Two Tamils up for Grammys

The first is the album “Om Namo Narayana: Soul Call” by Chandrika Krishnamoorthy Tandon, sister of Indra Nooyi – CEO of PepsiCo Incorporated. The album features Sanskrit chanting in eight different ragas (scales/modes). An amalgamation of Carnatic, Hindustani, Arabic and other world music forms, “Soul Call” is a moving album which, despite the Hindu significance of the words, emanates a meditative power that anyone and everyone can connect with. “Soul Call” has been nominated for a Grammy in the Best Contemporary World Music Album category for 2011. You can listen to a sample from the album below:

The second Tamilian to be nominated for a Grammy is Vijay Iyer, a pianist based in New York City – who is also an accomplished mathematician and physicist; he did his undergraduate degree in Maths and Physics at the prestigious Yale University, and then went on to gain a Masters in Physics as well as a PhD. in Technology and the Arts from the University of California, Berkeley. His album “Historicity” is a mixture of his original compositions as well as jazz covers of well-known pieces such as artist M.I.A.’s “Galang”. Playing alongside Vijay on this album are drummer Marcus Gilmore and bassist Stephan Crump  and together they form the “Vijay Iyer Trio”. Whilst many people may feel that Jazz music is old-fashioned, “Historicity” is an album that not only makes jazz a form of music that  people of all ages can relate to, it makes jazz a form of music that everyone can enjoy. Vijay Iyer’s album is nominated for a Grammy in the Best Jazz Instrumental Album category for 2011. Check out the Vijay Iyer Trio’s version of M.I.A.’s "Galang" below: