27 May For India: In Conversation with João, Nishant and Senjuti
Brainchild of multi-instrumentalist, composer, and educator, João Bittencourt, “For India” is an ode to his time in India, immersed in the arts, culture, and mysteries of the great sub-continent. A confluence of colour, culture and sound, it is a true testament to the power of music as a vehicle for celebrating embodied difference and the strength of unity in diversity. Sharing the song is incomplete without understanding the story of how it came to be. We spoke to Joao, Nishant, and Senjuti to learn about their experience of working on the song and below are the excerpts of the conversation.
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What was your inspiration for the song ‘For India’? How did it come about?
João: My first ever visit to India happened last year, when I came to GMI in September to teach for the Fall 2019 term . Along with the Piano and Keyboard Studies, I was also teaching Harmony. The trip turned out to be one of the most fascinating experiences I have had- in terms of engaging with the students and music community through GMI as well as through the opportunities I got to explore some parts of the country during the breaks. I really enjoyed my experiences and was getting more and more fascinated with the rich culture and heritage of India.
Musically, I was specifically drawn to the Hindustani Music. Thus, on one of the days, after we finished the lesson for the Keyboard Studies, I requested one of my students, Nishant to stay back. He has a good command over Hindustani Music and so I asked him to teach me about the scales of Hindustani music. He explained to me the concept behind the Tanpura and how one can change the Raag you sing. It was all quite fascinating for me, and as a disciplined student, I took down a lot of notes during the session to go back to on my own time! I wanted to understand better the different scales he had explained to me. I was curious about it all – the Raagas, the scale, the Tanpura and thus began our regular sessions of musical exchanges and my learning of Hindustani Music!
During the second half of the semester, I designed the project note for the Harmony students that required them to compose a song using the concepts covered in the class, something I found wonderful. So I decided to do the project myself as well , to take it up as a challenge!
I thought of mixing the Brazilian rhythm Forró with Hindustani Music. There are many instrumental songs in Forró and I have played a lot of them on the Accordion, the principal instrument in that style of music. Sometime during late November, GMI renewed my teaching contract which meant I was going to be back for Spring 2020 in January! Immediately, I planned and decided that during my Christmas break back home, I will connect with some of the Brazilian musicians and record them and to record the Indian musicians once I return in January .
How did you feel when João asked you to be a part of this project?
Nishant: João and I have always been exchanging ideas and musical knowledge ever since he came to GMI! On December 20th, 2019, when everyone on the campus was having a blast celebrating the last day of the term, he handed me the lead sheet for “For India”! The whole song had only 16th notes. João, being who he is, asked me if we could do a rough recording in fifteen minutes!!!
For the next fifteen minutes, I rehearsed in one of GMI Practice Rooms, learning the hard passages ( I am quite bad at sight reading !!). But it has been an amazing experience and I feel fortunate and honoured to have helped taking my country’s music to the world.
Senjuti: Early in February 2020, it was another weekday evening on campus when I was headed to the cafeteria for dinner when João pulled me over and asked me to play the Tanpura for one of his compositions. Of course my response was a big fat “yes!” but I tried to make it sound as composed and casual as he seemed to be. Inside, I was beaming with uncontainable excitement and jumping up and down with joy. Not only was I getting a chance to step into a studio, I was getting to be a part of a composition by my friend and teacher, João who I look up to as a madly passionate, musical genius!
What was the recording experience like?
João: It was absolutely amazing. The musicians were great and so were the studios, both at Rio De Janeiro and at GMI. In fact, this was the first professional recording at the newly designed GMI Studio! Both the studios had great acoustics and were also quite beautiful, which was important since we were also shooting the video of the recordings. We could give a lot of time at both the studios. For example, I booked the studio in Rio for the whole day, so we all could relax and express our creativity. Same was the case with GMI. Aditya was really patient and helpful with the recording through the day even though it was during one of the strangest times of our lives when India was locking down! The GMI team was busy wrapping up the operations at the campus and helping students and faculty return to their homes. It was quite crazy with flight bookings, logistics, et all and here we were recording the song! Overall, it was a wonderful experience. I loved this part of the process since I knew what I wanted. I didn’t need to experiment with anything, or leave anything for the end. 
Nishant: We recorded the song in March in the early days of the Covid-19 outbreak. India was headed towards a lockdown. My parents wanted me to come back to Muscat. João overheard me discussing tickets and asked me to stay a bit longer to complete this project he has invested so much in and because I love João, I did.
Recording date was fixed, I was super excited and had been practicing raag “Bhairav”. The recording went really well, though the song was a lot faster than what it is. I had no time to breathe!!
Senjuti: On the day, I managed to wrap myself in my grandmother’s saree which João picked out, picked up her Tanpura, and headed to the studio as a complete nervous wreck. João was enthusiastic, and vibrant as ever, and his directions to me were clear and simple. Adi and Bharat were at their gleeful best, setting up the session, and Deepak was doing what he did best, capturing all the moments. In my head, I kept repeating to myself “Senjuti you have one job, don’t screw this up.” Guess what happened when Adi and João looked over at me and said play? I missed the beat and I screwed up. After 5 more takes, and some deep breathing, the recording was done.
Would you like to share some behind the camera stories?!
João: In India, my ideal preference was a studio like GMI to record the song, as it needed to not only sound good but also bw visually pleasing. I’d have loved to have completed the recording by January or February 2020, but the studio was not ready by then. So, the recording was delayed till March, when the Coronavirus was declared a pandemic. I was extremely worried as I had started the process in Brazil, and invested a lot to record the best audio and video. I needed to record at GMI with Nishant and Senjuti, as a lot was at stake. At one point, I was also looking at the worst case scenario of me returning to Brazil, while Nishant and Senjuti record their parts and send it. But then, the video clip would have been quite tricky and difficult. I was so keen to get the recording done that I was just not worried or thinking about returning to Brazil – in hindsight I was a bit too relaxed! The gravity of the situation did not hit me until I returned to Brazil!
Nishant: The night before the scheduled recording date, at 11pm, João texted me “hey bro… get 5 kurtas tomorrow for the recording.” I thought…”where in the world do I get 5 kurtas from now?” I called one of my friends, Bharat, who stayed on campus and borrowed all the kurtas he had. (Fortunately, they fit me!) We laughed so hard at how he just expected me to have 5 kurtas hidden somewhere!
The hardest part of this song was not the song itself. It was changing from one kurta to the next every time I had to sing a different voice (for the video!). Each time I’d be ready to record, when at the last minute everyone would remind me to get out of the recording booth to change my kurta!
Senjuti: I laugh at this memory now but at the time, it was the most horrible feeling. 15 minutes before I was due in the studio I realised I had the wrong Tanpura strings. Safe to say I felt like the most useless person on the face of the planet. Lucky for me, I was surrounded by patient and gracious people like João, Bharat, Deepak and Adi who laughed it off and restored my heart beat. Of course Nishant’s many outfit changes were also quite a spectacle for all of us.
What is your biggest takeaway from this experience?
Nishant: This was a crazy experience to have, one I will never forget. Unfortunately, I couldn’t go home to my family because both the countries had closed their borders. But fortunately, I got to spend some time with my grandparents and the extended family in Mumbai where I currently am. But there is not a moment in this journey that I regret.
Senjuti: In hindsight, the entire experience was perfectly imperfect. It was exactly as it was meant to be. I got to live through one of my most cherished experiences in the company of some of my most talented, passionate, humorous, and kindest friends. To understand the finer nuances of the creation process was a huge learning experience and I cannot wait to do it again. The first time I heard the song through my headphones, I relived that day and did a little joy dance!
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João Bittencourt is an accomplished pianist, accordionist, composer, arranger, producer and musical director from Brazil. João showcased his talents as a composer, musical director and instrumentalist in more than 40 award winning theatrical shows in the past few years. He has also composed the soundtrack for the award winning short-film Bodas, which was selected to more than 20 international festivals, including the parallel exhibition from Cannes Festival 2016. He was the Vice-Director of the Pro Arte Music Semineries for four years.He has played and recorded with various artists and groups, such as Geraldo Azevedo, Victor Biglione, Itiberâ a Orquestra Família, Thaís Gulim, Yassir Chediak, Moyseis Marques and Marjorie Estiano and has recorded on over 10 albums in his professional career. He taught at GMI from September 2019 to April 2020.
Nishant Shekar just completed his Artist Diploma as a Voice Major and has been awarded scholarship for Fall 2020 term of Berklee College of Music. “Born into a family of singers, singing has been second nature to me. I have performed in shows and competitions from a young age and was titled the ‘Muscat Youth Icon’ in a nation-wide competition held in 2014. I have also had the opportunity to perform in the presence of stalwarts such as O.P. Nayyar, Anandjibhai, Hariharan, Kavita Krishanmurthy and Shankar Mahadevan. GMI is a home away from home. We’re all one big family. The warm hospitality, the vibe, the beautiful campus away from Delhi are some of the reasons I joined GMI. Here, I have learned to understand, appreciate and sing a variety of genres like Jazz, Blues, Rock and World music, while gaining a deeper understanding of voice, composition, arrangement and production. All in all, the bonds made here will be cherished forever the knowledge gained will bring me a step closer towards achieving my dream.”
Senjuti Maitra just completed her second term of Artist Diploma. “I was born in Kolkata, grew up in Brisbane, and have moved back and forth between cities, and countries every year for the last few years. Through these various movements, shifts, and changes, music has been my anchor and a guiding light. The sounds of India have always been my musical ‘home’. As an artist, I am curious about , and excited by, different stylistic forms and genres, stories from across the world map and the infinite possibilities they hold. Being a part of the GMI community is a huge privilege and I have never been more certain that I am exactly where I am meant to be. It is a warm and vibrant community with faculty and students from across India, and the world. GMI has given me a safe space to explore and express myself as a musician. The diverse soundscapes and styles we are exposed to here is transforming my vision as a vocalist, and artist.”
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