Picture this! Passionate Flamenco dance and Indian classical Bharatanatyam with a background music of Chinese, Malay and Indian musical instruments. Doesn't that give you goosebumps? Minds of dance and music lovers will take flights of fancy, conjuring up possibilities.
You must have heard of many dance and music fusions but this seems to be the mother of all dance and music fusions – Mix'tUp4, an event to be held at Artistry Cafe in Singapore, 8 pm onwards on February 16, 2017.
Renowned dancer Shantha Ratii the organiser of this event says "Music and dance is universal. It aims at expressing human emotions. So, that is the premise on which I started the work. I have also set bols/ jathis or mnemonics in Bharatanatyam style (which is highly mathematical) and have worked with the artistes to venture into this new soundscape, where ragas and rhythms are also played by these instruments."
On asking about how did the idea come up she says, "Having been raised in Singapore I have always been fascinated by the music and dance of the other ethnicities like Chinese and Malay. I feel that at the core of each tradition lies the strength and spirit of a civilization. So, on returning to Singapore 6 years ago these thoughts were reignited in me."
"Besides I realised that many of the youths were hesitant to go to a conventional theatre and watch a performance…So the thought of doing it in the relaxed atmosphere of a cafe was born.
The Mix'tUp series strives to promote the young, talented and promising artistes of Singapore as well and explore the cross-cultural possibilities," she adds.
The artists will have a solo bit to establish their styles and then the performance will conclude with a jugalbandi. This is not the first time that Shantha is bringing international ethnic musical instruments and dance forms together. Shantha has earlier matched Bharatnatyam steps to Bongo (Afro-Cuban percussion instrument), guitar and piano at the tender age of twelve and other instruments (regional Indian and International) over the years.
If you are still skeptical about the event, Shantha quips, "Come and see it! I think it works brilliantly and we are all so excited!"