The San Francisco-based musician performed for the first time in India on Thursday, at Mumbai’s Max Mueller Bhavan, Kala Ghoda.
Surabhi Saraf performed at Mumbai, and India, for the first time ever. The School of the Art Institute of Chicago MFA degree holder played two tracks from her debut album, Illuminen EP, in which, in her own words, she “layers the sound of my voice over the droning percussions of aged fans that are augmented by lights and live video, creating an immersive soundscape.”
She played Illuminen, which she exhorted the audience to listen to with their eyes closed. This was an attempt by the artist to “draw the focus inward, negotiating ideas of entertainment, experience, sensation and sensationalism with the conviction that it is actually the numbing of certain sensory realities that generates crucial moments in socio-cultural transformation.” Watch the clip of the track below:
Her other performance, Spinning Four, was about “a visually rich immersive sonic experience that stimulates external senses. From my memories of Indian classical music to the multiplicity of sounds emerging from old mechanical fans, this performance deals with the phenomena on which we all depend, wind and breath. I layer the sound of my voice over the droning percussion of the rotating blades of aged fans powered by electric motors. Once on the air, these sound waves become electrical impulses and data that are manipulated through my laptop in real-time.”
(Picture courtesy surabhisaraf.net)