Breakbeat

As part of the Small World Music Festival in 2010, Talvin Singh was brought to Toronto to showcase a new set he was touring through North America which comprised of live tabla playing recycled through Ableton and essentially live-mixed with samples and MIDI-controlled synths.

Fans of artists like Karsh Kale may be familiar with this sort of performance - which really is real-time sample-sequencing and can make for a thoroughly enjoyable watch when you're in the audience seeing music being made by a single person but being built in layers until the texture is harmonious and you can't remember when which sample was recorded and fed into the mix.  Specifically with Tabla, and event more so with Talvin playing.  He has been classically trained in Tabla for many years and continued his practice of gaining instruction from masters since the days the London scene somewhat ended with the closure of his Anokha club-night. 

Talvin's devotion to music, and the Tabla in particular, shone that night at the Great Hall - a venue aptly named for its size yet greatly lacking in state of repair.  Unfortunately the extremely poor soundsystem meant that the music wasn't loud enough and that it had to compete with strange buzzing noises and mic feedback but somehow Talvin managed to brush that off, attempt to gain the maximum volume from his stage equipment and keep playing.  Keep playing he did - for much longer than the crowd anticipated being in for, and this, combined with the energy he brought to his set through tireless drumming and unexpected live collaborations with guests who popped out of the audience and onto stage with instruments or to grab the mic, made for a truly unique gig that was very reminscent of the early 90s (when you'd go to a party not having a clue how the night would turn out but quite sure that you'd have a great time.)

If Talvin's in your town soon - and playing a 'Tablatronic' set, be sure to check him out!