Keshav Batish is a Santa Cruz multi-instrumentalist who comes from a long line of musicians. His father Ashwin Batish and his aunt Meena Batish have passed down their tradition of Hindustani music to him, and he also holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts and composition from UC Santa Cruz.
Batish came by the KUZU studio recently to talk about his latest album and an upcoming performance at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center. He began with a sitar performance of a musical piece called a "Lalit." After the performance, Batish described what a "Lalit" is:
Keshav Batish: A Lalit is the parent mode of Bhairava, [which] is another name for the god Shiva, and so Lalit is one of his partners. It's tough to translate into English, these meanings. It's really related to the idea of "Shakti," and "Shakti" means energy. What people in the West refer to as idols, these are really manifestations of these energetic forces.
Click the audio player at the top of this story to listen to the interview or read the highlights below. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Batish on what he's been doing since graduating from UCSC:
"I feel very lucky to say that I was hired as a lecturer to create and teach a class on Hindustani music theory. And so we just finished that [in the] middle of June. "
Batish on his latest album called Sonic Kinship:
"The idea of sonic kinship is nothing new. It's a fairly ancient idea that the relationships of the notes within a raag are reflecting upon the relationships we keep in our lives. And every song in some way reflects on these ideas, although they're related to other concepts as well. There are songs [on the record Sonic Kinship] called "Twilight Zone" and "Deep Sea," which are also related to layers of the ocean. And, you know, the MBARI Institute has been a great source of inspiration in that regard. "
Batish on his upcoming concert at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center on July 20th:
Dylan Music: You'll be performing with your ensemble, who I believe is also featured on the new album. So what does the ensemble consist of musically?
Keshav Batish: The ensemble is comprised of people that I've worked with for a fairly long time. The guitarist and the tenor saxophonist, Scott Sorkin and Kristen Strom, respectively, have been students of my dad's since he taught at San Jose State in the late 80s, early 90s. [Also], Stan Poplin on bass, who was actually my combo director at the university.
DM: Would you call this like a fusion ensemble of sorts?
KB: You could say that. The music is certainly inspired by Hindustani music, by jazz. The music is certainly a melding of these influences.
Musician Keshav Bhatish has a new album out now with his ensemble called "Sonic Kinship." They'll be performing songs from the album at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center on Monday, July 20.