Thursday 25th February 2021 - Meet our 2021 Composers, Supriya Nagarajan
Tonight I start my Blog by featuring (in reverse alphabetical order) Supriya Nagarajan. Just listen to that beautiful sound!
Supriya got in touch with us very shortly after our call-out was advertised on Sound and Music. The reason she decided to contact us was because (in her own words) she felt she was one of those "quirky" composers we seem to like. And we do!
"Supriya Nagarajan, is the founder and CEO of Manasamitra, a UK-based arts organisation with global reach." Among other projects, Manasamitra mentors young women composers- something very close to our hearts.
"She is one of the most sought-after Carnatic vocalists in the UK and has performed around the world in India, Thailand, Cambodia and cities across Europe and the UK.
Known for working in unusual, non-traditional performance spaces, she strives to engage and inspire new audiences and bring them unique cultural experiences."
There are a few videos online that feature Supriya's extraordinary, quiet, sophisticated, dream-like work but this one in particular is perfect for letting it build an outer world through sound, both imagined and real. The video can be found here.
An interesting fact about Supriya is that she moved from Banking to Music in 2005.
"Having built up a successful career in the banking sector it was in 2005 that Supriya founded Manasamitra as a way of fulfilling her passion for music and presenting traditional and contemporary Indian art, giving UK audiences an ambience of India, its tradition and culture."
Something else that Supriya talks about is Sound and Music's Fair Access Principles. Something I had never considered before. I used to think "if everyone is invited to join/apply and is judged the same, it's a democratic and fair process'. But is it? Watch this 2':30" video to hear a different angle on how a selection process can be fairer, more open-minded and certainly more inclusive. I join Supriya in applauding Sound and Music for putting those principals ("transparency") front and centre in their principles.
We are thrilled that we will have the opportunity to work with Supriya from next week onwards. Our collaboration will have to start online and possibly continue online until the pandemic restrictions allow us to meet and work face-to-face (obviously still observing Hand-Face-Space!).
There is so much about each of our composers and of course Supriya's musical genius that cannot be told in a few sentences. Even though we don't yet know what shape this collaboration will take, Supriya gave us some clues:
[I see] "the collaboration with Animo as exciting and innovative. The plan is to bring together the whole spectrum of Indian ragas and create a mood board that will embrace the "dawn to dusk" concept. The piece will portray a day with all its emotions and shades."
