CURATION
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from this page:
by Matrix
Network Node
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Name:
Sunny Jain
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City/Place:
Brooklyn, NY
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Country:
United States
Current News
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Upcoming Shows
“One of the leading figures in North America’s burgeoning Asian music scene. A global musical alchemist and cultural agent provocateur.”
— SONGLINES MAGAZINE (UK)
“The indefatigable drummer and dhol player Sunny Jain is an unrepentant maximalist-were he a visual artist, one imagines bright-hued paints splattered across his canvas, his floor, and perhaps his ceiling. Think of a genre, and it’s probably somewhere in his compositions, yet the musician’s hullabaloo stands on considered conceptual ground. ”
— THE NEW YORKER
“Creatively and ideologically, this is a perfect storm for Jain. Even in his already formidable body of work, “Wild Wild East” stands out as an album that not only deserves to be heard, but needs to be listened to. An understanding of the stories he tells here with such musical brilliance is liable to change hearts and minds for the better. ”
— POP MATTERS
“Many of these composition are intellectually thrilling to unravel. In “Wild Wild East,” shimmering walls of sound feel like floating face-down in a pool and watching light patterns dance on the floor.”
— PITCHFORK
Life & Work
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Bio:
Sunny Jain's diverse and dynamic career serves as a tribute to cultural diversity, rooted in deep traditions that radiate outward, influencing and being influenced by the cultures it encounters. Whether captivating audiences with his dynamic dhol mastery, providing a rhythmic foundation for a contemporary jazz ensemble, navigating the evolving landscape of the modern music industry, or crafting innovative compositions, Jain embodies the inclusive spirit of globalized art.
During the pandemic, Jain engaged in collaborative efforts with artists worldwide, resulting in the transcultural project "Phoenix Rise," released on May 21, 2020. This project featured over 50 artists, including Arooj Aftab, Vijay Iyer, Michael League, Adrian Quesada, Endea Owens, and Joe Russo. The accompanying 72-page physical book seamlessly combines music, art, photography, and planet-based recipes, all dedicated to social justice. Jain, serving as executive producer and music producer, collaborated with the Center for Constitutional Rights to support their advocacy work.
A 2021 recipient of the MAP Fund, Jain is actively developing his inaugural musical theater work, "Love Force." His album "Wild Wild East," released by Smithsonian Folkways Recordings on February 21, 2020, received acclaim for its fusion of Western and Bollywood influences, described as a blend of a Western score, a Bollywood score, and a touch of free jazz.
Hailed as the "Hendrix of dhol," Jain seamlessly blends the modern and traditional, the personal and communal, and the inventive and festive. Red Baraat, the vibrant fusion of bhangra, hip-hop, jazz, and rock, founded by Jain in 2008, has been lauded by NPR as "the best party band in years." What started as a wedding day party band quickly evolved into a sensation, gracing stages from the White House to the London Paralympic Games.
Jain's journey from banging his head to Van Halen and Rush in Rochester, New York, to studying jazz and collaborating with artists like Norah Jones, reflects his pioneering approach in melding jazz and South Asian music. Through projects like Taboo, he addresses social justice issues within the South Asian community, using ancient love poems to tackle contemporary problems.
As the founder of Jainsounds, Jain satisfies the need for live entertainment that respects South Asian traditions within a diverse culture. From the Jina Brass Band to the Bollywood Jazz Ensemble, Jainsounds offers a range of musical experiences.
Jain's global influences and collaborations extend beyond music, as he has shared his experiences through speaking engagements at the White House AAPI conference, Harvard University, and more. His commitment to connecting with his roots led to the creation of Jainsounds, fostering the rich hybridity of evolving cultures.
The communal nature of Jain's music is evident not only in creating an energetic atmosphere for audiences but also in his collaborations with artists from various genres. From touring with Sufi rock band Junoon to working with rapper Himanshu Suri and pianist Vijay Iyer, Jain's musical journey reflects a commitment to cross-pollinating traditions in the 21st century.
The Festival of Colors tour has become a Red Baraat highlight, mirroring the Hindu holiday of Holi with its vibrant exchange of colors. In these celebratory events, Jain curates a diverse array of artists, reflecting the multitude of influences that color his own career—a kaleidoscope of bold colors forming a breathtaking panorama.
Clips (more may be added)
Uncoiling from an Indigenous, African, Sephardic and then Ashkenazic, Arabic, European, Asian cultural matrix...
EX TERRA BRASILIS
Millions of short-path connections uniting creators worldwide by means of the extraordinary mathematics of:
The Small World Phenomenon
The Integrated Global Creative Economy
Take an artist... from Salvador, Havana, Brooklyn, Cape Town...
Writer, musician, filmmaker, painter, choreographer, architect, academic, fashion designer, chef...
Integrate that artist into a network of other artists around the world.
In the manner that most human beings are within some six degrees of most others, our artist will tend to within a small number of steps of all others in the network.
The creative universe becomes a creative village in which all have access to all.
Inspired in the sensorial immanence of Borges' transfinites-inspired Alephs.
The Aleph / O Aleph
O God! I could be bounded in a nutshell, and count myself a king of infinite space...
Salvador is our base. If you plan to visit Bahia, there are some things you should probably know and you should first visit:
www.salvadorbahiabrazil.com
Linking to the Matrix from your media (to the Matrix in general / to your Matrix Page from your Instagram) plugs your people in.
https://linktr.ee
"Dear Sparrow: I am thrilled to receive your email! Thank you for including me in this wonderful matrix."
—Susan Rogers (BOSTON): Director of the Berklee Music Perception and Cognition Laboratory ... Former personal recording engineer for Prince; recorded "Purple Rain", "Sign o' the Times", "Around the World in a Day"
"Thanks, this is a brilliant idea!!"
—Alicia Svigals (NEW YORK CITY): World's premier klezmer violinist
"Dear Sparrow, Many thanks for this – I am touched!"
—Julian Lloyd Webber (LONDON): Premier cellist in UK; brother of Andrew (Evita, Jesus Christ Superstar, Cats, Phantom of the Opera...)
"We appreciate you including Kamasi in the matrix, Sparrow."
—Banch Abegaze (LOS ANGELES): manager, Kamasi Washington
"This is super impressive work ! Congratulations ! Thanks for including me :)))"
—Clarice Assad (RIO DE JANEIRO/CHICAGO): Pianist and composer with works performed by Yo Yo Ma and orchestras around the world
"Thanks! It looks great!....I didn't write 'Cantaloupe Island' though...Herbie Hancock did! Great Page though, well done! best, Randy"
Conceived under a Spiritus Mundi ranging from the quilombos and senzalas of Cachoeira and Santo Amaro to Havana and the provinces of Cuba to the wards of New Orleans to the South Side of Chicago to the sidewalks of Harlem to the townships of South Africa to the villages of Ireland to the Roma camps of France and Belgium to the Vienna of Beethoven to the shtetls of Eastern Europe...*
Sodré
*...in conversation with Raymundo Sodré, who summed up the irony in this sequence by opining for the ages: "Where there's misery, there's music!" Thus A Massa, anthem for the trod-upon folk of Brazil, which blasted from every radio between the Amazon and Brazil's industrial south until Sodré was silenced, threatened with death and forced into exile...
And thus a platform whereupon all creators tend to accessible proximity to all other creators, irrespective of degree of fame, location, or the censor.
Matrix Ground Zero is the Recôncavo, bewitching and bewitched, contouring the resplendent Bay of All Saints (end of clip below, before credits), absolute center of terrestrial gravity for the disembarkation of enslaved human beings (and for the sublimity these people created), the bay presided over by Brazil's ineffable Black Rome (seat of the Integrated Global Creative Economy* and where Bule Bule is seated below, around the corner from where we built this matrix as an extension of our record shop).
Assis Valente's (of Santo Amaro, Bahia) "Brasil Pandeiro" filmed by Betão Aguiar
Betão Aguiar
("Black Rome" is an appellation per Caetano, via Mãe Aninha of Ilê Axé Opô Afonjá.)
*Darius Mans holds a Ph.D. in Economics from MIT, and lives between Washington D.C. and Salvador da Bahia.
Between 2000 and 2004 he served as the World Bank’s Country Director for Mozambique and Angola. In that capacity, Darius led a team which generated $150 million in annual lending to Mozambique, including support for public private partnerships in infrastructure which catalyzed over $1 billion in private investment.
Darius was an economist with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, where he worked closely with the U.S. Treasury and the IMF to establish a framework to avoid debt repudiation and to restructure private commercial debt in Brazil and Chile.
He taught Economics at the University of Maryland and was a consultant to KPMG on infrastructure projects in Latin America.
Replete with Brazilian greatness, but we listened to Miles Davis and Jimmy Cliff in there too; visitors are David Dye & Kim Junod for NPR/WXPN
I'm Pardal here in Brazil (that's "Sparrow" in English). The deep roots of this project are in Manhattan, where Allen Klein (managed the Beatles and The Rolling Stones) called me about royalties for the estate of Sam Cooke... where Jerry Ragovoy (co-wrote Time is On My Side, sung by the Stones; Piece of My Heart, Janis Joplin of course; and Pata Pata, sung by the great Miriam Makeba) called me looking for unpaid royalties... where I did contract and licensing for Carlinhos Brown's participation on Bahia Black with Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock...
...where I rescued unpaid royalties for Aretha Franklin (from Atlantic Records), Barbra Streisand (from CBS Records), Led Zeppelin, Mongo Santamaria, Gilberto Gil, Astrud Gilberto, Airto Moreira, Jim Hall, Wah Wah Watson (Melvin Ragin), Ray Barretto, Philip Glass, Clement "Sir Coxsone" Dodd for his interest in Bob Marley compositions, Cat Stevens/Yusuf Islam and others...
...where I worked with Earl "Speedo" Carroll of the Cadillacs (who went from doo-wopping as a kid on Harlem streetcorners to top of the charts to working as a janitor at P.S. 87 in Manhattan without ever losing what it was that made him special in the first place), and with Jake and Zeke Carey of The Flamingos (I Only Have Eyes for You)... stuff like that.
Yeah this is Bob's first record contract, made with Clement "Sir Coxsone" Dodd of Studio One and co-signed by his aunt because he was under 21. I took it to Black Rock to argue with CBS' lawyers about the royalties they didn't want to pay (they paid).
Matrix founding creators are behind "one of 10 of the best (radios) around the world", per The Guardian.
This list is random, and incomplete. Reload the page for another list.
Susan Rogers
Alicia Svigals
Julian Lloyd Webber
Kamasi Washington
Clarice Assad
Randy Brecker
Herbie Hancock...
Bule Bule
Caetano Veloso
Darius Mans
Sparrow/Pardal Roberts
RÁDIO MATRIX