill Considered. He has toured with Kamasi Washington, Yussef Kamaal and

Moses Boyd Moses Boyd (born 30 April 1991) is a British jazz drummer, composer, record producer, bandleader and radio host. His debut solo studio album ''Dark Matter'' (2020) was nominated for the 2020 Mercury Prize. In 2014, Boyd and saxophonist Binke ...

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Day to Day'' (

, 2016) * '' More Arriving'' (

, 2019) * ''KALAK'' (

, 2022)

EPs

* ''Otherland'' (

, 2020)

Live albums

* ''My East Is Your West'' (Gearbox Records, 2018)

Singles

* "Earth" (2018) * "Hajj" (2018) * "Mumbay" (2019) * "Bol" (2019) * "Utopia Is A Colonial Project" (2022)

References

External links

Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Korwar, Sarathy Living people Jazz bandleaders Musicians from London Year of birth missing (living people) British people of Indian descent British people of American descent