Erasing Borders 2009: Festival of Indian Dance

Erasing Borders 2009: Festival of Indian Dance

August 14th, 2009 – Tribute to Dr. Rohini Bhate
Lecture Demonstration: Mathematics & Rhythm & Discussion with Dr. Sunil Kothari

Artist Bios

Bala Skandan (Mridangam)

A.R. Bala Skandan is a performer and teacher of both Carnatic Violin and Mridangam. As a mridangist, he belongs to the school of Sri Karaikudi R. Mani of Madras. He has received additional advanced training from Prof. T V Gopalakrishnan on Mridangam and Ganjira. He has also completed his teaching degree in Carnatic violin, and has undergone advanced training from Smt. T. Rukmini of Chennai, India.

Bala Skandan is based in Manhattan and performs widely in the US. He accompanied established international musicians and dancers and performed in prestigious venues in Chennai, Europe and North America. He also worked on large scale music and dance productions. He recently started an Indian percussion ensemble called Akshara, which comprises South Indian rhythm and melody. In 2007- 2008, Bala had the distinction of teaching and conducting the first Carnatic student recital at the prestigious Juilliard School of music.

Jonathan Hollander (Moderator, Lec-Dem: Mathematics & Rhythm)

Artistic Director, Battery Dance Company

Jonathan Hollander founded Battery Dance Company in 1976 and established the Downtown Dance Festival in 1982. He choreographed over 60 works that the Company presented throughout the U.S., Europe, South Asia and the Caribbean. He traveled to India as a Fulbright Lecturer in 1992, and has collaborated with leading dancers and musicians of India and Sri Lanka. Hollander is a leader in the Downtown Manhattan community, and founded Downtown Dance Partners, a coalition of dance companies located south of Canal Street. He co-founded the Indo-American Arts Council, a national service organization, on whose Board he serves. For well over a decade, Hollander has built and maintained a busy cultural bridge between India and the U.S. He has introduced American audiences to some of the best exponents of Indian classical dance and has helped to create a fertile ground for contemporary experimentation and collaboration by creative artists in India and the U.S.

Jonathan choreographed a work called “Layapriya” that interpreted Indian rhythmic compositions through modern dance. He will explore the concept of Indian rhythms and mathematics with the panel of percussionists and dancer. www.batterydanceco.com

Prerana Deshpande (Kathak)

Prerana is internationally acclaimed as a creative artist whose work reveals the perpetually expanding horizons of a traditional form. She believes that Kathak is a medium of expression with which a dancer can create an enchanting lyric. Trained by the great maestro, Guru Dr. Rohini Bhate and Sharadini Gole, Prerana has extended the frontiers of her dance tradition to evolve her own distinctive style, which has been described as “…an effortless synchronization of aesthetics, playful rhythm, uninhibited expression."

Prerana’s use of rhythm is also enriched by her minute observation and study of 'Laya' under renowned Guru Taalyogi Pt. Suresh Talwalkar. Her evolving bodies of work and collaborative productions include music from varied genres highlighting her keen awareness of musical styles. One of her many talents is her keen sensibility in bringing out the abstract from the obvious in her dancing style. She founded ‘Nrityadham’ where she teaches and choreographs new works for her company. Through master classes, workshops and seminars in India and abroad, Prerana brings out the tradition and the nuances of Kathak. www.preranadeshpande.com

Samir Chatterjee (Tabla)

Samir Chatterjee is a virtuoso Tabla player. He travels widely across the world throughout the year performing in numerous festivals as a soloist or with other outstanding musicians from both Indian and western traditions. He performed at the Nobel Peace prize Ceremony in Oslo, Norway in December, 2007. His compositions are widely acclaimed as well as his writings.

Samir can be heard on numerous recordings as a soloist, accompanying many of India’s greatest musicians and in collaboration with western musicians of outstanding caliber. Samir lives in New Jersey and has become a catalyst in the fusion of Indian and Western music in the New York City metro area. He is the Founder-Director of Chhandayan, an organization promoting and preserving Indian music and culture. Samir teaches at Yale University, University of Pittsburgh, Manhattan School of Music and New School for Jazz and Contemporary music. He is directing the program of Indian music and dance at Rutgers University. He has authored two significant books on Indian music; ‘A Study of Tabla’ and ‘Music of India’. Samir is actively involved in groundbreaking work in Afghanistan towards their musical revival. www.tabla.org0

Dr. Sunil Kothari (Leading Indian Dance Scholar, Critic and Historian)

Dr. Sunil Kothari is a leading dance historian, scholar, author and critic of Indian classical dance. He has written more than 12 books on Indian classical dance forms and allied subjects including definitive works on Bharata Natyam, Odissi, Kathak, Kuchipudi, and Chhau Dances. He has edited volumes on 'RASA,' 'Damaru,' as well as photo biographies of legendary dancers Uday Shankar and Rukmini Devi, and a volume on 'New Directions in Indian dance.' Dr. Kothari was a dance critic for the Times of India group of publications for 40 years. He has held several positions over the course of his career including Uday Shankar Professor and Chair, Dance Department, Rabindra Baharti Univeristy (Kolkata), and Dean and Professor, School of Arts and Aesthetics, Jawharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.

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